‘The way she’s trying to defend it’: Horrified daughter discovers her parents are cousins, but her mom is A-OK with that

Doing a 23andMe (other brands of genealogy tests are available) is often an interesting way to find out about yourself and your heritage. Unfortunately, digging around in your family history can sometimes unearth some skeletons in your clan’s closet that really should’ve remained a secret.

Take the strange story of TikTok user Kate who discovered the horrifying truth (at least for her) that her mom and dad are actually cousins! The revelation that her parents are in any way related left Kate freaking out, but hilariously, her mom seemed totally unfazed by the news and didn’t appear to understand why it was causing her daughter to lose her mind.

“Do you have a genetic disorder, Kate?” the sunbathing mom asks casually, as if to say “No, you don’t, so quit whining.” Later on, with phone in hand, clearly having Googled it, Kate’s mom tries to calm her down by telling her that any kind of cousins barring first cousins can legally get married. “I’m not worried about ‘married,'” Kate cries. “I’m worried about f***ed-up kids!”

Even though Kate is suffering enough, the people of TikTok couldn’t resist roasting her further in the comments. “So both your mom and your dad are also YOUR cousins lol,” one helpfully pointed out, while another quipped: “The family tree is a wreath.” Others are wondering how these more-than-kissing cousins met: “So did they meet at a family party?”

As Kate’s mom explains, her grandmother and her husband’s grandmother were first cousins, which means that Kate’s parents are third cousins. So, in the eyes of the law, there is no problem with this, although there are five states in the U.S. where marriage between second cousins is banned. Kate herself, though, can’t get past her concerns about how this might negatively impact her genes and maybe that of her future offspring.

Maybe this will assuage Kate’s fears, however. On an episode of Finding Your Roots, Marvel star Paul Rudd discovered his parents were even more closely related as they were second cousins. So, apparently what happens to the children of cousins is that they become immortal and never visibly age. Huh. Guys, should we be marrying our cousins? [Note: We Got This Covered does not endorse marrying your cousin].