People Are Sharing Their Devastating "Pink Tote Lid" Moments on TikTok — What Does the Phrase Mean?

TikTok trends can be difficult to keep up with, especially if you're not spending a ton of your time on the app. It seems like overnight, something small can balloon into a major fad that takes over the entire platform. And when those trends include obscure lingo, they can be even harder to decipher.

If your TikTok homepage has been flooded with folks sharing their "pink tote lid" moments, you're not alone. It's a viral trend that has taken flight over the past few days, with thousands of users participating — but what the heck is a pink tote lid moment?

The phrase may seem nonsensical at first, but it has a sad backstory.

The story-sharing trend first began with one TikTok user, whose original video has since been deleted and reposted by other pages. In her story, the girl, sitting quietly in her dark bedroom, shared an upsetting argument she had just had with her parents.

"I'm in the shower," she recounts to the camera in a whisper. "I get out, and I am drying my hair, and my mom comes and bangs on the f--king bathroom door like this." She then mimics a loud, aggressive banging.

"So I'm like, 'What?' and she goes, 'You wanna have a f--king spa day? Go to sleep! I need help!' So I hurry up, and I get dressed, and I get out," she continues.

When she asks what her mom needs help with, she responds, "I need you to put the pink things in my room."

When the user expressed confusion about the "pink things" in question, her mom then apparently blew up on her, cussing her out and asking if she was dumb. After explaining to her mom that she was unsure because her wording was vague, her dad then decided to step in — and chew out his daughter, too.

"They're both just going off on me," she says tearfully, clearly frustrated.

After her story went viral, additional users on the app rallied behind her with support, using her story as an example of emotionally abusive parenting.

The phrase "pink tote lid moment" is now being used by TikTokers to share similar traumatic childhood experiences, many of them leading to no-contact relationships with parents or other family members.

One user wrote, "My pink tote lid moment was my dad coming into my room at 2 a.m. on a school night just to tell me he bought me ice cream. And when I wasn't more excited, even though I was barely awake, he screamed at me for being disrespectful and not being more appreciative for him getting me ice cream. He didn't leave my room until 4 a.m."

In the comments, even more users recounted their pink tote lid moments.

"I realized the other day that I can’t think of a single family event where my dad wasn’t furious about something," one said. Another wrote, "My whole childhood was a pink tote lid moment."

While it's certainly a sad trend, shedding light on some of the ways that children can experience emotional trauma from family, it has also created a sense of community and a safe space for folks to share their stories.