A mother's tweet about her adult son suddenly went viral. When he read it, he was horrified.

No one ever tells you that one of motherhood‘s pure joys is embarrassing your children at every opportunity. It seems that one American mother got the memo – and decided to really run with it.

Twitter user @MarlaReynoldsC3 was apparently trying to support her son – but accidentally (on purpose, maybe) used the trending hashtag ‘HimToo’ – totally incorrectly.

“This is MY son,” she tweeted with a photo of her son, Pieter Hanson, in his navy uniform.

“He graduated #1 in boot camp. He was awarded the USO award. He was #1 in A school. He is a gentleman who respects women. He won’t go on solo dates due to the current climate of false sexual accusations by radical feminists with an axe to grind. I VOTE. #HimToo.”

The tweet attracted instant attention thanks to the hashtag, and went viral – forcing the poor mum to delete her Twitter account.

If you are seeing the #himtoo hashtag and are utterly confused as to why so many people are posting photos of men who are clearly NOT their sons with the same text copy/pasted, this is what started it.

@MarlaReynoldsC3 has since deleted her account. pic.twitter.com/Q5XPj2I9Fe

— Holly Fιɢυeroα O’Reιlly (@AynRandPaulRyan) October 8, 2018

With the hashtag trending, Pieter spoke to BBC to explain what had happened.

“I’m not afraid to go on dates!” he said. “It’s my mum just being a little silly, I wouldn’t put too much thought into it.”

Alas, Twitter was uninterested in any sensible explanations, and the mocking tweets started to trend online.

This is MY son. He graduated #1 in his class at time travel school. He received an award thanks to his flux capacitor. He is a gentleman capable of going 88 miles per hour. He won’t go on solo dates because his mother made a pass at him at prom. I VOTE. #HimToo pic.twitter.com/EKTIVDeVHD

— Nina Bargiel (@slackmistress) October 9, 2018

This is MY sun. He graduated #1 in THE SOLAR SYSTEM. He is a star who respects planets. He won’t go on solo orbits because his gravitational pull is so strong that one day he will explode! I VOTE. #HimToo pic.twitter.com/FXe5ipyOSM

— Zack Bornstein (@ZackBornstein) October 9, 2018

Jon Hanson, Pieter’s brother, also felt compelled to respond.

“My brother is trending on Twitter because of my mum’s ridiculous tweet. I’m a mixture of laughing hard and feeling bad for him. #HimToo,” he tweeted.

But eventually, the world got what they wanted – to hear from Pieter himself, who had to create a Twitter account @Thatwasmymom to clear his name.

“That was my Mum,” he tweeted.

“Sometimes the people we love do things that hurt us without realising it.”

Pieter also made it absolutely clear he was opposed to the #HimToo hashtag.

“I never have and never will support #HimToo.”

That was my Mom. Sometimes the people we love do things that hurt us without realizing it. Let’s turn this around. I respect and #BelieveWomen . I never have and never will support #HimToo . I’m a proud Navy vet, Cat Dad and Ally. Also, Twitter, your meme game is on point. pic.twitter.com/yZFkEjyB6L

— Pieter Hanson (@Thatwasmymom) October 9, 2018

If you’re wondering what the issue is with #HimToo, it’s related to the controversy surrounding the appointment of new American Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh. Basically, US President Donald Trump called the sexual assault claims against Kavanaugh a “hoax”, and conservative commentator Candace Owens used the hashtag #HimToo to defend him.

So, yes – not a good look – which is why this poor mother received such negative backlash.

This is MY son. He graduated second to last in flying camp. He successfully swallowed salmon today. He is a gentleman who respects – nay, deserves women. He wont go on solo dates due to the current climate of false sexual accusations, and also bc hes emotionally stunted #HimToo pic.twitter.com/TDLweUjpHJ

— Emlyn Crenshaw (@emlyncrenshaw) October 8, 2018

“I was dumbfounded when I saw it, but at the end of the day we all have crazy parents,” Pieter told the BBC.

“I still love her. She’s my mum. What she said was pretty inflammatory, but I want to make sure it doesn’t come back harsh on her.”

The Navy officer also took  the opportunity to raise awareness for his little brother, who is a survivor of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma.

I’m new at this… so this time with pictures ! So #negativeintopositives my little brother Cooper is a child survivor of non hodgkin lymphoma and my personal hero. Please donate to @LLSusa @MakeAWish pic.twitter.com/65Zeay8vPa

— Pieter Hanson (@Thatwasmymom) October 9, 2018