'I thought other mums ignored me due to my tattoos - but it was because of my FitBit'

A mum has opened up about a comical misunderstanding that was thwarting her attempts to make friends with other parents. The mother, who goes by @jenifursue on TikTok, felt like her fellow mums were giving her the cold shoulder.

The American was confused as to why the other parents were giving her a wide berth, and initially thought it must have been because of her tattoos. But during her child's football game, she finally got the answer she'd been after.

The mums were watching the game and having a conversation about closing the exercise rings on their Apple Watches, when Jen chimed in about her Fitbit.

The confused group of mums then admitted that the tracking device was the reason they had been distant - but only because they mistook it for something else, The Mirror reports.

In her viral TikTok video, she says: "I'm sitting at my kids' soccer game and the two mums that I sit with are talking about closing the rings on their Apple watches."

"I said, 'Oh, I don't really ever pay attention to that because I've realised how inconsistent the numbers on that are with the Fitbit on my ankle and so I go with that one because it's supposed to be more accurate. And they were like... 'That's a Fitbit?'"

It turns out, the other mums had mistakenly assumed the band was an ankle monitor, often used by courts to track offenders to ensure they don't stray outside a court-set boundary at certain times.

This misconception led to the other mothers' standoffish behaviour and left Jen stunned when she discovered the truth.

She continued: "Everyone thinks it's an ankle monitor. I assumed parents avoided me due to my tattoos, but in reality, they believed I was under house arrest.

"I later found out that once when a police officer arrived, he had come to watch his children play at the soccer field, but everyone assumed he was there for me... so good times."

The TikTok video has been viewed millions of times, with viewers agreeing that it provides valuable insight into human behaviour. One viewer commented: "I'll take ankle monitor mom over mom who gossips about ankle monitor mom."

Another replied: "Put Fitbit on ankle to avoid human interaction... Got it! Thank you!" Another asked: "How do people confuse tiny Fitbits with clunky ankle monitors? And also, that's 100 per cent not a reason to not talk to someone."

One asked: "Are you still going to wear it?" While another person, keen to avoid social interaction, commented: "That's it. I'm getting an ankle monitor. Headphones aren't working."

Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond. Sign up to our daily newsletter.