I had my daughter at 13 – trolls say I ‘should have given her away’ but I raised her with no help
BEING a mum isn’t easy, especially when you’re only 13 and have many more barriers to face.
That’s what happened to US-based Michele Dalton who shares her story online with her 85k followers.
The mum-of-four became pregnant with her first daughter, Alecia, at the age of 12 and gave birth when she was 13.
Now 36, she is a grandma to two little girls from her eldest, who is 23.
In one of their recent videos, the pair participate in the ‘of course’ trend which sees people list stereotypes and tropes they fall into because of their situation.
“I had her when I was 13, of course people say I should have given her away for someone else to raise,” Michele begins.
“She had me at 13, of course when I tell people my mum’s age they say, ‘there’s no way,'” her daughter says.
She adds: “She had me at 13, of course everyone thinks she’s my sister.”
“I had her at 13, of course everyone questioned and doubted what our future would look like,” Michele says.
In other parts of the clip, she says she raised Alecia without help from her mum or dad and admitted it was hard but “we’ve made it through.”
In the comments, people were quick to praise Michele for persevering despite her unusual family dynamic.
“It sounds like you did amazing.
“Congratulations on your beautiful family,” wrote one person.
Another commented: “You did it girlie [red heart emoji]. Great job [two pink hearts emoji].”
A third penned: “I love this! I had my son at 15 and we are proving people wrong too!!”
“I’m proud of you! I can’t imagine it was easy but you did it [red heart emoji],” someone else said.
In another video in the same style, she tells viewers: “I still have to pick people’s jaws up off the floor when they find out she’s my daughter.”
UK Teen Mum Statistics
Teen pregnancies in the UK have been decreasing considerably since 2007...
The under-18 conception rate has decreased considerably since 2007, reports Nuffield Trust.
Between 2007 and 2021, the under-18 conception rate in England and Wales decreased by 68%, from 42 per 1,000 women to 13 per 1,000 women.
This resulted in 13,131 under-18 conceptions in England and Wales in 2021.
the teen mum also says when Alecia was finishing secondary school, her youngest was only just starting.
Michele added her sisters became aunts before they were even teenagers
Talking about her hardships, Michele said: “Everything you do in your life, you will be judged for by somebody.
“Had I not kept my baby at 13, I would not be living my best life with my 23-year-old and her two babies.
“Teen mums can make it.”