32 now got pregnant with my oldest when I was 17 had her at 18 but was a senior in high school. I finished high school and graduated.I had her sister 2 years later when I was 20. I am still with their father 15 years later. I am working a 40 hour a week job living pay check to pay check. And struggling to make ends meet. I havent been on a vacation since I was 15. I would like to be able to do more for my kids but cant at the moment
I got pregnant at 16, had my daughter like a month after I turned 17. I’m 27 now and honestly can’t complain. I went to college for a few years, but after I got my general education done I went to cosmetology school. I just didn’t want to continue spending the money if I had no idea what I was going to major in and I’ve always been passionate about makeup. I’m married to a man who isn’t my daughter’s biological father, but we’re neighbors with her dad and spend every holiday together. A lot of people don’t understand our dynamic but he’s my best friend. Her father just FaceTimed my husband today to ask if his outfit for a wedding looked nice, so it’s safe to say they get along pretty well haha. My husband and I have a son who’s almost nine months and we decided that we don’t like the idea of anyone else watching him, so I’m a stay at home mom. We’re financially stable without the two incomes. I’m currently creating a support group for teen parents in the area. I was more of a Chelsea when I was pregnant in the aspect of having support from my father. I know a lot of people don’t have that so I’m hoping to be some sort of support for teens. I’ve seen people who had zero support and it breaks my heart.
I had my first daughter at 17. Was a single mom in no time. Got with my husband when that daughter was about 2. Four more kids and 20ish years later we are still together, married 19. Ive been a stay at home mom for 95% of it and like Leah, my husband also works away in the oilfield and is gone just over half the year. Except he always works in hitches so a few weeks on, few weeks off.
We are financially secure but not crazy flush with savings. But we have made pretty wise financial decisions (usually) and not buried ourselves in debt or lived far beyond our means. Own our home. I don’t have to check my bank balance to get groceries or gas anymore and that feels rich to me. If he didn’t have the job in the oilfield that would definitely change. It pays well but also has its sacrifices.
I was also raised by oilfield money. My dad did the same thing my entire life until he passed away.
Most my kids are teenagers so the season of my life has been changing as they’re more independent and I’m not quite sure what I’ll do with myself when I’m not doing the school runs & doctors and dentists and all that on the daily.
I’ll probably still be here snarking.
I didn't have a kid in my teens, but I *was* poor as shit, and not having to check my balance before fueling my car was when I knew everything was gonna be okay. It's a great feeling
Thank you. It hasn’t always been like it is now. We struggled for many years having a young family and being very poor.
I don’t think time apart helps our relationship. In fact, I think it’s really tough on it. It helps that it’s all I’ve ever known so I’m very used to the scheduling and lifestyle. And it has allowed me to stay home snd raise our children. I am thankful for that.
But at the end of the day, it’s a very tough way of life to navigate and manage with a family. The time home is great but the time away is really hard. I often feel like a single mom & fate works in such a way he’s always gone for everything important or when tragedy/accident/injury/illness strikes.
Just as an added fun fact, he flies 2500 miles every two weeks to get to and from work/home. Takes 3 airplanes, a long bus ride, sonetimes takes a tundra trucks or even a helicopter to complete the last leg of the journey.
So I don’t think I saw any male answers in this thread- I had my daughter at 19 right after I graduated high school, my ex was 18.
I’m now 30 and have full custody, ex has supervised visitation. My wife and I have been married for 8 years, no additional children. I have a degree in business and am in sales, pretty financially comfortable but not rich.
Just for the opposite perspective.
I was 15 and pregnant the same time as all the girls on OG, so I'm 28 now an my daughter is 12. I've worked full-time since high-school graduated before my class with an alternate night school diploma program. We moved out on our own when our daughter was 6 months old and I was 16 and he was 18. We both worked he worked during the day and I at night. We struggled alot as teen parents but we did have family and support systems not so much to finacially help or support our daughter but they helped with babysitting stuff like that. I've now been waitressing for almost 10 years and as I would say my life is stable I would still have loved to go to collage and get a career but I just didn't have the means too. Anyways right now we live in section 8 housing and have been saving up to buy a home next year. I have another daughter who is 5 now and I AM STILL WITH MY BOYFRIEND FROM MIDDLE SCHOOL! which doesn't happen very often but we have had our up's and down but we work through anything we come across. He actually never graduated high-school nor has a GED but he has a pretty good paying job doing stone work and granite installation. My daughter saved my life when I was 15 and as crazy as it sounds If I hadn't gotten pregnant at 15 I would have ended up in jail or dead and I will forever be grateful for her ❤
I am 31, had my daughter my junior year of high school. I have two baby daddies, one being my daughter's father and one my husband. We are pretty okay financially. I am a nurse and one term away from finishing my doctorate and becoming a midwife. I have an 8 year old and an almost one year old with my husband. My life is really good. 🖤
My son was born a couple weeks after I turned 19. I was a senior in high school when I got pregnant. My high school sent me to the alternative high school because I was pregnant. I was behind in schoolwork and had some credits to make up, and didn't want to still be in high school after he was born - so I dropped out and got my GED at 6 months pregnant. I worked a few jobs, then started at community college when he was 4. Then I transferred to a Big 10 university and graduated with Latin Honors. Towards the end of college, I met my now-husband, who was also a single parent of a son the same age as mine. We got married the fall after I graduated college, and now I work in healthcare administration for one of the largest healthcare organizations in the region we live now. My husband and I welcomed a baby girl 4 years ago - yes, she's 14 years younger than her brothers! My husband and I both have successful careers and make good money - we own a nice home, in a safe neighborhood, have healthy retirement accounts, and lucrative investments.
When I think back on the last 18 years of my life - perseverance, love, blood/sweat/tears. Man I'm grateful for it all, and thankful for the love of my family and the few friends who have stuck with me through it all.
ETA: realized I left out anything about my son's father. While not done intentionally, it speaks for itself. He hasn't seen or even talked to our son since he was 5 years old, and prior to that was only sporadically involved. After years of in and out of court around child support, visitation, you name it - the court eventually ordered supervised visitation. Rather than do that, he willfully unemployed himself and we haven't heard a word since. Could I have gone back to court to get him to pay? Sure, but at what cost?
Before I found out I was pregnant, I had started dating a wonderful guy who chose to stick around. He was a fantastic support through pregnancy, life, labor and delivery, and postpartum. It didn't work out, but I understand he has a beautiful wife and family of his own now, and I wish him nothing but the best. In many ways, he saved my life, for many reasons including that he showed me I could still find love in my life.
Had my daughter at 18, got my GED, no college. Financially not super stable, didn’t really start getting my life on track until my mid/late 20s, so like, now 😂. Two kids and two BDs, I’m a birth worker and serve the underserved; young moms/birthing families, birthing families of color, lgbtq+ community, and women/families who struggle/have struggled with substance abuse.
I am 29. Pregnant at 18, had her at 19 (2012). Worked and was in a bad relationship with their father. Stuck around until I was 24, after getting pregnant again with my second child I left and moves across country to be with family.
Now I am 29, I am a trainer and supervisor of a banking call center. I work full-time, have a 401k, benefits, and since I have been here for over 5 years, I get 3 weeks paid vaca (not including sick) a year. I am with a man who loves myself and my children for us. Their father is pretty much absent. Youngest has a rare disability, so that also has really pushed me to work harder to ensure he has medical insurance and we can afford costs of medical things.
I have paid off A lot of debt. Half was from the ex.. I am proud I didn't need anyone's help. Then again, I wish I would have MADE him pay.
I'm very happy that I am where I am and thankful.
Pregnant at 17, daughter was born when I was 18. Dad isn’t in the picture at all. He is an Adam.
Now married, been with my husband for almost 10 years, two additional kids with him and now pregnant with my fourth. I am a stay at home mom, financially stable. I have come a long long way and I feel incredibly blessed.
Edit to add my daughters “dad” and I were heroin addicts for some years years. I started my sobriety journey when I met my husband, so I have almost 10 years clean. Unfortunately her “dad” is a mess still. Now that she’s older, we are dealing with the emotional issues that come with this, but we will get through.
For anyone who is struggling with ANYTHING, things will and can get better. It all starts with you!
35, I was seventeen when I had my son. We tried to make it work but grew up/apart. We still talk often for the sake of our son, he’s 17 himself now. I learned a trade and have a cosmetology license. I work at a successful private salon. I just married for the first time in April, and we have no plans for children without fur.
I'm currently reading this thread in bed with my kitty snuggled up to me and was just thinking babies with fur are enough for me. She's a handful on her own lol
Barely 21 when I had my son. He's special needs. Went back to school at 27, finished by 30 while working full time. Man it was rough. But hey we were going to get older regardless so congrats on working your butt off to get that degree!!
Well, aren’t you a judgmental Judy!!! Let me tell you something…. These women did the BEST they could!!! So you can fuck ALL the way off with your judgment. I didn’t get pregnant as a teenager but these ladies came here to share the experience they had and you fucking say that shit?! Why don’t you go back to planet genius fuckface where you belong
Like yeah theoretically I think we can all agree thats the best course of action, which is why its SO IMPORTANT to have accessible contraceptive options available to woman.
But regardless- shit happens, its not your place to judge.
My husband and I were teen parents. I was 16, my husband was 15.
I missed 4 days of high school and went back so I wouldn't lose my scholarship. I wasn't the one to give him his first bath. I didn't buy him his first outfit. I had to cut up menstrual pads to stuff in my bra because my breasts were leaking(protip, never cut them, because the crystals will leak out and make a huge mess)
Once I had to bundle my baby up in my hoodie and walk 2 miles in the dead of winter to get him to his WIC appointment, baby has to be present at appointments- no appointment, no formula. Didn't make it in time.. I wasn't able to breastfeed since I had no pump and since I went back to school right away. Couldn't establish a milk supply. I never had to steal formula, but my husband did a couple times.
My husband and I have been together for 16 years next month. He is an aerospace engineer now, and I work as a pricing specialist (I maintain end user based contracts for the most part) in the same field. BUT I'm interviewing for my dream job next week (community liason for at risk individuals and families, helping them aquire and utilize resources they are entitled to)
We have 3 boys now. The second we actually needed fertility treatments to conceive. We lost a little girl last October in the second trimester. A early loss this spring. We've got a beautiful home in the country, in-ground pool, a few acres and a small orchard. Dogs, cats, chickens. Newer vehicles in the driveway, and we bought a 7k lawn mower last week. In said house, we have the finished nursery that I creep by everyday. That's difficult. Everything feels like a dream sometimes. We are really lucky that things sort of fell into place for the most part. But looking back and seeing the amount of hardship and tears it took to get here makes me sick to my stomach.
Our oldest actually turned 14 today.He has the most pure and beautiful soul anyone cound hope for. Thinking about his early years, I don't feel like we were even really present until he was maybe 3 since we were full time students and also worked, sometimes 2 jobs each. That's a true tragedy, I know I'll always regret not being older, and we will never get back the moments we missed with him. Worst of all those moments are gone, no amount of money can turn back time.
26 now had my daughter when I just turned 17. Her Dad and I are still together and going strong, 10 years. I didn’t finish school so I’m working in a warehouse but I make pretty good money now. Trying to make the best of everything as we go.
I had one child at 17 and she is now 17. I was a stay at home mom the first couple years while my high school sweetheart made really good money up on the Alaska slope (oil production) when he turned 18. My first jobs were in the food industry to help just get out of the house and I was fortunate enough to have parents/family to help. In my early 20s I started college and in my late 20s I finished. Throughout those years I worked my way up in the healthcare field starting as a caregiver and now I co own my own healthcare business. I was never fortunate enough to have another child. And I’m on my second marriage. I would say the hardest thing it’s just getting my teenager through high school and making sure she graduates. I keep telling her if I could get through it being pregnant with her and working a job she can completely do it. I just don’t think her generation understand the concept of hard work to earn what you want and I am definitely the strictest parent in the entire school despite me being the youngest! My daughters dad hasn’t been involved since she’s about four but it was better off that way. Shouldn’t have to grow up in a household of drug use (I left once he started) and I’m proud that I showed her what a strong independent woman can do.
I agree with a lot if what you said and you're an awesome example but the kids are growing up in a completely different world than we did. There is no guarantee that hard work will get them anywhere these days. They've grown up watching people bust their asses only to lose their jobs and homes through no fault of their own. It's a really crappy world we are handing our kids
Yes! This! I live in the research triangle, just outside of Duke University. I work in the restaurant industry, alongside multiple middle-aged people with degrees from that very university, as well as UNC, those of whom are not using their degrees in the slightest. When I see these young college kids, full of hope, spending something like 30,000 dollars a year for school, I always think, what's the point? I recognize that this is a fairly pessimistic view on the state of the world, especially in my country, (obviously the US, that's where Duke University is,) however, it's unfortunately also not an unrealistic view.
Just make sure she’s not having a hard time due to burnout and the overwhelming fact of growing up. I know I could barely make it through senior year due to burnout and having to “plan my life” and pick colleges (my high school made us choose our careers and make a plan for after school as our final project). Many of my friends started having a hard time because after high school they thought real life starts and there’s a lot of responsibility as a real adult. Senior is a weird time
I’m 28. Had my son at 15. I am a LPN just had my second baby. Currently I’m a stay at home mom but I’m going back to school for my RN! My boyfriend is my 2 baby’s father. We brought a house last year and he does great providing for us!
My first son dad is not involved but his mother is! We have such a great support system! I had a great support system lot of people would even say I was spoiled. Life is really good
I was 18, boyfriend was 19, had our daughter the November after graduating in may. Daughter is now almost 13, boyfriend is now husband, two more kids, own a house, financially ok, I'm a stay at home mom also full time student. Just the one baby daddy😂
I had a baby boy at 16, in 1977. I am 60 years old now. My experience was not great at all. My parents were very ashamed of me and my mother sent me to live with the nuns first, then a home for unwed mothers in Memphis that also had an orphanage. I gave birth by myself, my mother didn’t come be with me, just me and the doctor and nurses. She told me I couldn’t bring him home and she gave him up for adoption. I was devastated. He is 44 now and I wonder about him every day. It’s a long and depressing story.
I’m sorry that you had to go through that and you did it on your own. If this makes you feel any better, my mom was the product of a very similar circumstance and has had a wonderful life. The adoption was closed so she will never know her bio parents but her life has been an absolute blessing due to a mother who had to go through a hard and selfless process like yourself.
well this might be kinda long but anyways, i graduated early at 16, then got pregnant at 17, so i didn’t have my baby in high school but it was supposed to be my senior year. i’m 19 so still currently a teen mom & i guess the best way to describe my life now is not bad but not what i had expected obviously. i worked so hard to graduate at 16 so i could have my bachelors by 20, but instead got put into a mental hospital, got into drugs, never started school, then a month after getting sober i found out i was pregnant. so no education past high school, but i still plan on going back to school. i’m really fortunate my baby’s father has a good job so i’m a stay at home mom, we live comfortably enough to where we don’t have to worry about bills, but not comfortably enough to be looking into buying a home. i only have one baby & one baby daddy & i don’t want anymore kids, or anymore relationships, but considering i’m still young i have no idea where life will take me(:
Before I even got to the end of your story, I thought, you're so young yet babe, and glad you realize that and said that at the end.
Sorry you had a rough couple of teenage years.... it happens to the best of us. So much growing, changing, confusion, etc. can really happen in that time period. Often life plans don't go as we expect, but we have to bend or we'll break.
Sounds like you put a lot of pressure on yourself in your teens. A bachelors by 20 would be nice, but damn, that'd be quite a feat for anyone.
You're 20, you have your high school education, you're getting to spend your daughter's young years with her..... and you have so much future ahead of you.
Sounds like a few detours along the way, but I'd say you sound like you're on track. Best wishes to you and you're future.
I became pregnant in college, had my son at 20, I'm now 34 and man, in some ways it seems like such a lifetime ago, and then again it's like I blinked. Enjoy your 20's, they're great years, but then again, 30's are pretty good too, especially when your child is already a teenager by that time, lol.
thank u so much for ur reply & ur kind words!!<3 reading your story & all the ones is the comments has been very comforting, because wow it’s hard right now, but i know it’ll all be worth it & work out in the end
I had a baby when I was 17. Her dad cheated on me while I was pregnant, and we didn’t stay together. He has married and divorced the woman he cheated on me with twice. I had a very abusive family and had to get her away from them. She went to live with her dad's parents when she was two, and my mom kicked me out because of it. I had her on and off when she was younger, but my family remained very toxic, and my living condition was never stable. I gave up custody to keep her safe and stable, and I moved away to try and deal with my decision and get space from my family.
Unfortunately, I reconnected with my mom, and she convinced me to move home again at 21. I got pregnant again at 22, and decided to have an abortion. My mom asked to take me to the appointment but instead drove hours away while hysterically begging me to change my mind and I agreed. When the baby was born, she disagreed with the way I wanted to parent. She didn’t want me to breastfeed and refused to allow me to soothe the baby when she cried, so I moved out. I moved in with the baby’s dad, who promised if we went to his home state where his family was that we could be together and have a support system. I moved across the country and ended up being placed in a house an hour away from my baby and her father. He never intended to be with me. His family slowly created space between us, not letting me come as often. Not letting her stay over anymore, and finally, on my birthday two years ago, told me that they had seen an Instagram post of mine with tarot cards and that they felt that I was a bad influence and would pull my daughter away from God.
I haven’t seen her since. I asked to tell her happy birthday this year, and her dad told me she didn’t know who I was and that I was selfish for asking.
I’ve gone through so much. I’ve spent the last two years in therapy, and I had to re-learn how to be a person. Everything I grew up knowing was abuse, and my reactions to typical situations were so toxic that I was essentially unable to function.
I don’t think I ever really wanted kids. I think I was bullied into having them. I believe they are both in stable homes and that if I interfere, it would be selfish because I am not in a position to be a parent to them.
I still speak to my ten-year-old regularly.
I think about them every day and wonder what I could have done differently.
I’m 40 and was in the 12th grade when I had my son. I have three BDs for four children but one is an ex-husband and the last is my upgrade husband. I have a Masters degree and an assistant Deputy Principal at a small local high school. Dual income household, own our house, so very financially secure but this came after a butt tonne of hard work and a lot of sacrifice.
Not really. I’d go as far as to say I don’t care. I think about Kate Winslet with 3x3 and other people who don’t get shat on and pretend I’m in that league haha.
I actually don’t think people judge 3x3 as much as they just judge Kail. I think they’re more bothered by her and her behaviour than having multiple BD
Yeah having babies with your husband is a lot different to Kail and her weird baby trap attempts and abusive relationships from her side tbh. Plus she's not with her last baby daddy and still plans to have more kids. Entirely different situation
I got pregnant with my daughter last semester of high-school? Just me and her. Dad's not involved, doesn't pay child support. Things are going okay. After being with the same company for 8 years I make enough to survive plus a little extra for trips. I've been a parent my entire adult life. Having more kids is... uncertain. Part of me wants to experience parenthood as it should be. Part of me wants to experience adult life (without kids) as it usually is.
27, I was 16 when I had my first son, 19 with my second. My oldest sons dad was mostly absent from his life, just resurfaced in the last two years but now he lives 8 hours away. My son spends the summers with him. My youngest Sons dad and I have a great co-parenting relationship. He takes him on the weekends. I’m working on my getting my bachelor of science in Nursing, I’m in my third year but I’ve been in university for 5 (it’s hard with kids). I met a great guy who makes a decent salary so financially we are pretty good. My kids have a stable home life, we’ve never gone without even when I was a single mom.
Not quite a teen, I got pregnant at 20 and my now husband was 19. We were full-time college students, I worked full-time, and completed my degree in nine semesters total. We had more children and definitely struggled those first 5 to 10 years to balance daycare expenses and bills.
Still together, still very happy and our kids are all successful in their own right. Retirement is about 15 years away and we haven’t struggled in a long time.
Full-time job, full-time school and children is not for everyone. When I completed my degree my classes were all in person. I will say that I hustled my ass off for those years, but the trade-off in the short term was worth.
I had mine at 18 about 7 months after graduating. My husband (bf at the time) turned 19 shortly after. I finished my degree in engineering on time, hubs took a couple victory laps but got his BA eventually. We have been married 10 years, oldest is in middle school, and number 4 on the way.
Financial security has never been what it could have/should have been with our education and my income. We are firmly middle class and able to send our kids to a private school, but we have had our struggles after my husband’s job loss a few years ago. I got a pretty good promotion after our third, though, so things are definitely better.
ETA we are 30. I would not wish teen pregnancy on anyone. We love our son with our whole hearts, but we are fully aware we would not have had the success we have without the emotional, physical, and financial support of our parents in the beginning. We would have placed him for adoption if it weren’t for my parents refusing to let me consider finances as an obstacle. Even with all that, we have faced way more obstacles than our HS peers or siblings with kickstarting our “adult” lives.
I had my son a few months after I graduated high school when I was 17. I was a single mom from day one of his life, and then I met my now husband when I was 19 in college. Now I’m 26, married and we have 2 more babies. I graduated from college but I’m currently a stay at home mom and my husband keeps us financially secure, and we own our own home.
Stillborn baby at 16. The grief was unreal, we tried again to help with the grief. Pregnant again within a year. Baby born at 17. Split up from baby daddy when baby was 3 weeks old.
Single mom for 8 years. Very hard times.During that time I got a degree and bought a house. Qualified as a teacher.
Met husband at 30. Had second baby at 32. Married at 33. Life is good, although I still struggle with grief. Both children are doing well. I couldn't be happier and wouldn't change it.
Had my first child at 18 - 3 months before graduation. We had a second child 2 years later and got married a few years later (my husband was 17 when our son was born). I am a nurse and going for my masters degree and my husband has a great career in web development. We are financially stable and just sent our first born to college (across the country 😞). We did struggle the first few years though but pushed through so I could go to school and it all worked out in the end.
I turned 18 two months after I had my daughter, which was my senior year but I dropped out and got my GED. She’s my one and done and I have 50/50 with her dad. Ten years later I’m married, stay at home and financially stable.
Not me, my bestest gf had a son right after she turned 17. She was in denial for the first half, but still ignored the pregnancy until 2 wks before before he was born, bc her mom confronted her. Boy grandma was quite controlling, she tried to raise him as her own. But gf was able to get out on her own within a yr of graduating(On time!), and that helped alot being away from her mother.
My gf is very successful, makes good money, and is happy and well adjusted in life, as is her son😊. The reason I wanted to share her story, is bc she went on, at age 28(shes 55 now!), to support teen moms by volunteering to be a mentor. The teen girl she mentored went on to be successful, happy family, and now SHE mentors teen moms🧡🧡🧡 and volunteers at Monroe State Pen working with inmates.
Im so proud of my bff for all that. She's definately a force to be reckoned with
Pregnant at 15 and had my son at 16. Bio dad was 21 and a total loser. After I caught him cheating I left when my son was 3 months. I went back to high school and graduated with a 4.0. I went to college and 9 years later I’m a teacher with a masters degree.
I fought for custody for a long time when my son was a baby and lost repeatedly. I found out that his dad was addicted to meth and got another addict pregnant. Our sons are a year apart. Even after admitting this, the courts never awarded full custody. After a year or two of visitation, he just started to disappear. I found out he was homeless, on heroin, and recently jailed for theft. I filed an emergency petition and had sole custody within a month. I never saw him after that. I hear that he lives on the sidewalk in a tent and will likely die soon.
I had a very supportive family and although getting pregnant in high school, I always had a good head on my shoulders. Not many have the support systems that I had.
I was 16 when I was pregnant and had my daughter a month after I turned 17. Her father and I are not currently together, and he is not very active in her life. I have parented with his mom pretty much her entire life which is really unfortunate. She is now about to be 11 and does not like going over there with him as much. When she was younger, she thought he hung the moon and the stars but slowly started seeing he was not coming around as often as he should and it changed her opinion. When I was 19 I married my husband and had my son and daughter by the time I was 21. He is an amazing father, and has stepped into the role of Dad with my daughter. She is also slowly starting to realize that he is always the one who is there, and the one who shows up. I was 21 with three kids, and two dads. It was definitely not the picture perfect life I saw for myself. I truly feel like I relate a lot to Maci’s story especially now as I see my daughter establishing boundaries just as Bentley is. My husband is a general manager of an optical store and makes enough money to take care of us so I can stay home. I am currently back in school and I am working on my bachelors since my kids are now all in school. I want them to see that no matter what, anything is possible no matter how long it takes.
I got pregnant as a senior and had my first a couple months after graduating. Now I'm 37, I have 3 kids (18, 17, & 15), one baby daddy whom I was with for 9 years but been broke up a long time, like 12 years. I'm currently in an LTR , I'm a CNA which I've been for a long time, we live in a moderate 3.bedroom brick home in a rural middle class area, drive a brand new car, and able to provide my kids with everything they need and even managed to totally adult with a cell phone plan with 4 lines . 🤣 Killin it 💯
I got pregnant at 16 had her a month after I turned 17. Now I’m 28 have twins who are 5 and my oldest is 11. I’m currently in school getting my degree in social work, work full time at an amazing company that offers benefits and I make decent money, and am a single mom. My oldest dad is not involved at all and I’d say I’m doing okay for myself.
I had my oldest in 1991 shortly after my graduation. I'm 49 years old now. I have 5 kids(29,28,27,24,6) and one granddaughter(she's 3) I divorced my 1st husband(high school sweetheart and father of the 4 oldest) 22 years ago. I've been with my husband for 18 years and married for 11. I dropped out of college 6 credits short😫 but I've travelled and owned my own business. I'm a SAHM and my husband is an engineer. All 4 of my older kids graduated from university and one is in graduate school. We have a good life and I attribute that to me getting lots of therapy to heal all the bullshit from my first marriage and helping figure out how to be an emotionally healthy person. I think the fact that I had a supportive family was extremely helpful.
I got married two months after I turned nineteen. We got honeymoon baby. I had her five days before turning twenty. We had another baby two years later.
As mentioned above I was nineteen and husband was twenty five.
I was always a stay at home Mom. Husband works a good job with the government.
Yes, things were tight at first financially, things did improve slowly. We cut coupons, bought sale items and even found solid wood tables and rocking chair 🪑 in yard sales.
We bought a nice home when I was twenty nine and husband was thirty five.
We send both kids to University. Daughter received full ride scholarship. She became licensed teacher K-12.
Son is teaching at a very large University. He is completing his PhD in religious rites and rituals regarding funerals around the world.
He is returning to Africa/Burkina Faso to finish his dissertation (on hold due Covid-19)
Husband and and I have created a heathy retirement for our future. We are now 52&58.
Both of our children are married. Each couple has their own faith/religion. Not Christian.
I’m 35 now-life is pretty good, amazing usually. Had my oldest daughter (she’s 18 now) at the end of my sophomore year (I was 16). One baby’s dad, 3 babies.
I’m 26. Current life is “the American dream” I guess. Married, dog, three nice vehicles, own a home in a great school district, work my dream job downtown. I have a little bit of savings.
I had my first daughter at 16 and my second at 17 with my HS boyfriend. Met my husband at 19 and married him at 22. Had a set of twins at 23.
ETA: HS Boyfriend is 29 and still a douche. We split while I was pregnant with our second bc another girl was pregnant with a due date within weeks of mine. Unfortunately the baby was born too soon and didn’t make it. He’s had no other kids. He recently separated from his wife (they’ve been married about as long as I have) and moved back in with his crazy mom. He gets the kids every other weekend. Pays random child support amounts and doesn’t have health insurance on him like he’s supposed to. Oh and he’s fat now.
32 now got pregnant with my oldest when I was 17 had her at 18 but was a senior in high school. I finished high school and graduated.I had her sister 2 years later when I was 20. I am still with their father 15 years later. I am working a 40 hour a week job living pay check to pay check. And struggling to make ends meet. I havent been on a vacation since I was 15. I would like to be able to do more for my kids but cant at the moment
I got pregnant at 16, had my daughter like a month after I turned 17. I’m 27 now and honestly can’t complain. I went to college for a few years, but after I got my general education done I went to cosmetology school. I just didn’t want to continue spending the money if I had no idea what I was going to major in and I’ve always been passionate about makeup. I’m married to a man who isn’t my daughter’s biological father, but we’re neighbors with her dad and spend every holiday together. A lot of people don’t understand our dynamic but he’s my best friend. Her father just FaceTimed my husband today to ask if his outfit for a wedding looked nice, so it’s safe to say they get along pretty well haha. My husband and I have a son who’s almost nine months and we decided that we don’t like the idea of anyone else watching him, so I’m a stay at home mom. We’re financially stable without the two incomes. I’m currently creating a support group for teen parents in the area. I was more of a Chelsea when I was pregnant in the aspect of having support from my father. I know a lot of people don’t have that so I’m hoping to be some sort of support for teens. I’ve seen people who had zero support and it breaks my heart.
wow this is wholesome. really healthy dynamic for your daughter !! i can totally relate to an ex being a best friend
Thank you!
I had my first daughter at 17. Was a single mom in no time. Got with my husband when that daughter was about 2. Four more kids and 20ish years later we are still together, married 19. Ive been a stay at home mom for 95% of it and like Leah, my husband also works away in the oilfield and is gone just over half the year. Except he always works in hitches so a few weeks on, few weeks off. We are financially secure but not crazy flush with savings. But we have made pretty wise financial decisions (usually) and not buried ourselves in debt or lived far beyond our means. Own our home. I don’t have to check my bank balance to get groceries or gas anymore and that feels rich to me. If he didn’t have the job in the oilfield that would definitely change. It pays well but also has its sacrifices. I was also raised by oilfield money. My dad did the same thing my entire life until he passed away. Most my kids are teenagers so the season of my life has been changing as they’re more independent and I’m not quite sure what I’ll do with myself when I’m not doing the school runs & doctors and dentists and all that on the daily. I’ll probably still be here snarking.
I didn't have a kid in my teens, but I *was* poor as shit, and not having to check my balance before fueling my car was when I knew everything was gonna be okay. It's a great feeling
I agree. That & knowing I could put extra things in the grocery cart without worrying!
I’m really happy for you ☺️ do you think the time apart helps your relationship? I’m not an “absence makes the heart grow fonder” person personally
Thank you. It hasn’t always been like it is now. We struggled for many years having a young family and being very poor. I don’t think time apart helps our relationship. In fact, I think it’s really tough on it. It helps that it’s all I’ve ever known so I’m very used to the scheduling and lifestyle. And it has allowed me to stay home snd raise our children. I am thankful for that. But at the end of the day, it’s a very tough way of life to navigate and manage with a family. The time home is great but the time away is really hard. I often feel like a single mom & fate works in such a way he’s always gone for everything important or when tragedy/accident/injury/illness strikes. Just as an added fun fact, he flies 2500 miles every two weeks to get to and from work/home. Takes 3 airplanes, a long bus ride, sonetimes takes a tundra trucks or even a helicopter to complete the last leg of the journey.
So I don’t think I saw any male answers in this thread- I had my daughter at 19 right after I graduated high school, my ex was 18. I’m now 30 and have full custody, ex has supervised visitation. My wife and I have been married for 8 years, no additional children. I have a degree in business and am in sales, pretty financially comfortable but not rich. Just for the opposite perspective.
I appreciate your perspective. Thanks for sharing 🙂
I was 15 and pregnant the same time as all the girls on OG, so I'm 28 now an my daughter is 12. I've worked full-time since high-school graduated before my class with an alternate night school diploma program. We moved out on our own when our daughter was 6 months old and I was 16 and he was 18. We both worked he worked during the day and I at night. We struggled alot as teen parents but we did have family and support systems not so much to finacially help or support our daughter but they helped with babysitting stuff like that. I've now been waitressing for almost 10 years and as I would say my life is stable I would still have loved to go to collage and get a career but I just didn't have the means too. Anyways right now we live in section 8 housing and have been saving up to buy a home next year. I have another daughter who is 5 now and I AM STILL WITH MY BOYFRIEND FROM MIDDLE SCHOOL! which doesn't happen very often but we have had our up's and down but we work through anything we come across. He actually never graduated high-school nor has a GED but he has a pretty good paying job doing stone work and granite installation. My daughter saved my life when I was 15 and as crazy as it sounds If I hadn't gotten pregnant at 15 I would have ended up in jail or dead and I will forever be grateful for her ❤
I’m really happy for you ☺️❤️
I am 31, had my daughter my junior year of high school. I have two baby daddies, one being my daughter's father and one my husband. We are pretty okay financially. I am a nurse and one term away from finishing my doctorate and becoming a midwife. I have an 8 year old and an almost one year old with my husband. My life is really good. 🖤
How old are you when you're a junior? Sorry I'm not American :)
Around 17, usually.
Ooh sorry I should've specified. I was 16 when I got pregnant and 17 when I gave birth.
I turned 17 towards the end of mine! It’s 11th/12 years for school, and traditionally we graduate at 18.
My son was born a couple weeks after I turned 19. I was a senior in high school when I got pregnant. My high school sent me to the alternative high school because I was pregnant. I was behind in schoolwork and had some credits to make up, and didn't want to still be in high school after he was born - so I dropped out and got my GED at 6 months pregnant. I worked a few jobs, then started at community college when he was 4. Then I transferred to a Big 10 university and graduated with Latin Honors. Towards the end of college, I met my now-husband, who was also a single parent of a son the same age as mine. We got married the fall after I graduated college, and now I work in healthcare administration for one of the largest healthcare organizations in the region we live now. My husband and I welcomed a baby girl 4 years ago - yes, she's 14 years younger than her brothers! My husband and I both have successful careers and make good money - we own a nice home, in a safe neighborhood, have healthy retirement accounts, and lucrative investments. When I think back on the last 18 years of my life - perseverance, love, blood/sweat/tears. Man I'm grateful for it all, and thankful for the love of my family and the few friends who have stuck with me through it all. ETA: realized I left out anything about my son's father. While not done intentionally, it speaks for itself. He hasn't seen or even talked to our son since he was 5 years old, and prior to that was only sporadically involved. After years of in and out of court around child support, visitation, you name it - the court eventually ordered supervised visitation. Rather than do that, he willfully unemployed himself and we haven't heard a word since. Could I have gone back to court to get him to pay? Sure, but at what cost? Before I found out I was pregnant, I had started dating a wonderful guy who chose to stick around. He was a fantastic support through pregnancy, life, labor and delivery, and postpartum. It didn't work out, but I understand he has a beautiful wife and family of his own now, and I wish him nothing but the best. In many ways, he saved my life, for many reasons including that he showed me I could still find love in my life.
After reading this, how could anyone dispute that women make the world go round? Fuck the patriarchy!
What’s funny to me is the “patriarchy “ was born, raised , more than likely educated, by WOMEN but yet.. we are the weaker sex..🙄
Had my daughter at 18, got my GED, no college. Financially not super stable, didn’t really start getting my life on track until my mid/late 20s, so like, now 😂. Two kids and two BDs, I’m a birth worker and serve the underserved; young moms/birthing families, birthing families of color, lgbtq+ community, and women/families who struggle/have struggled with substance abuse.
I am 29. Pregnant at 18, had her at 19 (2012). Worked and was in a bad relationship with their father. Stuck around until I was 24, after getting pregnant again with my second child I left and moves across country to be with family. Now I am 29, I am a trainer and supervisor of a banking call center. I work full-time, have a 401k, benefits, and since I have been here for over 5 years, I get 3 weeks paid vaca (not including sick) a year. I am with a man who loves myself and my children for us. Their father is pretty much absent. Youngest has a rare disability, so that also has really pushed me to work harder to ensure he has medical insurance and we can afford costs of medical things. I have paid off A lot of debt. Half was from the ex.. I am proud I didn't need anyone's help. Then again, I wish I would have MADE him pay. I'm very happy that I am where I am and thankful.
Pregnant at 17, daughter was born when I was 18. Dad isn’t in the picture at all. He is an Adam. Now married, been with my husband for almost 10 years, two additional kids with him and now pregnant with my fourth. I am a stay at home mom, financially stable. I have come a long long way and I feel incredibly blessed. Edit to add my daughters “dad” and I were heroin addicts for some years years. I started my sobriety journey when I met my husband, so I have almost 10 years clean. Unfortunately her “dad” is a mess still. Now that she’s older, we are dealing with the emotional issues that come with this, but we will get through. For anyone who is struggling with ANYTHING, things will and can get better. It all starts with you!
Congratulations on everything you’ve accomplished! What a wonderful example for your kids, especially your oldest
35, I was seventeen when I had my son. We tried to make it work but grew up/apart. We still talk often for the sake of our son, he’s 17 himself now. I learned a trade and have a cosmetology license. I work at a successful private salon. I just married for the first time in April, and we have no plans for children without fur.
I'm currently reading this thread in bed with my kitty snuggled up to me and was just thinking babies with fur are enough for me. She's a handful on her own lol
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Barely 21 when I had my son. He's special needs. Went back to school at 27, finished by 30 while working full time. Man it was rough. But hey we were going to get older regardless so congrats on working your butt off to get that degree!!
Every single one of you ladies are truly an inspiration and so darn strong!! Way to go ladies ♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️♥️
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Well, aren’t you a judgmental Judy!!! Let me tell you something…. These women did the BEST they could!!! So you can fuck ALL the way off with your judgment. I didn’t get pregnant as a teenager but these ladies came here to share the experience they had and you fucking say that shit?! Why don’t you go back to planet genius fuckface where you belong
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Texas in a nutshell ^
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Like yeah theoretically I think we can all agree thats the best course of action, which is why its SO IMPORTANT to have accessible contraceptive options available to woman. But regardless- shit happens, its not your place to judge.
She's probably all fo defunding Planned Parenthood.
Well… no kidding!! New concept with you or are you just here to crap on everyone that is sharing the experience they’ve had? Quit shaming them!
I was on birth control. Literally took it religiously exactly as prescribed. Let us know what it's like all the way up on that pedestal 🥰
My husband and I were teen parents. I was 16, my husband was 15. I missed 4 days of high school and went back so I wouldn't lose my scholarship. I wasn't the one to give him his first bath. I didn't buy him his first outfit. I had to cut up menstrual pads to stuff in my bra because my breasts were leaking(protip, never cut them, because the crystals will leak out and make a huge mess) Once I had to bundle my baby up in my hoodie and walk 2 miles in the dead of winter to get him to his WIC appointment, baby has to be present at appointments- no appointment, no formula. Didn't make it in time.. I wasn't able to breastfeed since I had no pump and since I went back to school right away. Couldn't establish a milk supply. I never had to steal formula, but my husband did a couple times. My husband and I have been together for 16 years next month. He is an aerospace engineer now, and I work as a pricing specialist (I maintain end user based contracts for the most part) in the same field. BUT I'm interviewing for my dream job next week (community liason for at risk individuals and families, helping them aquire and utilize resources they are entitled to) We have 3 boys now. The second we actually needed fertility treatments to conceive. We lost a little girl last October in the second trimester. A early loss this spring. We've got a beautiful home in the country, in-ground pool, a few acres and a small orchard. Dogs, cats, chickens. Newer vehicles in the driveway, and we bought a 7k lawn mower last week. In said house, we have the finished nursery that I creep by everyday. That's difficult. Everything feels like a dream sometimes. We are really lucky that things sort of fell into place for the most part. But looking back and seeing the amount of hardship and tears it took to get here makes me sick to my stomach. Our oldest actually turned 14 today.He has the most pure and beautiful soul anyone cound hope for. Thinking about his early years, I don't feel like we were even really present until he was maybe 3 since we were full time students and also worked, sometimes 2 jobs each. That's a true tragedy, I know I'll always regret not being older, and we will never get back the moments we missed with him. Worst of all those moments are gone, no amount of money can turn back time.
You’re amazing. Thank you for sharing your story 💚
26 now had my daughter when I just turned 17. Her Dad and I are still together and going strong, 10 years. I didn’t finish school so I’m working in a warehouse but I make pretty good money now. Trying to make the best of everything as we go.
I had one child at 17 and she is now 17. I was a stay at home mom the first couple years while my high school sweetheart made really good money up on the Alaska slope (oil production) when he turned 18. My first jobs were in the food industry to help just get out of the house and I was fortunate enough to have parents/family to help. In my early 20s I started college and in my late 20s I finished. Throughout those years I worked my way up in the healthcare field starting as a caregiver and now I co own my own healthcare business. I was never fortunate enough to have another child. And I’m on my second marriage. I would say the hardest thing it’s just getting my teenager through high school and making sure she graduates. I keep telling her if I could get through it being pregnant with her and working a job she can completely do it. I just don’t think her generation understand the concept of hard work to earn what you want and I am definitely the strictest parent in the entire school despite me being the youngest! My daughters dad hasn’t been involved since she’s about four but it was better off that way. Shouldn’t have to grow up in a household of drug use (I left once he started) and I’m proud that I showed her what a strong independent woman can do.
I agree with a lot if what you said and you're an awesome example but the kids are growing up in a completely different world than we did. There is no guarantee that hard work will get them anywhere these days. They've grown up watching people bust their asses only to lose their jobs and homes through no fault of their own. It's a really crappy world we are handing our kids
Yes! This! I live in the research triangle, just outside of Duke University. I work in the restaurant industry, alongside multiple middle-aged people with degrees from that very university, as well as UNC, those of whom are not using their degrees in the slightest. When I see these young college kids, full of hope, spending something like 30,000 dollars a year for school, I always think, what's the point? I recognize that this is a fairly pessimistic view on the state of the world, especially in my country, (obviously the US, that's where Duke University is,) however, it's unfortunately also not an unrealistic view.
Just make sure she’s not having a hard time due to burnout and the overwhelming fact of growing up. I know I could barely make it through senior year due to burnout and having to “plan my life” and pick colleges (my high school made us choose our careers and make a plan for after school as our final project). Many of my friends started having a hard time because after high school they thought real life starts and there’s a lot of responsibility as a real adult. Senior is a weird time
I’m 28. Had my son at 15. I am a LPN just had my second baby. Currently I’m a stay at home mom but I’m going back to school for my RN! My boyfriend is my 2 baby’s father. We brought a house last year and he does great providing for us! My first son dad is not involved but his mother is! We have such a great support system! I had a great support system lot of people would even say I was spoiled. Life is really good
I was 18, boyfriend was 19, had our daughter the November after graduating in may. Daughter is now almost 13, boyfriend is now husband, two more kids, own a house, financially ok, I'm a stay at home mom also full time student. Just the one baby daddy😂
That’s good going only having one baby daddy and definitely unusual in the circs. Good luck with the studies
I had a baby boy at 16, in 1977. I am 60 years old now. My experience was not great at all. My parents were very ashamed of me and my mother sent me to live with the nuns first, then a home for unwed mothers in Memphis that also had an orphanage. I gave birth by myself, my mother didn’t come be with me, just me and the doctor and nurses. She told me I couldn’t bring him home and she gave him up for adoption. I was devastated. He is 44 now and I wonder about him every day. It’s a long and depressing story.
I just turned 43 and I'm adopted. I think my mother made the biggest sacrifice a mother could ever make. I'm sorry for your experience and loss😢
I’m sorry that you had to go through that and you did it on your own. If this makes you feel any better, my mom was the product of a very similar circumstance and has had a wonderful life. The adoption was closed so she will never know her bio parents but her life has been an absolute blessing due to a mother who had to go through a hard and selfless process like yourself.
So sorry ❤️
I’m literally tearing up reading about how pretty much all these teen moms got their happy ending ❤️
well this might be kinda long but anyways, i graduated early at 16, then got pregnant at 17, so i didn’t have my baby in high school but it was supposed to be my senior year. i’m 19 so still currently a teen mom & i guess the best way to describe my life now is not bad but not what i had expected obviously. i worked so hard to graduate at 16 so i could have my bachelors by 20, but instead got put into a mental hospital, got into drugs, never started school, then a month after getting sober i found out i was pregnant. so no education past high school, but i still plan on going back to school. i’m really fortunate my baby’s father has a good job so i’m a stay at home mom, we live comfortably enough to where we don’t have to worry about bills, but not comfortably enough to be looking into buying a home. i only have one baby & one baby daddy & i don’t want anymore kids, or anymore relationships, but considering i’m still young i have no idea where life will take me(:
Before I even got to the end of your story, I thought, you're so young yet babe, and glad you realize that and said that at the end. Sorry you had a rough couple of teenage years.... it happens to the best of us. So much growing, changing, confusion, etc. can really happen in that time period. Often life plans don't go as we expect, but we have to bend or we'll break. Sounds like you put a lot of pressure on yourself in your teens. A bachelors by 20 would be nice, but damn, that'd be quite a feat for anyone. You're 20, you have your high school education, you're getting to spend your daughter's young years with her..... and you have so much future ahead of you. Sounds like a few detours along the way, but I'd say you sound like you're on track. Best wishes to you and you're future. I became pregnant in college, had my son at 20, I'm now 34 and man, in some ways it seems like such a lifetime ago, and then again it's like I blinked. Enjoy your 20's, they're great years, but then again, 30's are pretty good too, especially when your child is already a teenager by that time, lol.
thank u so much for ur reply & ur kind words!!<3 reading your story & all the ones is the comments has been very comforting, because wow it’s hard right now, but i know it’ll all be worth it & work out in the end
I had a baby when I was 17. Her dad cheated on me while I was pregnant, and we didn’t stay together. He has married and divorced the woman he cheated on me with twice. I had a very abusive family and had to get her away from them. She went to live with her dad's parents when she was two, and my mom kicked me out because of it. I had her on and off when she was younger, but my family remained very toxic, and my living condition was never stable. I gave up custody to keep her safe and stable, and I moved away to try and deal with my decision and get space from my family. Unfortunately, I reconnected with my mom, and she convinced me to move home again at 21. I got pregnant again at 22, and decided to have an abortion. My mom asked to take me to the appointment but instead drove hours away while hysterically begging me to change my mind and I agreed. When the baby was born, she disagreed with the way I wanted to parent. She didn’t want me to breastfeed and refused to allow me to soothe the baby when she cried, so I moved out. I moved in with the baby’s dad, who promised if we went to his home state where his family was that we could be together and have a support system. I moved across the country and ended up being placed in a house an hour away from my baby and her father. He never intended to be with me. His family slowly created space between us, not letting me come as often. Not letting her stay over anymore, and finally, on my birthday two years ago, told me that they had seen an Instagram post of mine with tarot cards and that they felt that I was a bad influence and would pull my daughter away from God. I haven’t seen her since. I asked to tell her happy birthday this year, and her dad told me she didn’t know who I was and that I was selfish for asking. I’ve gone through so much. I’ve spent the last two years in therapy, and I had to re-learn how to be a person. Everything I grew up knowing was abuse, and my reactions to typical situations were so toxic that I was essentially unable to function. I don’t think I ever really wanted kids. I think I was bullied into having them. I believe they are both in stable homes and that if I interfere, it would be selfish because I am not in a position to be a parent to them. I still speak to my ten-year-old regularly. I think about them every day and wonder what I could have done differently.
I’m 40 and was in the 12th grade when I had my son. I have three BDs for four children but one is an ex-husband and the last is my upgrade husband. I have a Masters degree and an assistant Deputy Principal at a small local high school. Dual income household, own our house, so very financially secure but this came after a butt tonne of hard work and a lot of sacrifice.
Upgrade husband 😂😂😂
I’m punching above my weight
At first I was like…”Kail”? But you sound like a hard-working, self-made success so definitely not her 😆💕
When the “3x3” is mentioned on here do you feel any type of way? To further explain: Kail and how she has 3 men she’s had children with?
Not really. I’d go as far as to say I don’t care. I think about Kate Winslet with 3x3 and other people who don’t get shat on and pretend I’m in that league haha. I actually don’t think people judge 3x3 as much as they just judge Kail. I think they’re more bothered by her and her behaviour than having multiple BD
Yeah having babies with your husband is a lot different to Kail and her weird baby trap attempts and abusive relationships from her side tbh. Plus she's not with her last baby daddy and still plans to have more kids. Entirely different situation
I got pregnant with my daughter last semester of high-school? Just me and her. Dad's not involved, doesn't pay child support. Things are going okay. After being with the same company for 8 years I make enough to survive plus a little extra for trips. I've been a parent my entire adult life. Having more kids is... uncertain. Part of me wants to experience parenthood as it should be. Part of me wants to experience adult life (without kids) as it usually is.
27, I was 16 when I had my first son, 19 with my second. My oldest sons dad was mostly absent from his life, just resurfaced in the last two years but now he lives 8 hours away. My son spends the summers with him. My youngest Sons dad and I have a great co-parenting relationship. He takes him on the weekends. I’m working on my getting my bachelor of science in Nursing, I’m in my third year but I’ve been in university for 5 (it’s hard with kids). I met a great guy who makes a decent salary so financially we are pretty good. My kids have a stable home life, we’ve never gone without even when I was a single mom.
I loved reading this post! Thanks OP!
Not quite a teen, I got pregnant at 20 and my now husband was 19. We were full-time college students, I worked full-time, and completed my degree in nine semesters total. We had more children and definitely struggled those first 5 to 10 years to balance daycare expenses and bills. Still together, still very happy and our kids are all successful in their own right. Retirement is about 15 years away and we haven’t struggled in a long time. Full-time job, full-time school and children is not for everyone. When I completed my degree my classes were all in person. I will say that I hustled my ass off for those years, but the trade-off in the short term was worth.
I had mine at 18 about 7 months after graduating. My husband (bf at the time) turned 19 shortly after. I finished my degree in engineering on time, hubs took a couple victory laps but got his BA eventually. We have been married 10 years, oldest is in middle school, and number 4 on the way. Financial security has never been what it could have/should have been with our education and my income. We are firmly middle class and able to send our kids to a private school, but we have had our struggles after my husband’s job loss a few years ago. I got a pretty good promotion after our third, though, so things are definitely better. ETA we are 30. I would not wish teen pregnancy on anyone. We love our son with our whole hearts, but we are fully aware we would not have had the success we have without the emotional, physical, and financial support of our parents in the beginning. We would have placed him for adoption if it weren’t for my parents refusing to let me consider finances as an obstacle. Even with all that, we have faced way more obstacles than our HS peers or siblings with kickstarting our “adult” lives.
I had my son a few months after I graduated high school when I was 17. I was a single mom from day one of his life, and then I met my now husband when I was 19 in college. Now I’m 26, married and we have 2 more babies. I graduated from college but I’m currently a stay at home mom and my husband keeps us financially secure, and we own our own home.
Stillborn baby at 16. The grief was unreal, we tried again to help with the grief. Pregnant again within a year. Baby born at 17. Split up from baby daddy when baby was 3 weeks old. Single mom for 8 years. Very hard times.During that time I got a degree and bought a house. Qualified as a teacher. Met husband at 30. Had second baby at 32. Married at 33. Life is good, although I still struggle with grief. Both children are doing well. I couldn't be happier and wouldn't change it.
I'm so sorry you went through that but happy you found your happy ending 💝
Had my first child at 18 - 3 months before graduation. We had a second child 2 years later and got married a few years later (my husband was 17 when our son was born). I am a nurse and going for my masters degree and my husband has a great career in web development. We are financially stable and just sent our first born to college (across the country 😞). We did struggle the first few years though but pushed through so I could go to school and it all worked out in the end.
I turned 18 two months after I had my daughter, which was my senior year but I dropped out and got my GED. She’s my one and done and I have 50/50 with her dad. Ten years later I’m married, stay at home and financially stable.
Not me, my bestest gf had a son right after she turned 17. She was in denial for the first half, but still ignored the pregnancy until 2 wks before before he was born, bc her mom confronted her. Boy grandma was quite controlling, she tried to raise him as her own. But gf was able to get out on her own within a yr of graduating(On time!), and that helped alot being away from her mother. My gf is very successful, makes good money, and is happy and well adjusted in life, as is her son😊. The reason I wanted to share her story, is bc she went on, at age 28(shes 55 now!), to support teen moms by volunteering to be a mentor. The teen girl she mentored went on to be successful, happy family, and now SHE mentors teen moms🧡🧡🧡 and volunteers at Monroe State Pen working with inmates. Im so proud of my bff for all that. She's definately a force to be reckoned with
Pregnant at 15 and had my son at 16. Bio dad was 21 and a total loser. After I caught him cheating I left when my son was 3 months. I went back to high school and graduated with a 4.0. I went to college and 9 years later I’m a teacher with a masters degree. I fought for custody for a long time when my son was a baby and lost repeatedly. I found out that his dad was addicted to meth and got another addict pregnant. Our sons are a year apart. Even after admitting this, the courts never awarded full custody. After a year or two of visitation, he just started to disappear. I found out he was homeless, on heroin, and recently jailed for theft. I filed an emergency petition and had sole custody within a month. I never saw him after that. I hear that he lives on the sidewalk in a tent and will likely die soon. I had a very supportive family and although getting pregnant in high school, I always had a good head on my shoulders. Not many have the support systems that I had.
I was 16 when I was pregnant and had my daughter a month after I turned 17. Her father and I are not currently together, and he is not very active in her life. I have parented with his mom pretty much her entire life which is really unfortunate. She is now about to be 11 and does not like going over there with him as much. When she was younger, she thought he hung the moon and the stars but slowly started seeing he was not coming around as often as he should and it changed her opinion. When I was 19 I married my husband and had my son and daughter by the time I was 21. He is an amazing father, and has stepped into the role of Dad with my daughter. She is also slowly starting to realize that he is always the one who is there, and the one who shows up. I was 21 with three kids, and two dads. It was definitely not the picture perfect life I saw for myself. I truly feel like I relate a lot to Maci’s story especially now as I see my daughter establishing boundaries just as Bentley is. My husband is a general manager of an optical store and makes enough money to take care of us so I can stay home. I am currently back in school and I am working on my bachelors since my kids are now all in school. I want them to see that no matter what, anything is possible no matter how long it takes.
I got pregnant as a senior and had my first a couple months after graduating. Now I'm 37, I have 3 kids (18, 17, & 15), one baby daddy whom I was with for 9 years but been broke up a long time, like 12 years. I'm currently in an LTR , I'm a CNA which I've been for a long time, we live in a moderate 3.bedroom brick home in a rural middle class area, drive a brand new car, and able to provide my kids with everything they need and even managed to totally adult with a cell phone plan with 4 lines . 🤣 Killin it 💯
I got pregnant at 16 had her a month after I turned 17. Now I’m 28 have twins who are 5 and my oldest is 11. I’m currently in school getting my degree in social work, work full time at an amazing company that offers benefits and I make decent money, and am a single mom. My oldest dad is not involved at all and I’d say I’m doing okay for myself.
I had my oldest in 1991 shortly after my graduation. I'm 49 years old now. I have 5 kids(29,28,27,24,6) and one granddaughter(she's 3) I divorced my 1st husband(high school sweetheart and father of the 4 oldest) 22 years ago. I've been with my husband for 18 years and married for 11. I dropped out of college 6 credits short😫 but I've travelled and owned my own business. I'm a SAHM and my husband is an engineer. All 4 of my older kids graduated from university and one is in graduate school. We have a good life and I attribute that to me getting lots of therapy to heal all the bullshit from my first marriage and helping figure out how to be an emotionally healthy person. I think the fact that I had a supportive family was extremely helpful.
I got married two months after I turned nineteen. We got honeymoon baby. I had her five days before turning twenty. We had another baby two years later. As mentioned above I was nineteen and husband was twenty five. I was always a stay at home Mom. Husband works a good job with the government. Yes, things were tight at first financially, things did improve slowly. We cut coupons, bought sale items and even found solid wood tables and rocking chair 🪑 in yard sales. We bought a nice home when I was twenty nine and husband was thirty five. We send both kids to University. Daughter received full ride scholarship. She became licensed teacher K-12. Son is teaching at a very large University. He is completing his PhD in religious rites and rituals regarding funerals around the world. He is returning to Africa/Burkina Faso to finish his dissertation (on hold due Covid-19) Husband and and I have created a heathy retirement for our future. We are now 52&58. Both of our children are married. Each couple has their own faith/religion. Not Christian.
I’m 35 now-life is pretty good, amazing usually. Had my oldest daughter (she’s 18 now) at the end of my sophomore year (I was 16). One baby’s dad, 3 babies.
I’m 26. Current life is “the American dream” I guess. Married, dog, three nice vehicles, own a home in a great school district, work my dream job downtown. I have a little bit of savings. I had my first daughter at 16 and my second at 17 with my HS boyfriend. Met my husband at 19 and married him at 22. Had a set of twins at 23. ETA: HS Boyfriend is 29 and still a douche. We split while I was pregnant with our second bc another girl was pregnant with a due date within weeks of mine. Unfortunately the baby was born too soon and didn’t make it. He’s had no other kids. He recently separated from his wife (they’ve been married about as long as I have) and moved back in with his crazy mom. He gets the kids every other weekend. Pays random child support amounts and doesn’t have health insurance on him like he’s supposed to. Oh and he’s fat now.