If you had kids young and were judged for it how do you feel seeing the current trendy opinion has switched to praising young motherhood?

Yep, you can't win at any age. They'll be judgement from someone

No one is praising 16 year olds having babies. Right wing misogynists are trying to blame a lot of social problems on women having babies later and not having lots of them when they finally get around to breeding. Those same people will still criticise teenage mothers as feckless benefit scroungers so don’t get your hopes up.

Doesn’t that just literally fall in line with the falling birth rate argument? Women are having less children overall, at all ages. I’m still confused as to why that makes you feel vindicated?

You genuinely think there’s a change in public opinion in terms of how advisable teenage pregnancy is?

I haven't heard of any swing towards praising teenage mums. I know more women are choosing to have children later, I know more people are choosing not to have children or to have one child, and that there has sometimes been some rhetoric against that. The whole hideous fascist thing around tradwives (it's giving strong Nazi kinder, kuche, kirshe vibes) is more about controlling women and removing self determinism from women than about praising teenage pregnancies. I was in my mid 20s when I had my first but I'd been to uni, started my career, had a mortgage. It was lonely in a way because my friends mostly had theirs in their late 30s/early 40s but I'm happy with the life we have and think we've done a good job raising some bright, ambitious, lovely and well adjusted teenagers. I personally liked that my parents were in their early 50s so were really hands on with young grandkids compared to being in their 70s. But I also know there were and are huge reasons for friends having their first or only children later. Diabetes, cancer, domestic violence, fertility issues, job insecurity, miscarriages, baby loss, mental health, wanting to be financially secure, all sorts of things.

So while I do recognise some of what you say, I've seen absolutely nothing in support of 16 year olds having babies and still see 26 year olds having babies as outliers. We were asked in our early/mid 20s if our babies were accidents because we were young. Wild. I've got 2 children older than 16 now and I want them to be concentrating on their A levels and jobs and driving and training and careers and friendships now and save the parenting for later.

Haha snap except have good a levels but no masters degree , I did in work training and moved up anyway !

Congratulations 🫤

I think there are “young mothers” and “young mothers”. Quite apart fron the health risks, the number of solvent 16 year olds able to provide a stable upbringing to a child is vanishingly small. Pretty much all of the ones I know have brought the child into a chaotic situation and the outcomes have been poor. You may have been an outlier OP.

A woman in her mid twenties who has completed her education, is in a stable relationship and where the family unit is earning enough to house and support the child without expecting taxpayers to pick up the tab is another story.

Had my first ( un planned) at almost 24 It was young but turned out great. Lots of time to have a career and enjoy middle age with adult kids.

I absolutely agree with this. And these men don't really care in many cases. They just think that birth rate fears are part of a wider narrative they can spin to appeal to particular sections of the electorate. None of them are introducing policies that might actually make it easier for women to have children younger, like longer and better paid maternity periods, or more social housing for families, or affordable child care. Or trying to create a more sustainable planet with a fairer labour market so young people feel like populating the planet for another generation is worth it.

Ahem, I’d just like to make it known that I am the darling of the Daily Mail in this scenario. I had my first dc at 23 and I’m Master’s educated, own my own home, am still happily married to their father, have a great career and have never claimed benefits in my life. If any of you feckless teenage mums or dried up old husks would like any tips on how to be me or you just fancy helping to polish my halo then feel free to dm me. Until next week when I’ll probably be responsible for all the evils in the world again for an equally ambiguous reason mostly out of my control.

I mean the general perception that having a baby at 16 being stupid hasn’t changed, not sure why you think it has.
Would I be horrible to anyone for getting pregnant at 16? No, however that doesn’t mean anyone needs to pretend it’s a sound choice in probably 98% of circumstances.

You really shouldn’t feel vindicated by this. As pp said, this is not about praising women. It’s about eroding our rights back to where they were decades ago.

This.

OP stop listening to sexist nonsense whoever is spouting it.

Everything you are or do will always be wrong. Grew up in poverty got judged . Now rich get judged. Judged for being too thin and too fat. Don’t have children judged. Have one child, judged. Too many children, judged. SAHM judged. Working Mum judged.

The big difference is you said women are judging women... I disagree. The main pressure comes from powerful men. It may not feel that way, but it does. A low birth rate can affect the economy, hence rich men start caring. Otherwise, that's women's work.

It’s possible on an individual basis, not on a societal level.

Most first time mothers I meet now are in their late 30s and early 40s. I do think having kids earlier can be easier, physically and mentally, but would go with mid 20s, not teenagers!

I think the zeitgeist always has been and always will be that women get judged for whatever they do. Especially when they become mothers.

No, not saying it's for everyone. Just saying that it's possible to be young parents and not be reliant on benefits or parental support.

I don't feel I'm missing out on anything either. I'm very happy with my choices.

It's come from reform wanting young mothers barefoot and in the kitchen.

(What is the obsession with Trumps hangers on with young girls)?

No one thinks that someone who has barely left childhood themselves should be having a baby/