What age would consider someone to be a young mum?

[Himitsu]

Not including teen parents, as that’s a separate category.

Someone referred to me as a young mum today and I was like eh? I’m 30! I’d consider 20 to maybe 23-24 to be a young mum. Just curious what others feel! I had my first at 20 and definitely felt young then!

@JaninaDuszejko My Mum had me at 38 in the mid-1970’s…she was classed as a “geriatric” Mum back then. 🤣

Apparently everyone was convinced that she’d have a tough time, but she sailed through pregnancy and had a relatively easy labor. How times have changed!

My mum was classed as 'geriatric' when she had me at 32!

I would say under 24 or 25 is a younger mum. Over 40 an older mum.

Posters saying 30 is young to become a mum seems crazy to me my first born will be 14 when I'm 30 😂

I'd say under 20. I was 21 having my first and we coped perfectly well. For me 30 was the cut off to complete having babies.

@Dogaredabomb Were you financially independent and no longer living at home at 21? I think that’s a huge reason why early 20’s is now considered a young parent, because so few under-25’s are able to afford their own home/bills, let alone a child.

Whereas a few decades ago, many ppl got married and set up home in their early 20’s so starting a family in your 20’s was pretty common.

Anything up to about 27 would seem young to me, just because the average age of most mums I know is early 30s.

If I said the term 'young mum' I'd probably mean that they had young children though. I'd usually say 'younger mum' if I meant that they were young themselves.

I had my first at 20 and my second at 23 and my youngest says I’m the youngest of any of her friends Mums (and the coolest!) ha she’s just gone 18 and I’m 41 and now a Nanny to a 9 month old GS which is young too to become a Nan but I love it and much prefer to be a Nan whilst I’m young .

My Nan is also still alive now in her 80s and a Great Great Nan .

I’d say a “young mum” is under 25. However the age in which women have their first child is steadily increasing so eventually under 30 will be considered young.

I was pregnant with my first child at 27 and I’ve been considered a young mum though. In my council facilitated mothers group I was the only mother in my twenties. The other dozen or so women were aged between 33-44. This is an affluent area where generally two incomes are required to pay a mortgage, and all of these women went to university which also can delay the age you start having children.

I had my daughter via IVF and I certainly felt young starting the process at 26 when there were women 20 years older than me at the same clinic.

Yes, I'd completed university and was married and my husband and I were working. We'd both left home by 18.

@Dogaredabomb I think that's unusual now, my DD is 20 this year, doing a four-year degree, and I just can’t see her and a partner being able to support a child soon after graduation-without a lot of help from us! I think new graduates need to work a few years now before they can do this. Education and the COL is so expensive.

I got pregnant with DD (planned) at 21 and gave birth to her at 22. I was walking along with another primary school mum going home after the morning school run when DD was in year 6, she asked then said “Awww so you grew up together!”
All I could do in the moment was give her a funny look. She was older than me and both of her kids were younger than mine. It was unusual for me to interact with another school run parent throughout primary school, I’d just get in and out but I thought this mum was nice… I’m very short and baby faced and always wear my mask of “goth” make up so have been judged constantly over the years by teachers, parents, doctors etc. DD’s teachers back then asked her if I was at uni. When dropping her off late for her first day in year seven at her Grammar school (thanks to buses being late) I was asked at reception if I was one of their new sixth formers. Well yeah, I was, 18 years ago! All of this to say it’s no compliment to me whatsoever. It’s more like being undermined and unfairly criticised as if I can’t possibly be the parent. And I am the lone parent. DD’s “dad” disappeared more than 5 years ago. I’m turning 36 this year and the greys are starting to take over. I’m considering continuing to allow them to do what they will because maybe I might finally be spoken to like an adult.

Anything under 26 because it’s unlikely they’ll have had much time to get their career and home established before then.

Between 28 and 40 is what I’d consider ‘usual’ Mum age.

At 41-45 I’d be thinking it a bit risky. I was a one and done because of that risk, I’d never have coped with a child with complex needs.

Definitely 25 and under, privately even 27 or 28, just because i was well into my 30s and so were the majority of my friends so that's my frame of reference.

We got married in the Easter before I graduated. My husband was 3 years older than me and didn't go to university so he'd been working and saving since 18. And he was in the air force so that was housing taken care of. We were very much adults though and had both been independent of our parents from 18. And we'd both been working part time and saving from 13.

It just seemed very normal to us to be totally independent.

Under 28? More because I think there's so much life to be had, travel etc before burdening yourself with the responsibility of a baby. It probably would depend on the person's lifestyle and where they live also. But anything under 28 seems far too young.

Under 30 and I would definitely consider someone a young mum.

In my personal and work circles under 35 is considered young albeit I accept they are not an average cross section of society. There are definitely far more people I know who are over 35 than under 35 having their first child.

23 and under