Pregnant at 11 and a parent by the age of 12, this is Britain’s youngest mother holding her newborn baby. Tressa Middleton, who is still a child in heart, has a scrawny appearance as she looks at the camera.
A rush of maternal love as her daughter was placed on her chest for the first time was followed by a wave of longing and sadness. In 2006, she became the UK’s youngest mother at 12 after she was ʀᴀᴘᴇᴅ by her brother Jason, then 16.
When she was only two years old, schoolgirl Tressa’s first child had to be placed for adoption, and she has never stopped mourning her.
For two years, Tressa took care of her daughter wuth the help of her mother. At this time she kept the indentity of the child’s father a secret. Until in 2008, she revealed that the baby’s father was her bother. And it was decided that the baby would be given up for adoption. She wa adopted whe she wa two years old
Tressa also has treasured keepsakes including the tot’s handprints, baby clothes and a lock of her hair – mementos of a little life born from a harrowing tragedy. Tressa was devastated ti lose custody of her daughter.
Tressa said: “My heart was broken when they took my daughter from me. To this day, I sleep with the teddy bear that was hers. I never stopped loving my daughter. She is still the first thing I think about in the morning and the last thing I thing about before I go to sleep”
The situation was so difficult that Tressa beacame involved with 𝑑𝑟𝑢𝑔𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑎𝑙𝑐𝑜ℎ𝑜𝑙. Only at the age 19, she managed to overcome these addictions. Now, at 28, Tressa has managed to get back on her feet. She is engaged and has a daughter wih her husband, Darren Young.
Tressa, now 28, said: “I felt pure joy the moment Arihanna was born. There were times I thought I’d never have another baby.
The absence of her firstborn, according to Tressa, haunts her despite the fact that she remembers the pure joy she felt after Arihanna’s birth.
“But I also feel guilty, because Arihanna is with me and my older daughter is not. She’s still the first thing I think about every morning and the last thing at night.
“I love her so much. I can’t be properly happy without her. It breaks my heart Arihanna will grow up without knowing her big sister.”
