Being a teenage mom can be tough.
“I feel like I haven’t lived my life,” sobs 18-year-old Brittney Barclay, as she rocks her four-month-old daughter — in a room surrounded by baby clothes at the Options pregnancy centre for teen mothers in Chateauguay, south of Montreal.
“Like I love her, I don’t regret her but like I just turned 18, you know?”
She doesn’t think she’s doing what 18-year-olds are supposed to be doing, like being in school and going out on weekends with her friends.
“Things like that and I can never do,” she says in tears.
Though she has lots of family support, she feels alone sometimes. That’s why she went to the centre.
“It focuses on helping teen girls through the age of 25 navigate unplanned pregnancy,” explains centre spokesperson Suzy McVeigh DiBiaso.
They are part of the Station 7 youth drop-in centre. Last June, management expanded the pregnancy centre by opening a new space to better accommodate the young mothers. They say since then, the number of clients has exploded, highlighting the need in the community.
“In the last two months, we’ve had more girls come in for help and services than the last two years,” McVeigh DiBiaso tells Global News.
That’s about 50 people. Services include mentoring, support for postpartum depression and helping the women get back on their feet.
They’ve also begun giving limited medical care. Officials at the centre say they exist because resources for young mothers are limited.
“Abortions are still the primary choice for the majority of young girls who find themselves pregnant,” McVeigh DiBiaso says.
One reason is the stigma associated with teen pregnancy, something Barclay says she has experienced.
“I’m judged,” she says, “but mostly secretly.”
Her sister-in-law and close friend, Heather Varey-Lamarche, agrees.
“The looks that you get. “Especially at the mall,” she says.
She’s also a young mother, 21, with a seven-month-old son, but she says her age shouldn’t matter.
“What’s important is that I’m doing what I have to as a mother.”
Barclay found comfort in the mother’s group at the centre on Thursday. In spite of how difficult it has been, she says her daughter is also a blessing.
“She encourages me to want to do things in life,” she smiles.
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