VIRAL: Teen mom shares struggles of working while studying to give hope to young parents

Having children at an early age often deprives people opportunities to make their lives better. Oftentimes, they are forced to stop studying and give up their dreams to provide the needs of their offsprings.

While this scenario seems pretty common among teen parents in the Philippines, a young mom has decided to share her story to encourage other young parents to continue pursuing their dreams.

Fatima Balaba teen mom
PHOTO CREDIT: Facebook/ Fatima Balaba
A mom at 17, Facebook user Fatima Balaba decided that life must go on even after having a child. To secure her and her child’s future, Fatima continues going to school and is taking a part-time job to provide their needs.

However, juggling these two things isn’t exactly a walk in the park for the young mom. In fact, she has to go to school from 6:30 am to 1:30 pm and work from 2:00 pm to 9:30 pm. As a result, her time for loved ones and for herself are often compromised.

“Papasok ako sa school ng 6:30 am hanggang 1:30 pag ka tapos diretso na sa work 2pm hanggang 9:30 syempre makakauwe nako mga 10:30pm minsan panga 11pm na,” Fatima shared.

Although her situation is extremely difficult knowing that she’s missing most of her child’s milestones, Fatima is determined to make sacrifices in order to make her dreams come true. After all, she believes she is responsible for her current situation.

In her viral Facebook post, Fatima also addressed detractors who judged her for being a teenage mother.

“Sa mga taong may hindi magandang sinasabe saken kapag naka talikod at sa mga taong mahilig manghusga sa mga teen mom, sa mga taong mababa ang tingin sa mga batang ina wala akong pake sainyo 😃 basta ang alam ko lahat ginagawa ko para maging tama lahat ng mali ko at sa mga naniniwala saken na kakayanin ko to at sa mga nag ppush saken na wag sumuko salamat po.”

Towards the end of her post, Fatima encouraged young parents to continue pursuing their dreams despite their difficult situation.

“Kaya sa mga nawawalan ng pag asa dyan na di porket maaga nag ka anak wala ng kinabukasan maraming paraan marami kang pwedeng gawin para ipagpatuloy yung nahintong pangarap. Kung hindi ka madadapa hindi ka matuto,” Fatima said.

While Fatima’s story is truly inspirational, being a teenage parent poses many problems for our society. It is best that the youth of today prioritize education and prepare for their future first before starting a family.

Read her full post.


-- Mini, The Summit Express



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