Woman Slammed For Encouraging Pregnant Teen To Let Aunt 'Adopt' Baby

The internet has defended a woman's decision to kick her mother-in-law out of the house after she tried to meddle in a teenager's pregnancy.

In a now-viral Reddit post, user u/Outrageous_Share7008 explained that her 17-year-old daughter is currently pregnant and "dead set on being a mother" to the unborn child. This may have been difficult news for many family members to digest, as the teen's aunt has "struggled with fertility" and is unlikely to get pregnant.

Unfortunately, fertility issues are not uncommon, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that 19 percent of married women with no prior births are unable to get pregnant after a year of trying. Additionally, around 26 percent of those women had difficulty getting pregnant or carrying to full term.

After seeing the Redditor's daughter fail to conceive for the last 10 years, the mother-in-law "brought up the idea of letting SIL [sister-in-law] adopt this baby." The poster explained that this wouldn't happen because her teen daughter insisted on keeping the child, but the mother-in-law wouldn't let it rest.

The post reads: "I came home from work and my MIL [mother-in-law] was over, and I overheard her talking to my daughter about the idea. Telling her how she wouldn't be fit to be a mother and SIL is much more prepared."

User u/Outrageous_Share7008 was horrified that the woman tried to "guilt trip" a teenager who is already seven months pregnant, and she immediately told her in-law to "get out." Following the confrontation, the mother-in-law was still adamant that she did nothing wrong, instead telling the poster that she's setting her "daughter up for failure."

While the mother-in-law's comments were highly inappropriate, Dr. DeVon Mills, clinical director of Thrive Counseling Atlanta, suggests that the bigger problem at hand is a refusal to respect boundaries. He explains that this situation highlights a strong need to lay down some rules and have guidelines to follow, to avoid any repeat mistakes.

Dr. Mills told Newsweek: "My first thought is how the mother-in-law is engaging in behaviors that demonstrate that she's not used to having to respect anyone else's boundaries. Setting them can be challenging for all of us, but it's vital to help identify, communicate, and implement boundaries when navigating a difficult family relationship."

When discussing these new steps together, Dr. Mills encouraged people to do it in a comfortable environment for all and keep the conversation calm, rather than making it emotionally charged. The goal isn't to lay blame or project anger, but rather to make clear the changes you wish to see.

"Be sure to identify the specific behavioral changes you want to see, and clearly outline the consequences that will happen if the boundary is violated. Specific and clear language provides a touchstone to return to if there is a future violation," he continued.

Since u/Outrageous_Share7008 took to Reddit on December 11 to share their experience, there has been a huge outpouring of response. The post has received more than 10,400 votes and over 1,200 comments so far. Many people were quick to side with the Redditor and insist that she was right to take such drastic action.

One comment read: "There are tough conversations to be had when one is pregnant without planning it (regardless of age), but it was not your MIL's place to have any of those conversations and she didn't even approach it as a conversation: she was trying to manipulate your daughter emotionally."

Another person responded: "Exactly this, MIL acting like this baby is not a human being with parents that love and want the baby. She's treating the baby like it's an object that you can just pass around."

While one Reddit user wrote: "I love that you just opened the door and said "get out," clear and concise."

Newsweek reached out to u/Outrageous_Share7008 via Reddit for comment. We could not verify the details of the case.

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