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Stacey Solomon says being a teen mum to son Zachary changed her outlook on life
13 February 2024, 12:35
Stacey Solomon has spoken about the difficulties of being a teenage mother.
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Stacey Solomon, 34, has opened up about the difficulties of being a single teenage mum after giving birth to her son Zachary, 15, when she was 18-years-old.
The Sort Your Life Out presenter revealed that she was on benefits while caring for her young child and said that she 'wouldn't have kept her baby alive' if she didn't become organised.
Now married to ex-EastEnders actor Joe Swash, 42, and mother to Leighton, 11, Rex, 4, Rose, 2, and one-year-old Belle, Stacey and her family live together in Pickle Cottage.
However it hasn't always been plain sailing for the Loose Women panellist, as the early days of being a mum weren't easy for Stacey.
Speaking to OK! Stacey said: "When I had Zachary, I went from a carefree, I'm-never-gonna-die-life-is-fantastic teenager to, 'I've got a child who depends on me'.
"I had a baby who was in the nursery at college and then I had to get a job afterwards to pay for college."
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The mother-of-five continued: "I tried to hang on to my social life and I just couldn't do it. I realised immediately that if I wasn't meticulously organised, I couldn't get my milk vouchers.
"I had to pick up my giro at a certain time every week, I had to get the baby into nursery and out of nursery at a certain time there was so much for me to remember and think about. If I didn't get my a*** in gear, I wouldn't have survived.
"I wouldn't have passed my A levels and I wouldn't have kept my baby alive. It shocked me into it. Every time I slipped back from that organised self, I would just feel I couldn't cope with life."
Stacey shares Zachary with her ex-partner and childhood sweetheart Dean Cox.
After becoming a mother, Stacey entered The X Factor which thrust her into the limelight. The singing sensation finished the show in third place and has gone on to carve out a successful media career in the years following.
In 2010 she won I'm A Celebrity and has since presented Great British Bake-Off: The Professionals and Stacey Soloman's Crafty Christmas.
Stacey hasn't taken her career lightly, stating: "People will say, 'Oh you work hard,'but the reality is I got so lucky.
"I worked really hard and gave it my absolute best, but I still have been lucky to have fallen into those situations where somebody gave me an opportunity. Honestly, I'm just running with it. I'll keep going until it finishes.
"I’m waiting for someone to be like, ‘Oh, it’s all over now. It was just a big joke'. I laugh with my mum all the time. I’ve been in scenarios that neither of us could ever imagine.
"I got to interview Boris Johnson once and my mum just rang me up laughing, going, ‘What are you doing with Boris Johnson?’ I was like, ‘I don’t know, Mum!’ Every opportunity I get, we can’t believe it."
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