Interview With Amber Portwood from MTV’s Teen Mom

I recently  talked with Amber Portwood, one of the mothers featured on MTV’s Teen Mom. Amber is 19 years old, and is learning to adjust to a new life with baby Leah and fiancé Gary, who at the time of taping was working 12 hour days to take care of his new family.

FW: Hi Amber, thanks for taking time out to talk to me today.

Amber: You’re welcome.

FW: How’s the baby?

Amber: She’s doing really good. She cracks me up. She’s dancing all the time, shaking her butt. She’s adorable.

FW: And how are you doing? In the first episode we see that you were having some problems with anxiety and stress…

Amber: Right…

FW: How’s that going now?

Amber: I don’t want to talk about that (laughing).

FW: Ok, not a problem. Then, let me ask you this: what do you want to talk about?

Amber: I’m trying to think of how I can really answer that. I don’t really want to blame it (the anxiety) on having a baby. It’s just the fact of basically being young, and all these new responsibilities kind of hit me all at once. And that probably caused a lot of stress in my life.

FW:  We’re not really blaming the baby, but having the baby created a new situation. Is that right?

Amber: In a way, but I think it’s more just the fact of me having more responsibilities so fast. It’s all the responsibility; I just realized that I had them all at once, and it kind of took me by surprise, I guess, after having the baby.

FW:  You don’t know how it is until you go through it.

Amber: It’s true! You don’t know until it really hits you, and that’s when it happens; after you have the baby.

FW: At this point, how did you deal with all the new responsibilities?

Amber: Well, you just have to learn to deal with it. I guess you just learn in time to deal with it. I mean, that’s just really the answer. You can’t just stop; you know you have a child and that’s every day life. You have a big responsibility, you have that life in your hands. You have to mold them into a person and you have to catch yourself.

FW: What do you do now when you begin to feel overwhelmed by everything?

Amber: You just have to step back and realize what’s going on. It’s kind of hard, but you really don’t have a choice in the matter. You just gotta step back and collect yourself, and jump back in, pretty much. You learn along the way, and that’s the good thing about parents. It doesn’t matter how old you are; any parent who has a child learns along the way.

FW: In the first episode you were having some issues with not getting out of the house much. Do you have a support system in place now; someone who can come over and give you a break?

Amber: Of course I have a support system of family and friends, you know. But it’s really hard. I’m at that stage where I want to go out, and I have to say, “no”. You kind of mature a lot faster, and you just learn. You learn to pick your battles…you can’t go out every weekend, maybe once or twice a month. My life’s completely changed since I had Leah. She’s really my world.

FW: How old is she now?

Amber: She’s a year.

FW: Wow. Is she walking yet?

Amber: Not yet, but she’s pretty close. (laughs)

FW:  Is Gary more supportive  now?

Amber: Yeah, he’s more supportive now. But, I feel like as a mom I take care of her so much more.

FW: It sounds like you’re taking it one step at a time.

Amber: Right. That’s exactly it; one step at a time. They learn from you; you learn from them, pretty much. You’re just a more loving person, I think, after you have a child. You feel a love that you’ve never felt before. And it’s amazing because you love them unconditionally. It’s got it’s stresses, but it’s still amazing, and it pays off in the end.

Although things are going well for Amber, and she has learned to adjust to the responsibilities of parenting, and think that I need to point out that for some new mothers it is not so easy. All new mothers have to adjust to the hormonal changes and lifestyle changes that come with giving birth, and adapting isn’t always as simple as “getting over it”. In the first episode of Teen Mom, we saw that Amber sought help from an outside source, which is the right thing to do under those circumstances.  If you are feeling overwhelmed by the stress of parenting, talk to a friend or family member, or your doctor or your child’s pediatrician, as they can steer you in the right direction. And don’t forget to take advantage of the mommy blogs and online support groups for mothers. Here are a few to get you started.

Baby Center

Cafe Mom

Everything Mom

Mommy’s Getaway