From experience I can honestly say that there is no confidentiality between my health visitor and myself. I have told her many things in confidence and my parents have ended up having a go at me because I spoke to the health visitor not them!

I have always found my doctor, my health visitor and my midwives looking straight through me and speaking to the parent who's with me instead of me - even though it is my child being discussed and I am the one responsible for my child!

My parents often told me not to be such a coward and tell them if I feel like they are ignoring me. Older people do, so why can't I?

I feel that I can't say anything as I am only a young teenage mother, and if they see that I get angry and upset over such a little thing, they may think I lose my rag with my child. I am also scared that they may accuse me of hurting my child when I would never dream of touching my child in the wrong way. I love my child so much.

People look at me when I am walking down the street as if I am just a babysitter for my child, who they think is someone else's. I personally think people need to stop judging the book by its cover, and investigate before opening their mouths. Many people have said hurtful things to me that have made me end up in tears.

I never thought people could be so inconsiderate toward teenage mothers when we are bringing up the children of the 21st century and doing a damn good job of it too!

Life is not easy when you have a child, but you work around it, the same as older mothers do. Teenage mothers are just as capable as older mothers. We haven't had experience of motherhood but neither have older first time mothers, so we start from scratch just like them. It's bad enough not having friends because of having our children, but to have enemies as a result is damn right obscene.

I've changed so that I don't care what people think, say or do towards me, as I am going to show them that I am capable of being as good as or better than older mothers!