I had my daughter at 45 after suffering from fertility problems – but trolls constantly criticize me for being ‘too old’

A mom has hit back at trolls criticizing her for being “too old” to be a parent.

Patti Avery Schmidt, from New Jersey, gave birth to her fourth child at age 45, but the content creator has faced controversy after some followers claimed she is too old to be a mother.

The mother of four, who experienced secondary infertility, has three sons with an age difference of about 20 years between her youngest son and her daughter Avery.

Patti has been criticized with comments like “When she’s 20, you’ll be 60, that’s so sad,” but she’s expressed the disapproval in a TikTok that has been viewed more than a million times.

Now viewers have flocked to the comments to offer support to Patti, and someone compared her situation to “pure joy.”

In the video, Patti discussed common misconceptions surrounding motherhood at age 40 and offered an alternative point of view.

She said, “I want to touch on some of the common criticisms older moms sometimes get.

“First of all, it’s not new for women to have a baby in their 40s. The childbearing years span decades, so why this is shocking to some people is beyond me.’

Patti went on to explain that one of the most common criticisms she’s seen online is “that it’s not fair to have kids in their 40s because those kids aren’t going to have as much time with you as they would if you had them back then.” you were young’. younger.’

The mother of four responded to this claim, saying, “The truth is nobody knows how much time they have.

“But for the sake of argument, let’s say we all get the same number of years, and we all expire on the same exact day. Does this mean we owe it to the next generation to bring them into the world as young as possible?’

She added that not everyone is ready to give birth during their teens or twenties, but even if they are, they may not be able to find the right partner, or would prefer to become financially stable before having children.

Patti added, “It’s also very common for people to experience infertility, or, in my experience, secondary infertility.”

Mother of four, who suffered from secondary infertility, refuted popular criticism of having children over the age of 40

She continues, “I planned to have our last child in my 30s, but when I was 30, I miscarried.

“The most carefully crafted plans may be completely beyond our control, and it baffles me that anyone could think that a child has more or less a right to exist based on the age of its mother.”

Patti’s next criticism was, “The increased risk of chromosomal abnormalities as maternal age increases.”

But the mother explained, “The numbers vary a bit depending on the source, but a recent one I read said that at age 30, a pregnant woman has a 0.1% chance of having a baby with Down syndrome.” Then, at the age of 40, this number rises to 1%.

“By the time I fathered my daughter at age 44, I had about a 2.5% chance of having a baby with Down syndrome.

Viewers flocked to the comment section to show their support and share similar experiences on the subject

“Conversely, I had a greater than 97% chance of having a baby with typical chromosomes who was perfectly healthy.”

Finally, Patti responded to the claim that older moms have less energy.

She said that while she had children in both her 20s and 40s, she didn’t notice a significant difference in her energy levels while taking care of her kids.

She added, “I do believe that while there are genetic factors beyond our control, our overall fitness and lifestyle choices have more to do with our mental and physical health than our age.”

Viewers flocked to the comment section to share their support for Patti. One user shared her similar experience, writing, “My mom got me when I was 39. I am 26 and she is now 66 and we are best friends. We’ve been to seven countries together and next summer we’re going to Alaska.’

A second wrote, “My mom had me at 29 and we got 8 years. It is pure joy for me to see people become mothers after the age of 37 (her age when she died).’

A third added: ‘My grandmother had my mother at age 41 with no complications. My mother is now 53 and my grandmother 94.’

A fourth said, “I’m thrilled to see this as a 20-year-old with a mother who gave birth at 44.”