Halsey reflects on criticism they faced during pregnancy: ‘I got treated like a teen mom’

Halsey has opened up about the criticism they faced during their pregnancy with their newborn child, with the singer revealing they were “treated like a teen mom”.

In July, the 26-year-old, who goes by she/they pronouns, welcomed their first child Ender with boyfriend Alev Aydin, writing on Instagram at the time: “Gratitude. For the most ‘rare’ and euphoric birth. Powered by love.”

However, in a new interview with Zane Lowe on New Music Daily on Apple Music 1, Halsey reflected on some of the difficulties she faced being pregnant in the spotlight, revealing that she was criticised for having a child young and for working during her pregnancy.

“I’m 26, and I tried very hard for this pregnancy and it was like, I’m financially independent, I’m pretty far along in my career, it feels like the right time for me to do it. And I got treated like a teen mom a lot of the times,” the Without Me singer said, according to Entertainment Tonight. “Where people were like: ‘Oh my God, you’re so young, and you have so much to do in your career, and you’re not married and you’re this.’”

According to the new mother, the criticism triggered feelings of shame, while at the same time she questioned why fans felt entitled to question her choices.

“It triggered a lot of old feelings of shame in me where I was like, how can you have an opinion, that kind of opinion on me making this decision?” she said.

Halsey also acknowledged that, on the “flip side,” if they had chosen to focus on their career and continued to work rather than getting pregnant, they would have been judged for prioritising their career over a family.

“But then, there’s also: ‘She worked too hard, she never had a family. She’s going to die alone. She was too obsessed with work, she never found someone. It’s a shame she’s not going to have any kids, her career’s not going to hold her at night,’” she continued, adding that she ultimately decided that she was going to do what she wanted to do.

“OK. So nothing. So f*** ‘em and I just was like, I’m going to do what I want to do. You know what I mean? I was like, this is important to me,” the singer said.

During the interview, Halsey, who recently released their new album If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power, also acknowledged that they knew they would face criticism for working during their pregnancy, especially because they have been open about their past miscarriages.

The 26-year-old previously told The Guardian that having miscarriages left her feeling inadequate and like she was unable to do the “one thing I’m biologically put on this earth to do”.

“I knew...that people were going to be like: ‘For someone like Halsey, who’s had miscarriages and whatever, she shouldn’t have been working so hard. Would it have killed her to stay home and relax for the baby?’” the songwriter told Lowe of creating her new album while pregnant, according to BuzzFeed.

She also noted that the album may not have been what her fans expected, as  it wasn’t “full of gratitude” like many may have thought it would be after witnessing her “yearn for motherhood”.

Rather, Halsey said: “Instead I was like: ‘No, this sh** is so scary and so horrifying. And my body’s changing and I have no control over anything. And I do finally have this thing I want. So I wake up and fear every single day that I’m going to lose it.’”

While speaking with Lowe, Halsey, who surprised fans with the announcement they were pregnant in January 2021, reflected on their decision to step back from social media during the pregnancy as well.

According to the singer, they decided to take time off social media because they were worried about the stress of it, and how it would impact their unborn child, noting that the “consequences were too high”.

Explaining that they weren’t going to put themselves out there after years of being an “open book,” Halsey continued: “The consequences were too high. The consequences of letting social media stress me out or cause me grief. It’s no longer just me being affected by it.

“There’s a whole other person whose nervous system is being affected by the status of mine. So I had to kind of make that choice.”

Since giving birth, Halsey has started sharing insights into her new role as a mother with her fans on social media, with the singer recently sharing two photos of herself breastfeeding the newborn.