Eventually, she decided to tell her own story.
Together with writer Katy Weitz, she published Tressa: The 12-Year-Old Mum: My True Story, explaining the circumstances surrounding her childhood, abuse, pregnancy, motherhood, and recovery.
The book gave her an opportunity to tell the story in her own words rather than allowing sensational headlines to define her.
Her decision to speak publicly was also intended to help other people who may have experienced abuse, fear, or difficult family circumstances.
Finding Love and Starting Again
Tressa later began a relationship with Darren Young.
The couple hoped to build a family together, although their journey was not without heartbreak. Earlier reports described Tressa experiencing a miscarriage before eventually becoming a mother again.
Her later experiences with motherhood were very different from the circumstances surrounding the birth of her first child.
Instead of being a frightened child suddenly placed in the role of mother, she was now an adult who had worked through years of trauma and was trying to create a stable family life.
Her Life Today
Tressa has largely stepped away from the intense media attention that surrounded her childhood.
