Leah Messer Opens Up on Discussing Past Addiction Struggles With Her Daughters

If you're a Teen Mom 2 fan like me then you know that mother-of-three Leah Messer has a new book coming out next month titled Hope, Grace & Faith (pre-order it here!). The memoir will not only detail Leah's experience on the MTV series, but also her, "struggle to rise to the challenges of motherhood, through her harrowing journey to find a diagnosis for one of her twin girls with a rare form of muscular dystrophy, and the collapse of two marriages."

From the excerpts that have been released, it seems that Leah gets incredibly personal in the memoir, from talking about having an abortion while pretending she miscarried, to the time she was charged with juvenile assault, to her struggles with drug addiction. In an exclusive interview, SheKnows asked Leah how she confronts these tough subjects with her daughters, 10-year old twins Aleeah and Aliannah, and seven-year old Adalynn.

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Tbh, we are not even counting down the days at this point. Haha! Just living in the present moment #alonetogether enjoying our family time at home! ? What are some games/crafts that you all have been playing while quarantined? ✨ ✨ . Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone that can’t be at home with their families during this time. We are so grateful for all that you are doing!! ?♥️ #alonetogether #family #stayhome #aaa #hopegracefaith #gamenight

A post shared by Ḻε@ℏ Ɖ@ẘƞ ♕✰ (@leahmesser) on Mar 23, 2020 at 2:18pm PDT

Leah says that her fraught relationship with her own mom growing up is a main reason she is honest and open with her daughters. "Growing up, my mom was trying to live through me. Because she didn’t have the best life growing up," Leah said. "So if I did better than her, it was like a competition. For my girls, I want them to do greater than what I do. So that’s my only hope, and I’m all about vulnerability, all about honesty. It will get you far in life."

The reality star also says that while her youngest doesn't understand yet, there's "nothing [she'd] hide" from her twins, and wants them, "to know about addiction and what drugs can do to you, and I want them to know things before they see it." Leah hopes her daughters learn from her past. "They know there’s nothing to be ashamed of; I’m like, “I am the mother I am for you guys now because of that time in my life," she explained.

One of the best parts of the Teen Mom franchise is following these families as they grow, and no one can argue that Leah has had a lot to overcome. Watching her and her daughters grow together on the show has been one of the highlights of the series and it will be exciting to see what else Leah's book has in store!