Twelve-year-old mother struggles to care for baby

Susie cradles her daughter, having rocked her to sleep.

Twelve-year-old *Susie (not her real name) picks up her one-month-old baby daughter from the bed as she cries and cradles her.

Comforted by her young mother’s arms, the baby immediately stops crying. Apart from breastfeeding her, there is not much more Susie can do to care for the baby. Susie’s mother assists her in bathing and dressing the baby who can very easily be mistaken for Susie’s sister.

The woman told Stabroek News that Susie “teaches the baby too much hand,” meaning that she spoils her by picking her