Single mom-of-13 forced to stop having kids after discovering worrying mass on her uterus

A mom-of-13 has revealed that she has been forced to stop having kids after developing a growth on her uterus.

Veronica Merritt, 39, has 12 biological children and one adopted child, and has become well known on social media for sharing an inside look at her life, which involves spending three hours on preparing dinner, driving around in a school bus, and color-coding her kids' clothes.

The New York-based mom has previously sent social media users into a spin after she revealed the unusual names of her children and admitted that soaring costs of living left her struggling to feed her family.

Now, she has candidly opened up about a hurdle in her health after discovering a worrying mass growing on her uterus.

Veronica recalled the heartbreaking moment she heard she wouldn't be able to have children again - adding that in the future, she would be expanding her household with the help of adoption or surrogacy. 

A mom-of-13 has revealed that she has been forced to stop having kids after developing a growth on her uterus

She explained: 'I discovered it a few months ago and it cannot be safely removed without taking out my whole uterus.

'If I keep it, I could potentially still get pregnant, but the fibroid is so large that it would almost certainly cause a miscarriage.' 

The mom-of-13 noted that she wasn't happy with the news because she had plans to have more children.   

'I absolutely do not want this. If I want more kids, I'll have to use a surrogate or adopt,' she admitted. 

She added that she was initially supposed to undergo a full hysterectomy on May 2, 2024, however, it was delayed after she fell ill. 

But after getting sick, it had to be rescheduled once again and was planned for the last week of June – until she fell ill again and was admitted to hospital.

Now, it's hoped that the procedure would take place before the end of July, with the exact date yet to be confirmed.

While the thought of surgery scares her, she's been left 'terrified' about the prospect of never having children again.

Veronica Merritt , 39, has 12 biological children and one adopted child, and has become well known on social media for sharing an inside look at her life as a mother-of-13

The New York-based mom has previously sent social media users for a spin after she revealed the unusual names of her children 

Now, she has candidly opened up about a hurdle in her health after discovering a worrying mass growing on her uterus

She said: 'I had all my kids with [unloving] exes. Now, I'll never be able to meet someone who does love me and have children with them.

'I don't regret my kids, I love them, it's just sad that life didn't turn out the way I expected.

'I wanted a big happy family and I'd have that now if I chose a partner who actually adored me.' 

However, Veronica admitted that there was a part of her that felt a bit relieved she couldn't have any more kids. 

She confessed: 'On the other hand, I feel somewhat at peace about being done.

'I can meet someone and fool around as much as I want without the risk of pregnancy.'

Veronica, who previously shared she color-coded her kids to tell them apart, said that due to her health scare, she had decided to put herself first.

And despite feeling guilty, it's in a bid to 'finally' start living life.

Veronica recalled the heartbreaking moment she heard she wouldn't be able to have children again

However, Veronica admitted that there was a part of her that felt a bit relieved she couldn't have any more kids

She added: 'Lately, I've been a little selfish. I'm trying to do more without the kids, which sounds awful, I know, it's just that I've felt like a prisoner for a long time.

'I'm free to have friends and a social life now, which I want for myself. I've had so many problems with my health, where I almost died from a kidney infection, blood clots and a pulmonary embolism.

'It's hard balancing my time with the kids and time for myself, it's pretty overwhelming at times. I just want the chance to live a little.'

According to Mount Sinai, the most common growths are uterine fibroids, which are non-cancerous but painful.

Veronica has 12 biological children and one adopted kid:  Victoria, 24; Andrew, 19; Adam, 17; Mara, 16; Dash, 15; Darla, 13; Marvelous, 11;  Martalya, nine; Amelia, seven; Delilah, six; Donovan, four; and Modi, two.

Veronica fell pregnant for the first time when she was just 14 years old.

Victoria was born in 1999 and five years later, she and her first husband welcomed their son Andrew, who is now 17.

After they divorced, she married her second husband, 38-year-old Marty, and they went on to have eight more children together before separating.

They're parents to Adam, Mara, Dash, Darla, Marvelous, Martayla, Amelia, Delilah, Donovan, and Modi. She also recently adopted a son named Michel.

Veronica, who previously admitted to color-coding her kids to tell them apart, said that due to her health scare, she had decided to put herself first

She previously opened up about being trolled on TikTok for 'not being able to afford' her big family by people who claim she should not have had kids in the first place

According to Veronica, she can't take birth control because she suffers from kidney disease and it makes her too sick.

'I have kidney disease and lost my kidney last year,' she told the outlet back in August.

'Some of the children were planned, but I can't take hormonal birth control because my illness means I am prone to blood clots.'

While speaking to Truly, Veronica admitted that the family is often met with stares from strangers when they're out in public - who will say things like, 'Wow you have your hands full,' or, 'Are they all yours?'

She has also received some backlash from people on the internet who have slammed her for having so many children.

'I get a lot of mixed reactions on my TikTok and Instagram. A lot of them are super supportive, but there's a lot of negativity as well,' she admitted.

'There's a lot of hate for pretty much no reason. We're really nice people and if people took the time to get to know us, they would know that.'

She previously opened up about being trolled on TikTok for 'not being able to afford' her big family by people who claim she should not have had kids in the first place.