The terrible, dark secret
The next morning, Tressa took the test, and it confirmed that she was pregnant.
Tressa never considered terminating the pregnancy, as she didn’t believe in abortion, even at that young age. She and her friend went to her mother’s house to ask her to tell her, but her aunt was there instead. Tressa’s friend told her aunt that she was pregnant, and her aunt immediately told her to hide.
When her mother heard the news, she was in the bath but ran out after Tressa, wrapped in a towel, and chased her into the street.
It wasn’t until after the birth of her daughter, that Tressa finally found the courage to reveal the true identity of the father.
$500-a-day heroin addiction
Jason, now 35, was found guilty of rape after DNA evidence linked him to the crime. He was sentenced to four years in prison by the High Court in Glasgow.
During the trial, it was revealed that Jason had been abusing Tressa since she was just seven years old. Tressa’s life fell apart in the aftermath, and for a year, she struggled with heroin addiction, feeling lost and broken.
A few years after the trial, Tressa spoke about the hell she had been through.
She told the Daily Mail: ”Sometimes he (her brother) bribed me, blackmailed me, to do it. He’d say he was going to tell Mom. He’d give me things – joints, drink, cigarettes. Or he’d threaten me.”
However, with the support and love of her fiancé, Darren, she found the strength to rebuild her life. Together, they overcame their struggles and got clean.
According to The Sun, Tressa fought to piece her life back together and managed to get clean after developing a $500-a-day heroin addiction.
Tressa Middleton brother – why she forgave him
In the years following the birth, Tressa has endured more pain and turmoil than most people face in a lifetime. She and Darren was thrilled when Tressa discovered she was pregnant in 2012, but heartbreak struck when she miscarried.
Just three days later, her mother passed away from pneumonia at the age of 41.
Her mother’s tragic passing led to the fact that she unexpectedly came face to face with her rapist brother, Jason, for the first time in four years.
The meeting occurred during their mother’s funeral. Jason, who had served a prison sentence for the horrific crime he committed against Tressa, helped carry their mother’s coffin. Though they kept their distance and avoided making eye contact, both siblings were visibly emotional, crying during the somber moment.
Despite the painful past, Tressa found it within herself to forgive him. She reflected, ”I didn’t feel any hatred towards him. I know what he did was wrong, and so does he. But my mum wouldn’t want it to ruin our lives. She can rest in peace knowing we’re moving on. I forgive him.”
As mentioned, Tressa was compelled to give up her first daughter for adoption when she was two years old. However, in her 2015 book, she revealed that she has never stopped thinking about her.
“She’s still the first thing I think about every morning and the last thing at night,” Tressa said.
The memories of their final meeting, when her daughter was three, continue to haunt Tressa. She recalled, ”I didn’t realize it would be the last time I’d see her. She didn’t recognize me, and she was scared. I couldn’t even hug her.”
