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Teen Mom 2's Leah Messer: 20 Things To Know

"Although Messer has been through more in her 26 years than many ever will in their lifetime, it seems that the star has finally found happiness."

Audiences first met Leah Messer when she was just 17 years old as she appeared on the second season of MTV's hit show 16 and Pregnant. Messer and her then-boyfriend Corey Simms were pregnant with twin daughters after being together for just one month.

To say that Messer has had her fair share of ups and downs would be an understatement. She and Simms married only to separate and eventually divorce the following year. One of their twin daughters, Aliannah, was diagnosed with a rare form of muscular dystrophy and Messer struggled with being a young, single mom to a child with special needs.

Messer married again and had another daughter, but that relationship also ended in divorce. Fans got to watch all of the drama in Messer's life unfold as it was all documented on MTV's hit spinoff to 16 and Pregnant, Teen Mom 2. Although Messer has been through more in her short 26 years than many ever will in their lifetime, it seems that the reality star has finally found some peace and is happier than she's ever been. The mom of three has some new business ventures on the horizon and her kids are growing up happy and healthy.

Here are 20 things to know about Teen Mom 2's Leah Messer that you may not have known about the reality star and single mom of three girls.

17 Two Marriages Before She Was 20

Messer was a small town cheerleader from Elkview, West Virginia when she first began dating Corey Simms. Messer was just 17 years old and had only been dating Simms a month when she found out she was pregnant.

When Messer was 18 she and Simms married, but that marriage was shortlived.

The couple married in October of 2010 but divorced just a few months later in June of 2011 after Messer admitted to cheating on Simms with an ex-boyfriend.

Messer began dating Jeremy Calvert in August of 2011 and the couple married in April of 2012, just a few weeks shy of Messer's 20th birthday. Sadly that relationship didn't last either and the couple divorced three years later.

16 She's a Mom of Three Girls

Although her marriages may not have worked out, Messer is a proud and happy mom of three young daughters. Leah and Corey welcomed twin girls Aliannah and Aleeah in 2009 and after noticing that Aliannah was developing slower than her twin Aleeah, they brought her to the doctor for testing. It was then that Ali was diagnosed with Titin Muscular Dystrophy, a rare form of the disease.

Messer and Calvert welcomed daughter Adalynn in 2013, a year after the couple had experienced a traumatic miscarriage. Messer loves to share pictures of herself and her girls on social media and is clearly a proud mom of her three daughters.

15 She Struggled With Ali's Diagnosis

Messer and Sims finally discovered why their daughter Ali was developing slower than her sister when Ali was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. Like any parent, Messer struggled with the diagnosis and admitted she was scared of what that meant for her little girl.

"We were scared because we didn't know what her future was going to look like, but we always pushed for answers," Messer told InTouch at the time. "We never gave up, and we never will. We'll do everything we can to make sure Ali has the life that she needs."

"The disorder affects her respiratory system and progresses the older she gets."

"The bigger she gets and the more weight she gains, the harder it'll be for her muscles to carry the weight."

14 She Had Aleeah Tested As Well

Messer has been very open and honest on Teen Mom 2 about her fears for Ali as her disease progresses, and last year she also revealed on the show that doctors wanted her to have Aleeah tested for the condition as well.

Messer noted that Aleeah was simply excited to go on a trip to Columbus with her mom and her sister for once, not quite realizing the implications of the trip.

"I mean, the possibility of her even having it is worrisome to me," Messer said on the show. Fortunately it seems that Aleeah didn't test positive giving Messer a bit of relief.

13 She's Definitely Been Judged By Fans

All the moms in the Teen Mom universe have had their fair share of mom shaming, and Messer was no exception. While moms like Farrah Abraham have been shamed for their lifestyle choices, Messer was shamed online because she let her daughters wear makeup!

After posting a picture of her girls wearing makeup, the trolls came at Messer and began leaving unkind comments on her social media. Messer was accused of being a bad mom while others suggested she was dressing her daughters too mature. All because she let them wear a bit of lipstick! Messer clearly likes to spend girl bonding time with her daughters and that seems to involve having fun with makeup. Fortunately for Messer, she had plenty of fans who came to her defense on social media.

12 She is The Ultimate Advocate For Her Daughter

There is no doubt that Messer will do everything she can to advocate for daughter Ali so she gets everything she needs to be successful in life.

When Messer learned that Ali's school was planning to eliminate Ali's helper, the person who would aid Ali with carrying her backpack, helping her go to the bathroom and during lunch, Messer went in to full mama bear mode!

“It is a necessity for her. This is her livelihood. This is how she gets things done in school,” Leah told a producer about her need for an aid during filming of her show at the time.

Speaking with simms on the phone, Messer even threatened to take legal action against the school if Ali's needs weren't met.

“I’m about to call my attorneys,” the mom of three said. “They did special needs cases against the school. [The school] would be held liable if something happened to her.”

11 She And Corey Simms Are Great Co-Parents

Despite having a long and complicated relationship, Messer and her former husband Corey Simms have a pretty great co-parenting relationship, and they both put their daughters first before anything else.

“The current custody situation, just honestly … whatever we think is best for them, we do. We are doing the week on and then a week off,”

the 26-year-old told US Weekly about her and Simms' custody arrangement. “It’s always been 50/50."

She admits that although the couple had their issues in the past, things are now 'going great.' “At the end of the day do what’s best for the kids,” she explains. “They’re the ones that matter.”

10 No, She And Jeremy Are Not Getting Back Together

Messer and Jeremy Calvert have had a pretty complicated relationship. Despite divorcing after three years of marriage, the couple have been known to flirt online with each other on social media and Messer even admitted to getting back together with her ex once after the split. Still, during an episode of Teen Mom 2 that aired this past summer, she admits that she's not reconciling with Calvert.

“It’s a road I don’t want to go back down. I know I don’t feel anything. I don’t want to upset him,” she said. “I’m not the same person I was, I’m not the same person he proposed to.”

“We are great parents and that’s all we’ll ever be,” she told US about Calvert. “We’re great coparents together.”

9 She Almost Quit Teen Mom 2

There is never a shortage of drama in the Teen Mom 2 world, but during a recent past season reunion show that drama got so intense that Messer had threatened to quit!

After a lot of drama involving fellow cast members Jenelle Evans and Briana DeJesus, Messer, Kailyn Lowry and Chelsea Houska felt threatened and came close to walking away from the show that made them household names.

"Briana flipped out on [Leah] last night, making her cry and stuff. This is not okay," Kailyn explained to the executive producers. "None of this would be happening if it wasn't for [Briana] or Jenelle because now Jenelle is walking off with David."

"If all three of us ban together and we're done, then what? Then the show is done completely if nothing changes and so far, nothing changes," Lowry said of her, Messer and Houska forming a solidarity pact.

The trio has remained filming but it's safe to say the drama is still happening! Fortunately Messer has seemed to keep out of it as much as she can.

8 She And Kailyn Lowry Are Good Friends

While it's safe to say that not all the Teen Mom stars are friends, or even friendly, Messer and co-star Kailyn Lowry really are tight.

The two co-stars and moms of three even took a girls trip away to Hawaii together.

And despite some theorizing that the two were actually romantically involved, they seem to just be good friends who always have each others back. Both of them have similar situations and have dealt with their reality famous lives, so it makes sense that they have formed a friendship.

The two constantly comment on each others social media posts and Messer has even made an appearance on Lowry's podcast, Coffee Convos.

7 Leah Has YouTube Channel

Just a few years ago Messer decided to branch out and start her own YouTube Channel! Messer's videos featured her three daughters and covered everything from cooking with her girls to just hanging out and doing crafts like making slime.

Messer has been through a lot over the years with her personal life and it looks like her YouTube channel was a way of showing her fans just what life was really like for her and her daughters.

Her last video was posted 8 months ago so it doesn't seem like she's actively updating, but that may be because she has other business ventures on the horizon....

6 She Launched Her Own Podcast

Like co-star Kailyn Lowry, Messer has recently launched her own Podcast called Life Reboot alongside her manager and life coach Lindsay Rielly

“It will be talking about my experiences with it and what I’m doing in my life and my goals,” Messer told US Weekly.

“That’s my role in the podcast … It’s to share what I have [gone] through and what I’ve learned as I’ve [gone] through it and every high and low in my life, and that’s what I’m most excited to share and truly help others … that may be going through the same things.”

5 She Supposedly Had A Bad Habit

Back in 2015 Messer went through some very tough times, notably when she was accused by ex Corey Simms of overusing prescription medication. After having daughter Adalynn in 2013 the reality star said she was prescribed medication for back pain.

“When I was hurting so bad, I’d take the medication, because I could get up and go. I could take care of my kids. My back wasn’t hurting,” she told her mother during a taping of her reality show. “I told you guys, ‘I’ve got this medication. I feel like I’m becoming dependent. I can’t take this medication.’ I stopped taking the medication.”

Messer enrolled in a one month rehab program stating,  “That person I know I could be – and I will be again – is just crying for help inside me.”

4 She Almost Lost Custody Of Her Twins

During the time that Leah battled with her prescription pill problem, it was reported that Corey Simms took her to court and was awarded full custody of their twin daughters. Messer disputed that claim recently when she told US Weekly that while she came close to losing custody, it never happened.

“It’s always been 50/50. People were like, ‘Leah lost custody’ … I almost did, but I never lost custody of my children.”

Still, she refers to that point in her life as her 'lowest point.' “‘Cause if anyone knows me they know that when it comes to being a mom and my girls, they are my life. They are my life. … I wasn’t in the greatest place mentally and then it was affecting me physically, like it almost cost me my children.

3 She Hit A Personal Low

On her new podcast Messer opened up about hitting one of the lowest points in her life. "I had this expectation of who I was supposed to be as a mom, as a wife, as a person and I… just never reached them," she explained. She also said that she helped herself regain her confidence by having inspirational and motivational words hung around her house.

"It's like I had to train my mind to know that I am love, I am confident, I am worthy and until I said that repeatedly to myself and like, it just did wonders."

She said her positivity rubbed off on her daughters.  "Even for my girls, when they started school this year, they knew… Addie wrote on the chalk board, she was like… 'I am happy because I have a family that loves me and she even put like why and blessed," she shared.

2 She Had A Secret Boyfriend

Some people think it's hard to have a private life when you're on television, but Leah managed to keep an entire relationship hidden when she revealed that she had a secret boyfriend. Messer admitted to dating personal trainer T.R. Dues after her divorce from Calvert.

“One thing that I didn’t share with cameras is that after my divorce from Jeremy is that I did have a boyfriend,” Messer confessed during a reunion show. “We lived together for a little while.”

“It was a time in my life where I needed a friend. I went to treatment and came back and was thinking he wasn’t in a place to contribute financially. It wasn’t the right time for me to be in a relationship.” She added, “I didn’t want to share that story with everyone knowing it wasn’t right.”

1 She's Tried Online Dating

Despite a few failed relationships Messer is still hopeful she'll find 'the one,' so much so that she signed up for Tinder to try to meet her match. During her appearance on Kailyn Lowry's podcast Coffee Convos she revealed that she quickly left the dating site after a friend told her "that's like putting DTF on your forehead."

Although Tinder didn't work out for her she still remains optimistic that Mr Right is out there for her.

"I feel like the right person is going to be worth our time," she said, "and it's all going to make sense."

She Just Broke Up With Her Boyfriend

Messer had been dating boyfriend Jason Jordan for about 6 months, even going Instagram official with the 40 year old father of one, but it seems that it just wasn't meant to be. Recent reports are circulating that the couple have called it quits, with sources claiming that it simply wasn't meant to be. Just a few weeks ago Messer spoke adoringly about Jordan to US Weekly. “I think he’s definitely more mature than other guys that I’ve dated that are my age,” Messer, said of her beau who is 13 years older than her. She attributed some of that maturity to the fact that Jordan is a dad to a 2 year old son.  "It’s just a different responsibility, it’s a different life than someone that’s single … he’s a good dad … he’s an all around good person.”

Three Is Enough!

Although she's only 26, this mom of three is pretty sure she's done in the baby department! During a q&a on Instagram, one of Messer's fans asked the reality star if she would ever have any more children, and her response wasn't so clear. “I really don’t know. I’m happy with my life rn and don’t really think about it.” Lowry asked Messer the same question during her podcast appearance and Messer admitted that she didn't know the answer. She later took to twitter to let fans know her thoughts. "I’m okay if I don’t have anymore kids, it’s not even a thought of mine! #justsaying."

She's Happier Than Ever!

Despite having gone through a lifetime of ups and downs over the years, many that have played out in front of a national audience on television, Messer is now doing better than ever. She has her new podcast that has just launched and she's using her platform to share her struggles in hopes of helping others. But best of all she's finally in a great place in her life where she's happy and healthy and loving her life. “Today I would say that I am kind, I am loving, I am confident, I am courageous, I am strong.” Leah has been through so much that she definitely deserves some happiness!

References: InTouch, US Weekly US Weekly, US Weekly