Viral Video of Heartbroken Single Mom Reveals Struggles of Celebrating Birthday Without a Partner
Elizabeth Teckenbrock, known as @morethanelizabeth on TikTok, went viral after posting an emotional video of herself baking a birthday cake while tearfully explaining the hardships of celebrating her birthday without a partner.
Teckenbrock, 29, shared a heartfelt video earlier this week, in which she was seen baking a birthday cake with tears streaming down her face. "Being a single mom is making your own birthday cake on your birthday so that your babies can feel happy they are singing to you," she wrote over the video, which was set to the emotional song "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri. The video caption read, "Geez I'm tired of hurting."
The video, which has since been deleted along with all her social media accounts, garnered over 37 million views and sparked a wave of comments. While some viewers offered support, others were quick to judge.
One harsh comment read, "You would never last in a man's world," while another said, "Chill out! I'm married and don't get a cake." Another critic wrote, "Why are you crying? You clearly need to work on yourself and your kids first," adding, "being single is better than being with the wrong person."
However, many users defended Teckenbrock, sharing words of encouragement. One supportive comment said, "In case you didn't hear this today, you're doing a great job, you are so loved. I would have killed to have a mom like you growing up. I know it's hard but you're doing such a good job."
In a follow-up video, also deleted, Teckenbrock explained that she initially recorded the birthday cake-making TikTok to make other single mothers feel less alone. She admitted she was being "an emotional baby," but highlighted the challenges of being a single mother.
"It's hard," she explained. "I really can't even come up with words to say to make someone understand how difficult it is raising kids, and taking care of your house, and doing every single thing completely by yourself and not having a partner. There's no break, it's exhausting all the time and that cry was probably just out of tiredness."
Teckenbrock later shared that her children helped her decorate the cupcakes and sang "Happy Birthday" to her.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Teckenbrock is the founder of "Fear to Fierce," a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting survivors of domestic violence through advocacy and empowering women to embrace their strength. She holds a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery from Purdue University and currently resides in Tampa, Florida.
