'I rebuilt myself': Mrs World Singapore finalist shares how she left abusive marriage with S$600 and newborn baby

There was no shortage of Mother’s Day tributes over the weekend, but this one hit different. It wasn’t just about celebrating someone else or being a mum, but the woman she fought to become. Photographer Stephanie Teo, who was the third runner-up of Mrs World Singapore 2025, shared a deeply personal video on Instagram reflecting on her journey as a single mum. In the clip, she said years ago, she “lost everything”. She left her marriage due to family violence from her ex-husband, and divorced when her baby was barely a month old. At the time, she had just S$600 left in her bank account. Still, she chose to walk away. “Going into single motherhood because I believed walking away was the right decision,” read one of her captions. “But this is not a story about losing,” she added. “This is a story about rebuilding.” Teo looked back on the woman she once was – someone who “cried herself to sleep” in 2021 – and how far she has come. The years that followed were anything but easy. She worked three jobs for years and survived on just a few hours of sleep a day. “I worked really hard because I know I have a little girl depending on me,” she shared. “She became the reason I kept going.” Slowly, things began to change. She bought her first car, then her first home. She started her own business and eventually got her own office. Along the way, she continued upgrading herself, even pursuing a degree part-time. “I rebuilt my confidence. I rebuilt myself,” she said. “This Mother’s Day, I’m proud of the woman I became.”