A daughter has shared how her parents make her share her birthday celebration with her brother who passed away at birth.

Writing on Reddit, the 16-year-old explained that she had a twin brother who died only hours after he was born and his parents had never recovered from it.

“He was 5 minutes older than me. I was told my mother went into deep depression, but with help got better over time,” the daughter continued.

The teen explained that her parents wanted to keep their son’s memory alive so she has been sharing her birthday with her late twin since she was 1.

“There’s always that 5 minutes of remembrance in honor of him, and instead of having one candle on my cake there will be an extra or extras for him. For example, if I was 1 year, there will be 1 for him or if I was 2, then they would add another 2 and so on,” she continued.

Even though she did not understand it when she was younger, she started to question it when she turned 8.

“This carried on until my 16th, that I didn’t get to celebrate, because I ended up in hospital,” she continued.

The teen shared how her grandfather visited her at the hospital and wished her a happy birthday.

“After he left, I realized, I loved that he only acknowledged me. I realized, I didn’t want to keep sharing my birthday with my brother. But then I felt guilty. I did try and speak to my parents about me just me celebrating my birthday this year. But I was brushed off,” she added.

Reddit users were quick to support the teen, with one person saying: “Your parents needing to grieve is understandable, but they’re going about it the wrong way. Your feelings are completely valid and I agree with everything you write. Your birthday cake should be for you.”

Another wrote: “Your parents need to find another way to grieve their lost child. Your birthday should be your celebration, not their occasion to memorialize their grief.”

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