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Amber Portwood Believes MTV Set Estranged Daughter Leah Shirley Up to Text Her: 'I Was Not Even Supposed to Film That Day'

Composite photo of Amber Portwood and Leah Shirley
Source: @realamberlportwood1__/Instagram; @itsleahtime12/Instagram

Amber Portwood revealed she believes MTV set up Leah Shirley to text her.

July 10 2025, Published 4:11 p.m. ET

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Amber Portwood’s issues with estranged daughter Leah Shirley were a hot topic on the last season of Teen Mom: The Next Chapter.

While their relationship issues were addressed throughout many episodes, the season concluded with Shirley sending a text to Portwood that completely sent her into a tailspin.

Now, weeks after the episode aired, Portwood revealed she believes the entire thing was a setup.

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What Did Leah Shirley's Text to Amber Portwood Say?

Image of Leah Shirley texted Amber Portwood during the season finale of 'Teen Mom: The Next Chapter.'
Source: @itsleahtime12/Instagram

Leah Shirley texted Amber Portwood during the season finale of 'Teen Mom: The Next Chapter.'

“This isn’t meant to hurt you,” OK! reported Shirley texted Portwood, “but I want to let you know that all these years it’s been my decision to not have a relationship with you and nobody has influenced my decision.”

Shirley noted “recent online activities” put her in a place where she needed to “communicate this” in order to put a boundary between her and her mother.

In response, Portwood absolutely lost it on camera, telling her daughter to "stop."

"You're 16, stop," she reiterated. "People see the disrespect by the way and they tell me how much you disrespect me, too. You're rude and there's no reason to be rude. You don't know what you are saying right now. You're young. You're 16. Be 16 and don't be in the middle of me and your father."

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Amber Portwood Details the Day Leah Shirley Sent Her the Text

Image of Amber Portwood told MTV to 'get the f out of my house' after she received a text from Leah Shirley.
Source: @realamberlportwood1__/Instagram

Amber Portwood told MTV to 'get the f out of my house' after she received a text from Leah Shirley.

In a recent TikTok Live appearance, Portwood reflected on the day she received the message.

“MTV came in my home,” she began. “I had not heard from Leah for I don’t know how long. She had been angry at me because of all the past things for over six months at that time, I had been completely blocked. All of a sudden, MTV comes in after months I didn’t even mess with them and I get a text that says… I looked at all of them…” The long-standing reality starlet claimed if she were to get “raw footage,” you would see her “cussing out everybody” and “telling them to get the f out of my house.”

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Amber Portwood Believes MTV Knew About the Text Before They Taped Her Reaction

Image of Amber Portwood said she was not supposed to film the day MTV showed up to tape her reaction to Leah Shirley's text message.
Source: @realamberlportwood1__/Instagram

Amber Portwood said she was not supposed to film the day MTV showed up to tape her reaction to Leah Shirley's text message.

“Don’t dare try to sit there — come here and start ish between me and my daughter and having her text me because you guys are over there in her ear,” she continued. “I said, ‘I’m done with all of you.’ That was the last time I filmed.”

Portwood acknowledged she felt MTV knew that text was coming and came to film her response in real time. “I was not even supposed to really film that day too much of anything,” she added. “And all of a sudden, out of nowhere… magic happened and I got a text. And I’m excited, right? I’m thinking… first of all, my daughter’s 16. How would she know what happened from when she was a young child all the way up till a certain age?”

Leah Shirley Told Amber Portwood's Friends She Was 'Done' With Her Mom

Image of Leah Shirley told Amber Portwood's friends she was 'done' with her mother.
Source: @itsleahtime12/Instagram

Leah Shirley told Amber Portwood's friends she was 'done' with her mother.

Shirley also had a conversation about her mother with Maci Bookout and Catelynn Lowell on the May 1 episode of the show, telling them she was “done” wanting a relationship with Portwood due to her being an inconsistent presence in her life and for how she’s blamed her dad, Gary Shirley, for their fractured relationship.

Leah also detailed that she hadn’t seen Amber in nine months and, aside from her reaching out once when Leah was diagnosed with asthma, she hadn’t attempted to contact her.

She added it’s “too much” to have Amber come in and out of her life and act like “everything’s perfect" when she's around.

“She tells me that she loves me and hugs me and stuff and I can’t do that,” Leah elaborated, calling it “fake.” “Like, you don’t text me, you don’t see me, and then when you do see me – for purposes of there being a camera in your face – you try to act like you’re the best mom ever.”

While she made it clear she “doesn’t hate” her mother, she claimed she’s dealing with her “own issues” at this time.

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