You Speak: The Teenage Pregnancy Pact
June 23, 2008 by Liberty Kontranowski
Filed under A Mother's Wisdom, Boys & Girls, Children, Prevention, Sex, Womens Health
Image details: Pregnant woman served by picapp.com
Okay, I admit it. I’m a little behind the 8-ball on this one. I hadn’t even heard of this crazy new teenage pregnancy pact until Friday morning, and that was only because my 83-year-old news junkie grandma gave me the scoop.
I was aghast.
You mean to tell me, these teenager girls wanted to get pregnant? In my day, it was considered shameful if a teenage girl turned up pregnant (and I’m only in my eaaaarly 30’s). Not only that, but as a married parent with a stable income, secure home and a bright future, I still think parenting is tough stuff. What business do these girls have thinking having a baby is the right thing to do? My Lawd.
I realize there are some self-esteem issues at work here, and probably a slew of other one-off rationalizations, but I am just amazed and appalled that this has taken place. I’d love to hear from you: what do you think of this issue? Should these girls get to keep their babies? Is the school to blame for any of this? Weigh in…
Yeah, it’s pretty out there, isn’t it? When I was writing up a follow-up post on it, I checked international papers to see if it had made news, and sure enough it did, from Canada to Australia.
My fear is that others may think this is cool too. Teen pregnancies have risks beyond the social aspect and that’s something many people don’t realize. There’s the health aspect of teens and their babies that come into play as well.
Sad.
First off I must say..WTF???
The sad part is when the reality of their stupidity finally sinks in and they really realize what they have done to themselves and the future of their unborn child, not to mention the parents.
That is a whole other issue. Where were the parents and what role did they play in trying to prevent such a stupid thing from happening.
The minor issue of this is health insurance and funds. The reason I say minor is because the health of the teen and child is much more important. However this plays a role as well because without proper health care to the mother to be and child it all pans out into the health of the child and mother.
When these kids see the movie Juno and they make these stupid little plans they forget to hear the part of the movie where the parents that plan to adopt say “We’ll pay for everything”. It doesn’t really go into the great expenses that child birth costs.
So then again, I bluntly say…WTF?
It is so out of control, isn’t it? I agree, Liberty. It used to be a “shameful” thing to get pregnant and from what I knew of it, the girls in school that got “in trouble” were sent away.
It is so hard being a parent to a teenager and we all need to do our very best to keep our eyes wide open, which is hard to do. You do not want to face the reality of today’s world and your own child’s for that matter. It is hard. So hard.
I really hope these families of these girls can get them as much help as they can because they really need it.
What do you think of this Baby Borrowers show? It appears to try to enlighten teens on teen pregnancy.
Hey Neil, I just today saw a print ad for that show. In theory, it’s great. But in reality, how many teens are going to sit and watch it? Some MIGHT, but I’m not sure it would have the impact we all would hope. Maybe (and hopefully) I’m wrong. I’d love to see what becomes of it.
Marijke, thanks for the comment. I should have known you’d have covered it at Womb Within.
And I totally agree, there is such a risk of other teens thinking this is cool and “the thing to do.” I shudder at the thought of this unleashing some kind of scary trend, and I pray this is brought to light as a BAD thing, and not something to aspire to.
Thanks for your thoughts and for your great coverage of all things pregnancy.
Scott, you may have summed it up the best here – WTF???
Thanks for your comments. Well said.
Teri, you hit the nail on the head. Where were these girls’ parents through all of this? I know as a parent (especially of a teenager), it is unrealistic to believe you can have your finger on the pulse of all that they do, but man, where was the education here? Where was the birds and the bees/parenting is damn hard (and expensive!) talk? Where was the encouragement for these girls, the parental chats where they were encouraged to reach for the stars, dream big, and work hard to reach your goals?
Now, all that promise is thrown out the window for these young ladies. What a shame.
Yeah that Baby Borrowers show looks interesting, I think it starts tonight. Anyone watching?
Yeah tonight on NBC at 9pm. I plan on watching.
I’m watching too. Let me know what you guys think, okay?