Teen Pregnancy and Stereotypes
Teen pregnancy is increasing yearly. According to the March of Dimes, teenage birth rates have decreased steadily in the country since 1991. Teenage birth rates in the United States remain relatively high compared to the more developed countries.
According to the March of Dimes, "nearly thirteen percent of all births in the United States were teens ages fifteen to nineteen. Almost one million teenagers become pregnant each year and about 485,000 give birth (Teenage 1).
Babies, as well as the teenage mothers, face long-time problems may face long-term problems from the pregnancy. These problems may include school failure, poverty, and physical or mental illness. Babies born to teenagers are at greater risk for neglect and abuse than those of a woman. Teenage mothers may feel like they are being demanded to do the job and they may take their frustration out on the child (When 1).
Why are so many teenagers having children at such a young age? What are the parents doing about it? For a long time now, I have thought about these questions. I am a teenager, why aren't I pregnant? Teenage girls feel pressure from their peers. Peers may say to you "Everyone is doing it." You may feel that you need to be part of the group to be "cool". Sometimes you may even feel that you know what you are doing. You think that nothing is going to happen to you until one day, and then you are delivering a baby.
Parents are not as smart as they used to be in the sex education area. Many parents are afraid to speak with their children. Some may feel that their children are learning about it in school so why should they say it again. Many teenagers are sent to foster homes because the parents are too busy to take care of their responsibilities. Neglect is a cause for teenagers to get pregnant. They feel that if they have a child that they can be loved.
Teen pregnancy, in my opinion, is awful. I feel that young women should not be having children at such a young age. I feel that these teenagers that are having babies are children themselves, and do not know how to take care of them as well as an older, more mature person might. At this young age, very few teenagers have jobs. Therefore, it may be difficult for them to support themselves and the baby. They would probably have to drop out of school, and get a couple of jobs; all this just to pay for diapers, food, and clothing.
Where is the child going to go when the mother has to go to work? To the babysitter? To the grandmothers house? More times than I can count, I see young mothers handing their children over to their parents. What if the mother does not want to work? You have to think if all of this is worth it and if you are ready for such a huge responsibility.
Teen pregnancy can be a very difficult situation at times. For example, a young girl tells a story about what she went through. This young girl thought she was in love. The guy she was dating the cutest guys in the school. Why would he be dating an average little girl. He said he loved her. This girl had been having sexual intercourse since she was fourteen years old. She slept with this guy and before you know it, she ended up pregnant. What was this young girl to do? The family pressures pushed the girl to have an abortion. Time went by and she met another guy. She talks about how this guy was her "first true love." She has sexual intercourse with this guy and before you know it, she is pregnant again (It 1).
What are her options? First she had an abortion. The girl is pregnant again and wonders what to do. How many times does a teenage girl get to do this? These you girls do not know how much responsibility it is to take on a child. They might think it would be like a babysitting job or watching their little brother/sister, but in actuality, it is much more than that.
If the guy you were with decided to leave you and the child, you would have to of ways to support yourself. The government has money but what are these teens doing with it? Drinking and smoking are two ways in which teenagers may choose to spend the money that is suppose to help their baby and themselves.
What would you do if they were sick? How would you get them to the doctor? How would you support this child? These would be just some questions that a young teen woman would have to think about when they are faced with teen pregnancy and the responsibility.
There are many ways to avoid getting pregnant. Abstinence is the answer. If you are not having sexual intercourse then there is a slight chance that you can get pregnant. There are many protections out there, like condoms, birth control, the morning after pill, as well as probably many more. If you are not abstinent then you should try to be protected. Planned Parenthood is a place where you can purchase these items at a cheaper price if you cannot afford them. They also have counselors there who you can talk to if you are not getting the support you need at home or from your boyfriend or whoever it might be. These counselors might help or lead you into the right direction of what to do if you are pregnant and the possibilities you might have. Planned Parenthood is a confidential place that you can go for help if you do not want your parents to know.
Nine months, that is all. Well what about a teenager's childhood? Once a child is conceived, the teenager has to raise the baby and they can no longer do the things that they may have been doing. Pregnancy is a process of growing up and taking responsibilities.
I think that it is a shame how young teenagers sometimes feel that if they have a baby, then they could be loved. This often comes from teens that do not really have a family oriented background, and are lost in the world. If they cannot support the child they should put it up for adoption, or give it someone whom they know that will take care of the baby.
What happens to these teenage girls? Stress plays a large role in the way teenagers carry themselves after having a child. Teenagers have the options of having an abortion, putting the child up for adoption or keeping the child. Hopefully the decision they make is the right one.
What about school? Many times teenagers are often unable to attend school. They must sit home and take care of their child. What about friends? Friends, family member, church members and neighbors look down upon many teenagers who have children. Having children at such a young age has a large affect on many people.
What are you considered if no one talks to you; an other? Melissa Algranati explains her perspective on "Being an Other." The ideas of Algranati are similar to those that occur when teenagers get pregnant. They may get called names and lose the respect of their loved ones. I feel that these two topics are related because in both situations, the person may feel like an outsider.
Teenagers are then set with the problems of not having an education. What can you do without an education in today's society? Without an education you cannot get a good job. Most jobs that you may go to will start you off at minimum wage.
Teenage pregnancy has been increasing yearly. More and more teens are unaware of the consequences and responsibilities of taking care of a child. Parents need to aware their children of what the affects are so that the number of teenagers having babies will decrease. There are already too many children with out mothers or children who are being neglected by their teen mothers.
Works Cited
Algranati, Melissa. "Being an Other." Maasik and Solomon 570-575.
"It Happens To "Good Girls" Too." Dec. 1999.
<http://teenadvice.about.com/library/weekly/aa122100a.htm
Maasik, Sonia, and Jack Solomon, eds. Signs of Life in the U.S.A.: Reading on Popular
Culture for Writers. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2000.
"Teen Pregnancy: Fact Sheet." Mar. 2000. <http://www.noah-health.org/english/pregnancy/march_of_dimes/pre_preg.plan/teenfact.html>
"When Children Have Children." Jan. 2000. <http://www.aacap.org/publications/fatsfam/pregnant.htm>
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