Teen Motherhood: Tragic or Terrific?

I know, I know, you're probably thinking to yourself, "not another post on teenage pregnancy!" It's just that every time I stand in line at the grocery store and see the tabloid covers like the one above, I just cringe! I feel compelled to get the message out there that our society has a problem! I know my opinion doesn't mean much, but if just one person reads this and it helps, that's awesome. And, if not, well, at least I had a chance to vent.:)

OK, so about said "problem,"-just go to your local Wal-Mart and take a look around. Most likely, you'll see many young mothers or young expectant mothers, or young expectant mothers with two babies/children with them. When I see this, I just have to ask myself, "what is wrong with this picture?" When I was a teenager, there were maybe a couple of pregnancies and most of those were kept very quiet. To me, as a teenager back in the day (mid to late 90's-very early 2000's), the thought of becoming pregnant was my worst nightmare-it was catastrophic. My dreams consisted of going to college, getting my degree, getting a good paying job  (in hindsight, I shouldn't have picked psychology as my major), etc. In fact, I had a projected timeline for my life and accomplished all of my goals. I graduated from college in 4 years (went to Summer school so I could do so), I got a job in my field (not so great pay), got engaged, go married, and just missed my goal of having a child by age 25 by 2 days (I turned 26 on 12/04 and Liv came along on 12/06). OK, so after writing this, I realize, I probably could have been a bit more spontaneous while planning my future. As John Lennon said, "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." John Lennon was shot 4 days after I was born by the way (12/08/80). He really had a point there, but I digress. I know it takes me forever to get to the point, but the point I'm trying to get at is that it wasn't that long ago that teenage pregnancy was almost always an accident and when it happened, it was kept very quiet and not something to flaunt and be proud of as it is today. I just can't help but think the media has something to do with this. I've done some research and after a several year decline in the rate of teenage pregnancies, it began to rise again in 2006. What happened in 2006? Hmmm....let's see...

Yes, I know Britney did not get pregnant as a teen, but there's no denying that she was as role model to teens and tweens and both pregnancies were glamorized by the media. I know, I know, I could play the devil's advocate against myself and argue that teenagers didn't go out and shave their heads when Britney did. Yo, check out what happened in 2007-2008!

Oh snap! Teen Nick star pregnant at 16! I didn't see that one coming! Oh, and yes, I did a post about it back in  2008 (click here!)

Let's go back to 2007 now...What happened in 2007? Hmmm....

"A comedy about growing up...and the BUMPS along the way." I had a lot of BUMPS growing up, but not one of them was a baby BUMP!"

BABY BUMP-I despise the term and this leads me to my next example/rant...check it out!

The Original Bump, or if you like your bumps a little, "nutty," this next one is for you...

OK, all bumps, I mean jokes aside, the above pics reflect a scary trend here...Don't get me wrong, I've said this a gazillion times-pregnancy is a beautiful thing. There's nothing more beautiful than bringing a new life into this world, but we must focus on what kind of world it is. And yes, there will always be "accidents," but it's the fact that teenage girls now find it completely appropriate to get pregnant (on purpose) NOW, as opposed to waiting. I'm afraid sex education and encouraging abstinence has lost efficacy. There needs to be a different approach, what that is, I sure don't know. I do know that it probably needs to start with the media. Check out what our kids are watching on MTV (don't forget to scroll down and mute the music):





I'm not sure why this bothers me so much that it doesn't seem to bother anyone else, but it does! I'm not saying the outcome is always bad. There have been many great people born to terrific teenage mothers. I'm just afraid some girls are being led astray and going into this whole pregnancy thing with blinders on-just seeing the "cuteness," of it all and not the big picture, which includes stretch marks, hemorrhoids, swollen feet, sleepless nights, lack of social life, etc. Oh, and one can't forget the financial responsibilities that come along with a baby. I'm not sure if this problem has reached epidemic proportions yet, but the outlook is NOT too good. My husband's nephew who is a freshman in high school informed us that there are 40 + pregnant girls at his school One girl, a junior, is expecting her third child! Here's one more thing to check out and then I rest my case:




Enough said...