Teenage Pregnancy

Teenage pregnancy is a widely controversial issue in the United States. Teenage mothers account for about eleven percent of all births in the US (Lowen). There are many ways in which getting pregnant at a young age hinders that individual’s likelihood of attending college or making a sufficient income in the future. If a teenager becomes pregnant, then their pregnancy will have a significant negative impact on their future.
A teenager has a few options as to what to do in the event of pregnancy, one of them being abortion. In a survey I conducted of 20 females between the age of 16 and 25, seventy percent of them thought that abortion is an acceptable response to teenage pregnancy. However, in reality, about 45 percent of teenage pregnancies end in abortion(Teen Abortions). As defined by Dictionary.com, abortion is defined as “the removal of an embryo or fetus from the uterus in order to end a pregnancy.” Although abortion is also a controversial topic, the choice to endure one can change an individual’s life. It can undo the negative results of pregnancy, making it possible once more for potential teenage parents to get back to their normal lives. According to statistics from the Center of Disease Control, “since 1973, roughly 50 million legal induced abortions have been performed in the United States.” To many churchgoing people though, abortion would be considered an act of deviance, attaching a certain stigma to that person’s image. Although an abortion may be necessary, it can still alter that girl’s mindset and attitude for her whole life.
Some teenagers might use pregnancy as a type of rebellion. For those cases, the teenage mothers would most likely want to keep the child, and raise it as their own. About one third of the teenagers that get pregnant in the United States actually keep the baby (Pregnant Teen Help). Keeping a child while a girl is a teenager can destroy her life. According to my survey, over half of my selected participants agreed that teenage mothers lose both their chance to have fun while they’re young and the opportunity to obtain a quality education. Most of these individuals are unmarried due to their young age, and are left to raise a child without any contributions from the father. Due to this, they are unable to attend college and must go straight to work to support their child.
One way teenage parents can socialize without being degraded by others is with other teenage parents, which is one of their in groups. Bonding with others in similar situations is a good way to socialize with others, and to feel better about harsh situations others may not understand.
The last option teenage parents have is adoption. Since a negative stigma is attached to teenage parents, it often leads to degradation of that individual. Selecting a new home for a newborn is often a preferred option for those who are unable to give it a loving home, or unwilling to do otherwise. Adoption is a way for connections to form between those that want kids and are unable to have their own and those who have unintended kids which they are unable to provide for. Adoption is an extremely admirable thing for those parents who give up their children. The teenage mother and her significant others will have the ability to grow closer through her struggle.
Teenage pregnancy can also have a serious negative outcome on the grandparents of the child. They had just gone through raising a child not long ago, and they are often asked for support, whether it is monetary help, day care services, or other. Having a child at too young of an age takes a toll on people other than the actual mother as well. It can ruin relationships between the parents, grandparents, and anybody else placed in the situation.
From the symbolic interactionist’s perspective, a teenager could get pregnant for several reasons. One of those reasons might be a cry for help, or an internal desire for more attention from those around her. By doing so, she attracts the worry from others, and they might offer to help her with any struggles related to the pregnancy. Attention will also come once the baby is born, everyone around her will want to see it.
Teenage pregnancy can cause several problems at home as well. “If you are… over the age of eighteen, you are mentally more equipped to handle this situation than a young woman under the age of eighteen who is living at home with her parents”(Williams-Wheeler). Being under the age of eighteen is a serious disadvantage for those looking to give birth, whether it is intended or unintended. Most jobs require that workers be over the age of eighteen. When a teenager has a child, they will need a way to not only support their needs, but now also their child’s needs. Being unable to find a job at the time most crucial to their lives leads to fewer opportunities down the road in the future. These are similar situations to those that enable an individual to only work at low-paying jobs for their entire careers, putting them in an even worse situation than they were in before, unable to properly support their children, resulting in nonstop strain on the nuclear family. Teenage pregnancy is a vicious cycle, those born as a result of it are much more likely to end up doing it themselves. These are often the individuals who see nothing wrong with it, and do not warn their own children of the dangers imposed by getting pregnant at a young age. It is important for those who went through it to share their tales, especially those of struggle, with their own children to prevent future cases. Those who become pregnant in their teenage years are the most likely to become boomerang children, returning home after being unable to survive on their own. This is often a result of the issue listed above – the inability to obtain a well-paying higher-level job or having a support system. Teenage pregnancy is a very serious issue in the United States. Many preventative measures are being taken to lower the numbers of teen births. Birth rates (for teens) are much lower than they have been in the past, but still are not considered low enough. Sexual education classes are now mandatory in most high schools to be taken freshman year, explaining all the horrors that come with teenage pregnancy. Parents are also encouraged to talk to their children about making sure pregnancy does not occur until it is well-intended and at an appropriate age. Getting pregnant while being a teenager will have many negative impacts on that person’s life, ranging from money problems to family issues to social status issues. There are little if any positive benefits of getting pregnant during one’s teenage years as opposed to waiting for a more appropriate time to come. Teenagers are much more likely to change their minds about who they would like a child with, or even having a child at all. Therefore, if a teenager becomes pregnant, then their pregnancy will have a significant negative impact on their future. Getting pregnant before one is ready can ruin their life. Works Cited
"Abortion." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, 2012. Web. 05 Dec. 2012.
Lowen, Linda. "10 Teen Pregnancy Facts." Womensissues.about.com.
About.com, Sept. 2006. Web. 05 Dec. 2012.
"Pregnant Teen Help." Pregnant Teen Help RSS. Pregnant Teen Help, 3 Nov.
2010. Web. 05 Dec. 2012.
"Teen Abortions." Childtrendsdatabank.com. Child Trends Data Bank, 2001. Web.
7 Dec. 2012. Williams-Wheeler, Dorrie. The Unplanned Pregnancy Book for Teens and College
Students. Virginia Beach, VA: Sparkledoll Productions, 2004. Print.

Cited: "Abortion." Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, 2012. Web. 05 Dec. 2012. Lowen, Linda. "10 Teen Pregnancy Facts." Womensissues.about.com. About.com, Sept. 2006. Web. 05 Dec. 2012. "Pregnant Teen Help." Pregnant Teen Help RSS. Pregnant Teen Help, 3 Nov. 2010. Web. 05 Dec. 2012. "Teen Abortions." Childtrendsdatabank.com. Child Trends Data Bank, 2001. Web. 7 Dec. 2012. Williams-Wheeler, Dorrie. The Unplanned Pregnancy Book for Teens and College Students. Virginia Beach, VA: Sparkledoll Productions, 2004. Print.