Teenage Pregnancy

Chapter 1
Introduction

When we watch news on television and hear stories like a 38-year old mother gave birth to octoplets, we actually get curious and watch the whole report. It is a complete different story when we hear a 15-year old teenage girl pregnant with her boyfriend. Actually this kind of story is not included in the news often but only in documentaries because it is always happening around us. People nowadays consider it as the norm. We tend to think that this is only happening because they cannot control their feelings. In fact, guidance is what a teenage girl needs to prevent this kind of situation.

Significance of the Study

This study will make us aware of what is happening in our society today. This issue is being ignored a lot of times. This will guide the parents and friends on what to do if a teenager gets pregnant. For teen mothers, this will guide them on their options before and after pregnancy.

Questions to be Answered
Below is the list of questions to be answered:
1. What are the causes of teenage pregnancy?
2. How will the pregnant teenager prepare in telling her parents the news?
3. What are the different changes that will occur in her life once she is pregnant?
4. What is the impact of teenage pregnancy to the mother, the child and other family members?
5. What are the options of teen mothers after pregnancy?
6. What is the real problem in teenage pregnancy nowadays?
7. What are the risks of teenage pregnancy?

Chapter 2

Causes
Many of us tend to think that teenage pregnancies occur because they could not control their urge of temptation before getting married. That is not entirely true.

In fact the main reasons why most teenage girls become pregnant are because they lack supervision. Poverty, sexual abuse and media also play an important role in teenage pregnancies.

Single parent families are usually in poverty. Single mothers who had a child during their teens give a message to their daughters that you can have sex at a young age, even without knowing it. Teenage girls can see that if their own mother survived life even though they had sex in their teens, they have a tendency to think that they can do it, too.

Teenage girls who never had a father figure in their lives are more probable to approve having a relationship with older men. Teenage girls may feel a sense of psychological security with an older, fatherly man in their lives. Money can also be a reason for dating an older man. Women who are in poverty and want a better and more comfortable lifestyle would want to have a man who has a lot of money. Of course some teenage girls do not care about popularity, security, or money. They just love the person that they are with. They fall in love with their intelligence, background, or kindness. Then the girl begins to have sex with the older man, and becomes pregnant. When this happens, a girl 's life can be ruined even more severely compared to getting pregnant with someone around her age. The teenager could be mocked and called such violent words as a "whore" or "tramp". She could lose her reputation, family, and friends. Worst of all she could lose her boyfriend if he were to be sentenced to jail for having sex with a minor or in some cases being forced to choose between her and his wife. All of these outcomes can diminish a teenage girl 's self image and well being. Most relationships with older men do not work out because the two people involved eventually realize that they have little or nothing in common.

According to Evelyn Lerman, about sixty percent of teens are raised by a single parent. Teenage women who only have one parent are sometimes neglected because they are busy working for the family. According to Evelyn Lerman, eighty percent of teenage women who become pregnant are in poverty before they become pregnant.

If a teenage girl feels neglected they have a tendency to yearn for love. They want to find someone to love and someone who can love them back. That someone would be a man to have a loving relationship with. The woman would want to spend her life with that man. As they grew closer physically and emotionally, the woman feels obligated to use her body to maintain the relationship with that man and that is where the problems of teenage pregnancy begin.

A teenage woman who lacks supervision from a parent is more likely unable to distinguish right from wrong because there is no one to direct and set limits to her.

That is when peer pressure takes place. Teenagers who are in the wrong direction, the ones who smoke, drink alcohol, take drugs, and have sex may possibly be pressured by their friends to follow their habits. According to Lerman, about twenty-five percent of teenagers feel pressured to have sex. The best way to fight peer pressure is to have a strong bond with a parent because without it that would be extremely hard to fight.

Another form of pressure to have sex comes from media. “The media have strong influence on people, especially on youth,” said Evangelista over the church run Radio Veritas. Teenagers see a lot of characters from television or movies having casual sex relationships but they do not hear the often tragic result of doing it. They are given the message that it is not dangerous to sleep with one person or even a lot more.

Another issue is that baby bumps is becoming the hippest accessory in Hollywood. Media gives the message that it doesn’t matter if you’re married or if you’re very young. Some that influenced this kind of mentality is Jamie Lynn Spears and Juno MacGuff.
Another factor is the increasing influence of internet, where there are no rules or guidelines at all, it would be really easy for teenagers to find sex-related materials. The media makes it seem so easy, and even when a pregnant teen is depicted dealing with the hardships of pregnancy, it always seems like they come out shining in the end. That’s not reality; it’s fantasy. (Daily Targum, Editorial, Feb. 17, 2009)

Another main reason for teen pregnancy is sexual abuse. Studies show that between 11 and 20 percent of pregnancies in teenagers are a direct result of rape, while about 60 percent of teenage mothers had unwanted sexual experiences preceding their pregnancy. Before age 15, a majority of first-intercourse experiences among females are found to be non-voluntary. The Guttmacher Institute found that 60 percent of girls who had sex before age 15 were forced by males who on average were six years older than them. Statistics also show that one out of five teenage fathers admitted to forcing their daughters to have sex with them.

Chapter 3
Telling the Parents

One of the first problems of a pregnant teenager is how tell her parents that she is pregnant. Even though telling them can be very painful, it is usually better to let them know as soon as possible. It is better for a teenager to talk with her close friends, relatives, the doctor or even the father of her baby. The reason for this so that the emotional stress would lessen even a little bit. In some cases, it is not advisable to consult school counsellors because some are not specialized in dealing with teen pregnancies. For teenagers who still do not feel ready to tell their parents that they are pregnant even after talking with other people, they should be accompanied by ask someone or stay close to them while delivering the news to the parents. Another person present can help offer support to the teen and the family. A teenager should not feel ashamed when she tells her parents that she is pregnant. It is important to keep as much of a positive attitude about the situation at all times because all that really matters is the health of the mother and of the baby.

Chapter 4
Lifestyle Changes

Kimi said, “I could not sleep because I’d think how I can take care of my baby? How can I be a good parent? Just thinking about the responsibilities gives me the chills.” Even if people believe that becoming pregnant would be the end of the world for the teenager, it is not entirely true. There would be a whole new world opened up for the teenager when she has the baby, but not all of it is negative. Still, there would be no more staying out late with friends, and going to parties.

The close friends of the teenager might be gone now. That would make her feel depressed. Actually, the closest friend of the teenage mother after she gives birth would be her own child. That might not be a bad thing. For those teenagers who do a lot of vices and spend all their time in gangs, taking drugs, getting drunk, getting in trouble, and also getting low grades in school, that usually changes with a baby.

After having a baby, a teenager may become focused on raising her baby, and that means an end to her old life as a wild teen. In order to bring up a child, a teenager may focus on maintaining good grades and not doing things that could result in being sent to a juvenile detention center or prison. Teens usually become more organized after having a baby. They now have to eliminate all the fun, relaxing activities in their life, and schedule time to do homework and take care of their baby. For many teens, their life is more positive than it was before having a baby. Many teens do not like the sudden change of having to stay up late feeding and taking care of their baby. They feel that their social life is gone, but some teenagers feel differently about that. Teenagers, who before getting pregnant had to take care of siblings because no one else was there to do it, usually do not feel upset about losing their social life because they never had one. They feel that taking care of their child is no different than taking care of a younger sibling.

Chapter 5
Impact of Teenage Pregnancy to the Mother, the Child and Other Family Members

Being a young mother in an industrialized country can affect a teenager’s education. Teenage mothers are more probably would drop out of high school. Recent studies have found that many of these teenage mothers had already dropped out of school before becoming pregnant, but those in schools at the time of their pregnancy were more likely to graduate with their friends.

Being a young mother in a developed country can affect employment and social class. Less than one third of teenage mothers receive any form of child support that is why a lot of them turn to the government for assistance. Because of early childbearing and failure to complete high school it reduces career opportunities for many teenage women. One study found that 60 percent of teenage mothers are penniless at the time of giving birth. Teenage women who are pregnant or mothers are seven times more possible in committing suicide than the other teenagers.

Early motherhood can affect the psychosocial development of the child. The occurrence of developmental disabilities and behavioral issues is increased in children born to teenage mothers. One study found that teenage mothers are unlikely to encourage their child through affectionate behaviors such as touching, smiling, and verbal communication, or to be sensitive toward his or her needs. Another found that those who had more social support from family or friends were less probable to show anger toward their children or punishing them.

Poor academic performance in the children of teenage mothers has also been found, with many of them being more possible than average to fail to graduate from secondary school, be held back a grade level, or score lower on standardized tests. According to Furstenberg, daughters born to teenage mothers are more likely to become teen mothers themselves. A son born to a teenage mother is three times more likely to serve time in prison.

Teen pregnancy and motherhood has a great impact on younger siblings. One study found that the younger sisters of teen mothers give less importance to education and employment and more likely accept sexual initiation. parenthood, and marriage at a young age. As for younger brothers studies also found that they more likely agree in non-marital and early births and they have a high risk in doing these kinds of behavior. An additional study found that those with an older sibling who is a teen parent often end up babysitting their nieces and nephews and that young girls placed in such a situation have a high risk of getting pregnant themselves. Social workers can help in the involvement with the families. They work with the families to talk common problems and health issues so that there would be a positive outcome for both the family and the baby.

Chapter 6
Options of the Teenage Mother

Teenage girls who become pregnant usually have two options aside from keeping the baby. First, they can have an abortion, which is removing the fetus from the uterus. Second, they may choose to give the baby up for adoption, which is giving the baby to an orphanage or to another family who can take good care of the baby.

Majority of pregnant teenagers consider abortion first. They do not want to be judged by their friends, parents and others. They fear the shame of giving birth to a child when they too are also still a child. They do not want to experience the physical and psychological pain of giving birth. For most pregnant teenagers the greatest obstacle may be the cost. Teenagers who are in poverty do not continue having the abortion once they learn the cost of it. As for other teenagers their religion prevents them from doing the abortion. They think that they will have eternal punishment. For other teens who in reality go though an abortion, the emotional pain can be unbearable. After having an abortion, teenage girls go through an intense hormonal change. They feel different kinds of emotions such as short-term anger, guilt, regret, and sadness. Fortunately, these emotions usually pass quickly. Teenagers who feel depressed after six weeks after having the abortion are advised to receive some counselling.

Giving the baby for adoption is usually the most upsetting course of action for teenage women. When a teenager decides to give her baby up for adoption, she has two choices of doing it. First choice is that she can give the baby to a family she knows will take good care of the baby or, she can give the baby to a private agency which may find a foster family and later on an adoptive family. Adoptions are the most upsetting for teenage women because they feel disturbed for giving away a part of their family. Psychological problems arise when the baby of the teenage woman are being taken care of by a relative or social service agency for a majority or all the time.
There are psychological risks involved in giving the baby to other relatives or the agencies. The teenage mother might start to think that the child would forget about her and come to the idea that she has failed as a parent and has no reason to live at all because the biggest responsibility of her life does not even know her.

Some teenage mothers worry about their child would someday try to track them down so that they can meet. Some teenagers who choose adoption hate the idea that their child would find them because they do not want their child to see the person who gave them away. Some mothers do try to keep contact with their child after the adoption. Keeping a relationship with the child are great after the adoption is good for the teenage mother so that she does not have to live with the feeling of guilt and suffering in thinking that she made a mistake giving away her child, and knowing her child understands why she did what she did.

The third possible option of a teenaged girl keeping her baby is that she may live with her parents or other adult family members. In this type of situation there are two main drawbacks: first, the "adults" will generally assume responsibility for her child; but even worse, and what few recognize as a serious problem, this type of situation will create confusion for the child and likely generate animosity between the girl and the adults-- a small child who is residing with his mother 's parents, grandparents, etc., will be in the confusing position of not readily understanding who has the "say," who to listen to, which person to go to-- for in such an intergenerational enmeshment, the child does not have clearly-defined roles for the people who are in his life.

In the past, if a young couple dropped out of high school to begin married life with an instant family, the economic burden was not nearly as overwhelming as the present. In addition, when prodding teens into too-quick, too-early marriage, adults failed to understand how serious a toll this move would make on the emotional state of the teenagers who were in no way prepared to make fast, permanent, and usually forced, changes in their lives.

The most popular scenario these days is the girls who become "single mothers." While the consequences to a girl 's own life should be obvious-- cutting short her youth and necessary growing-up experiences, setting aside plans for continuing education-- there are other drawbacks which are not generally addressed.

For a teenaged girl who finds herself pregnant, keeping the child and live with her family even if there are problems should be encouraged as being the best decision.

Chapter 7
Real Problem in Teen Pregnancy Nowadays

Time Magazine’s June 2008 issue made a lot of people alarmed because of its article about Gloucester, Massachusetts high school girls working together to get pregnant. When their pregnancy tests were confirmed positive, they would rejoice and would be excited about raising their babies together.

Another issue where a lot were alarmed is the news about Chantelle Steadman, 15, and Alfie Patten, 13, had their daughter, Maisie. The people were alarmed not only because they are in their pre-teens but also because they already want to have a family of their own. The only reason that is hindering them from living on their own is because they are just scared about how people would react. The parents of the both sides try to talk about it but the pair tries to hold on to what they believe in. In the case of Alfie Patten, his father tried talking to him after baby Maisie was born, and it still proved to be too awkward so he stopped, but said he will keep trying. When Alfie Patten was asked what he would be doing to support his own child financially, he replies, “What’s financially?”

These stories were disturbing because of how young these children are having children. It is really alarming that they are very excited and thrilled and that they are not thinking about their future. This is not just true for this couple, but also for much of society today. Teenagers nowadays are not thinking about the responsibility and consequences of their actions. Pre-marital sex is a common practice these days. It is a problem that there are still limits in what can be taught in sex education classes. Teenage pregnancy rates are higher than ever. Teenagers should be to take sex and starting a family seriously, and that it is not like how it is showed in the media.

Girls and boys are like are becoming liberal at an early age, maybe not with their dialogue to one another or their actions, but in their dress. Middle school girls try to imitate Miley Cyrus and Vanessa Hudgens, who are dressing in short shorts and pumps at a young age. Style and fashion always tend to be copied, but when a thirteen year old starts going around the mall with her friends in a full make up, a mini skirt and boots, it is hard to not think society and methods of raising children are taking a turn for the worse. Parents want to be friends with their children, but lines should be drawn. It is not flattering of our culture to accept and encourage that young girls dress like hookers.

An episode of “South Park” showed it best when Paris Hilton came to town and all the girls wanted to dress like sluts. Boys are not left out of this problem either. Shows like “The Pick-Up Artist” make it seem like the only important thing in life is the ability to pick up and seduce women, and the more you get, the bigger man you are. It is wrong that these things are acceptable in society and changes need to be made.

Talking about sex should not just consist of the biological process, but also how and why it is special, and should be handled with care. If parents and teens can talk about sex and teens can be free to ask their parents questions or for advice, maybe teenage pregnancy rates will be lowered. Communication is the key.

Chapter 8
Risks in Teenage Pregnancies

One of the main Philippine Obstetrical and Gynaecological Society initiates this year is to reduce teen pregnancy through information dissemination either by conduction lectures or open forum.

Risk for malnutrition: Since teen mothers tend to eat poorly, they are also less likely to take multivitamins or minerals.

Risk for inadequate prenatal care. Teenage mothers are less likely to seek regular prenatal care.

Risk for fatal deaths: Statistics in DOH shows that fatal deaths most likely to happen to young mothers since the babies born to them are likely to have low birth weight and may suffer birth effects.

Risk for abortion: It could lead to abortion.

Risk for acquiring cervical cancer: Women who engage sex before 18 have a pregnancy at or younger than 18 or have at least 5 sexual partners as at increased risk of being papillomavirus that kills 10 in 100,000 Filipino women.

Chapter 9
Conclusion

Teenage pregnancy here and abroad is getting rampant. Teenagers should be aware of what is happening around them. Being informed should at least prevent them in exposing to early pregnancies.

This study discussed the causes of teenage pregnancies. The most important action to prevent one of the causes is the strong bond of the family. Just in case a teenager gets pregnant there would be no problem telling the parents the news. A teenager should not feel ashamed when she tells her parents that she is pregnant because what really important is the health of the mother and the baby. After having a baby, a teenager may become focused on raising her baby, and that means an end to her old life as a wild teen. In order to bring up a child, a teenager may focus on eliminating all the fun, relaxing activities in their life, and schedule time to do homework and take care of their baby.

The best option when a teenager becomes pregnant is to keep the baby and raise the child with the grandparent even if there are drawbacks.

News on teenage pregnancies nowadays is alarming. We could read them on magazines, newspapers and on television. Teenagers are not thinking about the responsibility and consequences of their actions. Pre-marital sex is a common practice these days. It is a problem that there are still limits in what can be taught in sex education classes. Teenage pregnancy rates are higher than ever.

Teenagers should take sex and starting a family seriously, and that it is not like how it is showed in the media. Media should be aware that they have a very strong influence on the youth.

Teenagers should be aware on how to prevent teenage pregnancies. They should are least get informed on the too many risks they will be getting like lack of pre-natal care, malnutrition and abortion.

Finally, a teenager should enjoy being young and not hurry doing things because there is a right time for everything. Think a hundred times before having sex.

Bibliography:

Books:

Cherry, Andrew. Teenage Pregnancy a Global View. London: Greenwood Press, 2001.

Harris, Kathleen. Teen Mothers and the Revolving Welfare Door. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1997.

Magazines and Newspapers:

“Popcom asks youth to seek and demand sexuality reproductive health information.” Editorial. Manila Bulletin. 24 Jan. 2004

Sulit, Micah. “Baby and the Bumps” Candy December 2008: 50-51

“Survey: Many Young Filipinos are Having Sex at an Early Age.” Editorial. Manila Bulletin. 30 Nov. 2003

General References:

“Teenage Pregnancy.” Encarta Encyclopedia. 2007 ed.

References: “Teenage Pregnancy.” Encarta Encyclopedia. 2007 ed.