How do you feel about teen pregnancy?

There are about 7 or 8 girls in my school grade who are pregnant and they're all about 16. One of my friends recently had a baby girl on May 13. A girl who is one day older than me is pregnant. It seems like a trend in my school to get pregnant or have a child. I cannot imagine having a baby now. Yes, my parents would support me, but they would definitely be ashamed of me to a certain extent. I don't think I could do that to them or myself. What do you guys think? And I am not trying to disrespect teen mothers, I just want to get other's opinions on the topic.

Well, i had my twins when i was 14. I know, it's really young, but i was a crazy out of hand kid. It's not easy being a teenage mother, epsecially when your parents don't support you. I mean, they still love me i'm sure, but since i had the twins, we hardly speak. I moved out when i was 16. It's not easy, let me tell you. I have to go to school, work and provide for my kids. But i wouldn't trade it for the world. Now i'm done with high school so i work full time and i'm pregnant again. I'm also getting married soon. Becoming a mother really made me grow up. I think its the best thing that's happened to me, not that i'm telling everyone to go out and get pregnant.

Well I havent had a child but I have been a pregnant teen. sometimes it's irresponsibility, sometimes it'a rape, sometimes it's carelesness. but what ever the reason it's becoming more and more likely to see teen mothers or pregnant teens. I was horrified to find out I was pregnant, but at the same time knew I'd never give up the child. idk it's hard to explain. I guess it just depends on the person

^ very true.

Why are kids in such a rush to grow up? Having a child sounds great to some people at that age, but its not fair to you or right. You don't get to experience your teen years when your too busy being a grown up. The child doesn't get all the benefits that they should. For the most part, both parents aren't involved, the money is not available to properly care for them, and the parent doesn't have the time to spend with them if they are out working and still in school. I'm not criticizing young women by no means, i just don't understand the rush.

If the pregnancy is on accident at that age, then i feel a little different about it. Why have sex and not use protection? If you arent smart enough to consider protection, you're not old enough to be doing it.

Kids shouldn't be raising kids.

A lot of my mates had kids as teens. In fact, I was the first woman in my family for four generations not to become a teen mum. Its totally accepted where I grew up. A lot of my mates and family are asking me when the hell I'll grow up, settle down and start a family...and I'm twenty. When I was twelve my mate (also twelve) got pregnant with her first. We're both twenty now and she's got three kids, her 16 year old sister has two, another teen mate has two, my 19 year old friend has a little girl and in fact most of the girls I know do have kids.

I think, a part from the problems of kids raising kids, people dont think about the fact a teenager's body hasn't finished growing...at that age the body has less omega three and vital chemicals and vitimans which work together during pregnancy to produce intelligent and healthy babies.

I agree ^^

Whew, I thought I was going to get some people in here who were going to say that I was a bad person for not believing that teen pregnancy is right/acceptable. I'm glad that there are others out there who think like me.

One thing i can remember from health, when i wasnt texting or talking, was that if you have sex, then you are saying that you are mature enough to be a parent right then and there. none of the guys i know are mature enough to be a dad, theyd be a good dad one day, but not right now. im not ready to be a mom, so i dont have sex. if you think that you are ready, have the maturity to buy a condom at least, or talk to your doctor about birth control, or both. I totally respect teen moms because they give up so much for their mistake and they're willing to live up to it, and they didn't get an abortion. but i bet if you ask a lot of them, theyd say that they wishd things had turned out a little bit differently. so teen pregnancy is right, and not really acceptable, and really shouldnt be happening, but i do respect the people who choose to live up to their mistakes.

Yeah, I agree with Katie. None of the guys in my class are mature enough to be dads, with an exception of maybe 3 or 4. It shouldn't be happening, you're right.

But it does and i think unless you are a teen parent, we have no room to judge. Sure they made stupid choices, but not every teen pregnancy is from two kids being stupid about sex. there are all sorts of factors and at least teen parents are sucking it up and taking care of the kids, or at least finding their child a good adoptive home right? It doesn't make anything right or wrong, it's just life. Murder shouldn't be happening but it does. Depression shouldn't hit anyone, yet more and more people are diagnosed with it every day. It's just another part of life that isn't perfect.

Yes, I'm engaged and my fiance and I have talked about children, but we're waiting at least a year after we get married to start a family. I want to have money saved up and have a home to raise them in. There is so much work that you have to do in order to have a "perfect" environment for your baby and I want to make sure that we can provide that for our kid.

I think that teens need to wait, think more about having a kid rather than making a sudden discision... every kid needs a father as well as a mother and I don't think it's fair for the child and the mother to live without a father for the child... so it needs to be thought out carfully before desciding on having a child, not only about the father but about the environment and a stable financial and social structure.... otherwise don't do sex or at least get protection.

I think it isnt right to do it on purpose. but if it happens to me, i'd never give up my child. if i make it through my teens without having a child, i'll have broken the cycle that my mom nd grandma made of being teen moms. my mom was 16 and my grandma 19.

I dont compleatly agree with teen pregnancy i know some times its not the girls falt. But it is starting to become a fashion trend.

I dont want kids to be honest i might change my mind but i just want to enjoy my life to a point where im happy to settle down and have a family.

x

I was 2 weeks passed my 18th birthday when my oldest daughter was born, It does definatly make you grow up QUICK....... I think she was 3 before i realised I was a Dad..... I stayed with her mother and tried to make it work for her sake but it was never gonna happen, Her mother and i broke up when she was 5, I still see her all the time, but looking back, I wouldnt change a thing.

But in saying that kid shouldnt be having kids! If its done because the girl thinks its "IN" to have a baby........ then she is in for a rude awakening! Its not all roses like some girls think, having a baby is F**KIN hard work.......

Thanks bob. burst my bubble of being proud ive made it further then my mom. -pop-

It's better than people in their late 30's & above having children, but not much better. If teenagers these days are so out of control they can't even wait till a responsible age to have children, then parents aren't doing their job well enough, and yes it is down to parenting. not media influences and schools; parents.

I think, a part from the problems of kids raising kids, people dont think about the fact a teenager's body hasn't finished growing...at that age the body has less omega three and vital chemicals and vitimans which work together during pregnancy to produce intelligent and healthy babies.

My baby is perfectly healthy and very intelligent.

And to the people who say kids shouldn't be raising kids. Well I'm 16 my son is 5 months old and i love him to death. I wouldn't change it even if i could and you know what. Half the ADULTS in the US are either single parents or divorced and if the baby never know the father (or mother). So what we can never have kids because you never know if you are going to have a perfect job or a perfect partner.

Man me2 but the girls in my skool are 15...D student and a freshmen in High School...they say its "planned" but when i look at them its just sad....It seems lik teens my age just want to be all grown up and girls, wat happened to sex after marriage...or waiting after HS?? Why try to grow up to fast when you can just be a kid? Go to the movies, go out and have fun with a baby you can't really do tht anymore....
I'm srry but i just dont believe in teen pregancies...
if its rape or forced then its a whole other story..........

For me if i got pregnant then i would be on the streets defendin mysef cuz i know tht my parents wouldnt support me and it would b a mistake....( against abortions so i wouldnt do nuttin of the sort)

I agree with " the lonely rose" ^^^

My sister, who is now 19, has a 15 month old baby. She used to be a "wild child" but after she started dating the father of her baby, she settled down. She stopped drinking so much, and stopped doing drugs. Granted, it's not ideal to be a parent so young, but I applaud teens who are forced to grow up so fast, due to pregnancy. I don't know what I'd do or how I'd deal with it if I were to have to grow up so fast.

What is it with these topics?

Well first of all, I don't think anyone should say anything offensive about these girls becuase you do NOT know their story. I hate when people call these girls a slut becuase they are pregnant. So they have a child get over it it's non of your business. I didn't read anything any of ya'll had to say to spare you the rage of what will offend me becuase my cousin who is my best friend was pregnat a year ago and her little boy is healthy, smart, playful, and the sweetest thing ever. And she is an amazing mother, better than half the mothers of america are. I just think things happen for a reason, she was given that child and she has to care for it. But if she didn't want the child they should have kept there legs closed in the first place especially if they are stupid enough to sleep around with umteen million ghuys and not use protection. But still I do not know there story so I shouldn't judge, yes if they are a known slut it is hard to believe that i wasn't a one night stand but it still could have been a rape case. So still don't judge thyen becuase of the person that is living within their body, becuase you don't know their story unless you ask.

I agree with the hot chick

I think teen pregnancy is good i think its ur choice

I dont see the big issue really. two of my best friends just had a baby together and are having their second. they are engaged both working and provide a roof food love and everything a baby needs. it used to be that girls as young as 14 or 15 would already be married and have children. yes to a certain extent the maturity level has adjusted but not for everyone. as many people have said it calms many girls down and makes them grow up.
quite honestly i believe it depends on the maturity level of the teen parents to be.
also i am engaged and i am 17. my fiancee and i have been together for over a year and a half and seem to of known eachother forever. he has litterally saved my life. i was in an abusive situation before him both from others and my own attemtps at suicide. why does age matter if you are truely in love?? none of this would even get a second thought a few years back.
blessed be

It is not about looking at the small number of teen mothers that actually make it through and work to benefit their children , it is about the bigger number who have no real sense of what it actually takes to be a parent. There are grown adults who have a hard time shouldering the responsibility, the stability of a few does not erase irresponsibility of the many. 17 and together for 1 1/2 yrs doesn't mean you are ready to have a child, youth is a selfish time of indulgence and learning, to suddenly have to be selfless is not an easy thing. The world is not like it was years and neither are the young people or the family structure.

I wasnt sayin were having a family now im hust saying that not all teens are these wild partiers. not that im this chic that just sits at home or what ever we still have fun with our own friends and act stupid to a point but still have a head about us. and i realize that not all are ready. that is why i said it depends on each situation

Your comment just seemed a little flippant to me. Whether you are a party person or a wallflower or even something in between, parenthood is one of the most important jobs we can assign ourselves and if kids can't even take their own life seriously, the outcome for early parenthood doesn't look good at all.

While i dont think its a great idea to go out and knock yourself up early in life, as a concept, i think its kinda cool. I mean some people by the time they have kids forget all about what its like to be there age, as to kids in their teen years who could still relate and be helpful. like i said not trying to say its a good idea i just think they could have a pretty good relationship.

My friend, i won't say her name, but her and her bf planned it out, she got pregnant and 2 weeks before her due date... he left her. she was totally devastated but the baby came and she kicked it into gear. shes an amazing mom to her baby boy and receives minimal help from her mom, she wants to do it mostly on her own. school, work, baby, she's doing great

I said she wasn't doing it alone, i said she wanted minimal help from her mom. which is what she gets compared to most

"I mean some people by the time they have kids forget all about what its like to be there age, as to kids in their teen years who could still relate and be helpful."

I think that's kind of a narrow minded statement. I don't think the forget what it is like to be young, i think they remember and that is why the try to teach their kids to learn from their mistakes. Most kids don't want to hear that though and then they throw out the old "it's different today, you just don't understand" Ye ssome things change, but some things don't and as a teen you have not figured a lot of it out yet, whereas someone older and wiser hopefully has. Both of my parents were young, my mom was 17 when she had me, my dad 19, it didn't make them seem more relate able to me lol Lucky for me my parents had their crap together and we never wanted for anything.

"Your supposed to be a mom not a best friend. To be relateable to your kids is one thing but to be on the same maturity level as you child is not good."

Very true Amanda I always remember asking my mom when I was about 13 why she couldn't be like other moms I knew, she asked what I meant and I said they were more like friends or sisters. She told me it was not her job to be my friend, until I am grown it was her job to be my mother and eventhough I might not always understand her reasons for doing things, it is always done with my best interests and then the typical "you'll understand when you get older" followed by me rolling my eyes. Needless to say now that I am older, I understand.

Simply I think people need to learn, fully, what the word responsibility means before they go taking it upon themselves. We're talking about a life here. A yound and defensless life that needs someone to control it's every move. So yeah, needless to say it's a big deal because not only are you now responsible for your life you're also responsible for the life of a baby.
However, with all that said I'm not against it. There can be some very good teenage moms out there and I hold nothing against them.

The point is to know what you can deal with and what you can't. Because the bigger issue doesn't just lie in you having a child necessarily, but the cycle it creates. If you can't raise that baby responsibly and well that baby will grow up and be messed up because of a hard upbringing. Childhood years matter because they shape you for the future in most cases. So then that child you had might grow up and get pregnant while they are young too...and there you have a cycle that's hard to get out of.
All I'm saying is that at the end of the day you have to realise what a big deal having a baby is and take it very seriously. It's not just something to mess around with. But if you understand all that and you are ready then I will not judge you by your age.