The Problem of Teen Pregnancy
Red and blue lights are flashing and the noise of the ambulance impels everyone to a point where they have to look outside and observe the situation, as if a mystical force was compelling them. From what they can see, the paramedic is holding a tiny hand telling her to hold on. As the stretcher rolls by, the onlookers notice a huge lump, or ball as a few may say, under the pallid cotton covers. What they also take note of is that the pregnant woman is not a woman at all, but in fact a teenager. As some are astounded that a child is being born from a child, others possibly will look at it as a “blessing in disguise.” The issue of teenage pregnancy is affecting our society in innumerable ways and has become one of our top social issues of all time. “The latest estimates show that approximately 1 million teens become pregnant every year” (East, Felice, and Associates 1). With this high number of teenage pregnancy, it is no wonder that many authors try to exemplify this common subject matter. Katrina L. Burchett, author of Choices, accurately and effectively depicts teenage pregnancy among female adolescents living with domestic issues.
Influences
As the years progress, the influence of sex has taken a more profound effect on teenagers. Nowadays, it seems that sex is everywhere. The television shows, the Internet, magazines and even the movies almost always have a “sex scene” in them or portray sex in some sort of way. Because the industry is realizing that teens are having sex, (unprotected sex at that) they are now producing a number of commercials where they ...
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... males’ sexual advances, and the victims of incest may plan their pregnancies as a means of escaping from their victimization” (Roosa, Tein, Reinholtz and Angelini 120).
The female teen stares into the eyes of her newborn son, not realizing the type of life her and her son will have in the near future. Katrina L. Burchett excellently explicates teenage pregnancy among female adolescents living with domestic problems in her book titled Choices. The various elements that aid to the wide range of teenage pregnancies in the world should all be taken in to consideration. Getting pregnant at an adult is no longer substantial or conventional in our society. Everyday, female young adults are getting pregnant, which is why it is a social issue for the youth today.
According to www.cdc.gov, in 2013, a total of two hundred and seventy-three thousand, one hundred and five babies were born to women fifteen to nineteen years of age. Though this is low for the typical rate of teen- child births, the U.S. teen pregnancy rate is substantially higher than in other western industrialized nations. There are many stories of teen mothers who feel like they have their lives together, and consider their stories “success stories”. What most teens don’t understand, is the difficulties of being a mother, especially at such a young age. Teen pregnancy has more negative outcomes than positive outcomes, as shown by a girl named Haley in her teen pregnancy story. The best way to prevent teen pregnancy is through information
The past two decades have shown a decline in adolescent pregnancy but today, the United States continues to hold the number one position for highest adolescent pregnancy rates among developed countries.1 Research has found that about two in every five teenage girls become pregnant before the age of twenty years old.2 The recurrence of early childhood bearing now reaches up to 900,000 pregnancies each year in the United States.1 The various factors associated with high prevalence of teenage motherhood can be seen among communities affected by low socioeconomic status, a lack of education, and more interestingly, a new found correlation between the history of intergenerational, teenage childhood bearing with the family.2 Communities facing these problems continue to sustain such high statistical values for teenage pregnancy and have created a vicious cycle which is then adopted by following generations. Adolescent pregnancy not only creates a toll on the family, but also has adverse health effects on the child and society.
After a minute she moistened her lips and spoke, “I never got to see my baby. They wouldn’t even tell me if it was a boy or a girl.”…….. The little mother wept and wiped her eyes on the back of one hand, the baby gripped with the other (In Search of Eden 1). Teen pregnancy occurs all over the world but it is a bigger issue in America than in most developed countries; this may be solved by informing teens of the effects of pregnancy and the use of contraceptives. Due to shows like 16 and Pregnant, pregnancy rates have declined but are still high for a developed nation. In the case mentioned above a 15 year old girl has just given birth and had her baby taken away without permission to know whether it was a boy or girl. A kind nurse sneaks the baby into the room and allows the mother to hold the baby until a young couple arrives to take the baby away.
Teenage pregnancy is a problem for all involved. It truly puts a great strain on the young parents, especially the new teenage mother, and also on the new grandparents, who more often than not, end up help to raise the new baby while the young parents are at school, or while they are out enjoying being a teenager and socializing with their friends. The spread of this epidemic needs to be stopped before more young adults dreams are dashed by the responsibility of parenthood. Through strong parental guidance and support, appropriate media exposure and more readily available birth control, this issue can be brought under control.
Teenagers who become mothers have harsh prospects for the future. Teenagers obtaining abortions are 20% and girls under 15 accounts for 1.2%. They are much more likely to leave of school; receive insufficient prenatal care; rely on public assistance to raise a child; develop health problems; or en...
The birth rate among teens in the United States has declined 9% from 2009 to 2010, a historic low among all racial and ethnic groups, with the least being born in 2010; and in 2011 the number of babies born to adolescents aged 15-19 years of age was 329,797 (“Birth Rates for U.S.”, 2012). Although the decline in unwanted and unplanned teen births is on the rise the United States continues to be among the highest of industrialized countries facing this problem. This is a prevailing social concern because of the health risks to these young mothers as well as their babies. Teens at higher risk of becoming pregnant are raised at or below the poverty level by single parents; live in environments that cause high levels of stress (i.e., divorce, sexual psychological and physical abuse); are influenced by peers or family members that are sexually active; and lack parental guidance that would direct them to be responsible and self-controlled.
Teen pregnancy in our society has started to become a normal occurrence. It has been stated that “[t]een pregnancy is rated at 11% of all cases of childbirth in the world. Statistics show that 3 in 10 American girls will get pregnant at least once before the age of 20” ("11 Facts About Teen Pregnancy"). Babies born from teen
For example, Collin Allen states, “Girls whose fathers left either before they were born or up to age 5 were seven to eight times more at risk of becoming pregnant as an adolescent than girls living with their fathers.” In other words, parents are supposed to be the teachers and the ones who protect the child. Therefore, if such presence is not there, the child will not have that person how tells her what to do or not, or what is correct or not increasing the probability of committing an erroneous action.
Pregnancy is a wonderful thing, the moment a woman finds out that she is pregnant, she is filled with many different emotions, ranging from happiness, to ecstatic to even a little nervous. However, when that woman happens to be a teenage girl, there is a completely different range of emotions. Such as fear, excitement, and filled with many questions. Their life changes before their eyes the moment they see a positive pregnancy test. Statistics show that thousands of teenage girls will get pregnant by the age of 20. The effects of being pregnant at a young age, not only affects the teen mother, the father, but the family as well. In those thousands of teenage girls that get pregnant. Many choose to keep the baby, while others choose either adoption or abortion. The amount of life changing ‘adult’ decisions a teenager has to make in such a short time has many grueling effects on the decisions you make while pregnant. Getting pregnant at a young age puts a lot of emotional and physical stress on not only the teenage girl, but her family as well. The effects that a teenage pregnancy is similar to a roller coaster, you think you have hit the top, but you just
Teen pregnancy is a major issue in society today. In 2010, an estimated 614,400 U.S. teenagers became pregnant, approximately 89,300 had miscarriages, and 157,500 had legal abortions. Teens are having unprotected sex without knowing the consequences of the choices that the are making. Teens believe that sex is something new that they can try, so they can be popular like their peers. These accusations are wrong, having unprotected sex has major consequences, and by having unprotected sex these teens could be changing their lives forever. Who is to fault for these teen pregnancies? Is in the parents fault, the teens fault or is it our communities fault all together? I believe providing more information and awareness about teen pregnancy in our schools and community will reduce the number of teen pregnancies.
Ravoira, LaWanda, and Andrew L. Cherry. Social Bonds and Teen Pregnancy. Westport, CT: Praeger, 1992.
Most people think of pregnancy as being an exciting moment in life to experience the joy of parenthood. Parenthood is something that all committed married couples look forward to and hope for. This concept is usually thought of by adults that can manage to support a family and acquires a strong partnership with a lifetime companion. Commitment is one of the key concepts to successfully raising a child. However, this exciting news turns into a tragedy for an unexperienced teenager undergoing pregnancy. Teens are unstable for providing an adequate environment for a newborn and lack the skill of being a caretaker. It makes it challenging for teens to incorporate a baby in their life while going through school, experiencing maturity, and dealing with relationship difficulties. Most teen parents have to cope with raising a newborn on their own because of the other parent still being too immature to take on a parent role. Adolescents are not use to having the responsibility of looking after another human being because they only had themselves to take care of. At this age, teens are planning to have a bright future that includes college and other amazing opportunities instead of preparing for parenthood. The experiences of raising a child are unusual to teens and changes occur that effects not only their life but society as well.
...crease the teen pregnancy rates. The study was carried out in a town with a population of 10,000 within a health center in a town 25 miles from a major Mid. The location of the health center was located 25 miles from a major Midwestern city. According to Crowley, 2001, the health center serves clients ages 12 through 20. Inclusion criteria were girls ages 13 through 18, and never being pregnant (p. 723). 202 girls agreed and were eligible to participate, with 148 as the final sample. There were 54 girls excluded because they were already pregnant. All participants spoke English or Spanish In conclusion teen pregnancy has been identified in literature as a problem for teenagers, their families, and society. The Nursing Model for Teen Pregnancy will guide the study. The model theorizes that developmental maturity is related to those at risk for teen pregnancy.
Thesis Statement: Within America, there is a teen pregnancy epidemic across all socioeconomic backgrounds, presenting commonalities as to the causes and ramifications of adolescents emerging as a growing parental population.
Teen pregnancy has become a commonality in today’s generation. There are so many young teens getting pregnant and the prejudice they experience takes a toll on their self-esteem. Most of the reactions these teens face are negativity from their peers, families, and even their teachers. There was a young girl who decided to fake her own pregnancy as her senior project to see the reactions of those close to her and this turned into a movie that was aired on Lifetime Network. A study was conducted with adolescents on their perceptions of teen pregnancy and the effects on multiple levels. These adolescents also mentioned that they are aware that teen pregnancy is associated with a negative stigma (stereotype). The New York Times reported that a way that can reduce teen pregnancy is using shame in order to deter young adolescents into becoming pregnant.