read more
Baby Assignment
Articles
Alex’s:
www.teenpregnancy.org/resources/teens/voices/teenrent.asp
This site has various excerpts of different teenage parents explaining either what it’s like to have a child and what they missed out, or how it has affected their lives in the long run. Each holds a different experience and a different story, but they all end the same way – “I wish I had done what I did.” One girl explains that her in her freshman year of high school she got a senior boyfriend, and that’s when they started having sex. Most of the girls said that the fathers high-tailed out of the situation, and didn’t keep in contact. The overall consensus is that they wished they had kept their heads on their shoulders and not in a fantasy, because now they have to deal with a very real situation: taking care of a child.
www.baby-place.com/teen_parents.php
This site focuses not on reprimanding girls, but acknowledge what’s going on in their lives and providing information to take action about what positive things they can do to help their child. Advice, support, and even recommending adoption agencies and getting in touch with other people who are in the same situation. Books are recommended, hotlines to get in touch with, personal stories to read, and even jokes to lighten the dark mood of things. They also point you in the direction of other resources if this site isn’t helpful, such as parenting advice and much more support.
www.teenwire.com/infocus/2006/if-20060106p405-parents.php
This site discusses the rights of teens and teen parenting. Targeted towards college girls, this site aims towards women and girls recognizing discrimination if it is suspected, or just for the benefit of knowledge. The site encourages girls to “talk back” about what they’ve been through and how they’re doing with their academics and life in general. The site is not dumbed down – for example, there are articles on oral sex, hepatitis, and rape trauma syndrome, along with how to use a pad, condom, and masturbate.
Mine:
This article stresses many facts about the performance of teen mothers in schools. They found that less than one-third of teens who begin their families before age 18 ever earn a high school diploma and only 1.5% earn a college degree by the age of 30. This article also discusses the topic of health. Adolescents who have baby’s in many cases show poor weight gain and sexually transmitted diseases. Later in their life they have found a portion of these woman have become obese more so than those who had their baby’s after their teenage years. Teen pregnancy can even be linked to poverty, like this article does successfully. “A 1990 study showed that almost one-half of all teenage mothers and over three-quarters of unmarried teen mothers began receiving welfare within five years of the birth of their first child.” Finally the article relates the topic of teen mothers to inadequate parenting. It states that children born to teen mothers are at a higher risk of poor parenting by their mother and father. They parents are typically too young to handle the very demanding job of being a devoted parent. One example they put out in the open which I believed to be very true was that the parents themselves are not able to expose
their child or children to the kind of environment a full grown adult can and has the resources to do.
The Guttmacher Institute. (2006) U.S. Teenage Pregnancy Statistics National and State Trends and Trends by Race and Ethnicity. New York: The Guttmacher Institute.
Hoffman, S. (2006). By the Numbers: the Public Costs of Teen Childbearing. Washington, DC: National Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy.
This article is centered around the emotional feelings and concerns of the pregnant teens mother and/or father. It explains that this pregnancy can affect the entire family if very negative ways. But at this point the teenager needs the parents more than ever. The article then explains to parents what their teen might be feeling. They explain feelings of terror, awkard social situations and even physical feelings such as morning sickness. After explaining many feelings the mother may be feeling they explore much deeper into the father and his feelings. They explain the some boys may welcome the chance to be involved with their children, others might feel frightened and guilty and may need to be encouraged to face their responsibilities. The article is clearly making the statement that whether you are the parent of a teen father or mother parental help is very important. Finally, the article explains the risks of being a pregnant teenage mother: high blood pressure, fetal death, anemia, labor and delivery (such as premature labor and stillbirth), and a low birth-weight infant.
Martin, J.A., Hamilton, B.E., Ventura, S.J., Menacker, F., Park, M.M., & Sutton, P.D. (2002). Births: Final data for 2001. National Vital Statistics Reports, 51 (2).
This article explains many facts in a influencial and convincing way. It states that out of 29 million young teens between the ages of 13 and 19, approximately 12 million have had sexual intercourse. Of this group, more than 1.1 million became pregnant. I found these numbers supprisingly high. Later in the article the author discuses teenage birthrate and explains that about five percent of U.S. Teenagers alone give birth each year, and a study by the Alan Guttmacher Institute showed teen birthrates here to be twice as high as Canada, England, and Wales, three times as high as Sweden, and seven times higher than the Netherlands. This shows that U.S. Teenage control is currently not being monitored enough. The article then reads “78 percent of births to teenagers are first births. However, 19 percent are second births, and four percent can reach as high as three or more.” This means the sooner a teenager gives birth after initiation of intercourse, the more likely she is to have subsequent births while still in her teens.
Zellman, G. L. "The Health Belief Model and Teenage Contraceptive Behavior: From Theory to Operation." Paper presented at the 92nd annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Toronto, August 1984. ED 263 482.
Teenage Mother:
At what age did you have your first child? 20 Years Old
What was your first reaction when you found out you would be a parent?
It was fabulous, very excited. I was very thrilled.
What was good about having children at that age?
Being young allowed me to understand them and play with them more. I had a little more time on my hands in those years and could relate to the feelings they were having, because I had gone through the same ones not so long ago.
Did you senses sharpen when you were pregnant?
Yes, I was more aware of my surroundings. Almost all of my senses were heightened.
How do you feel about how your child/ren is/are turning out?
I personally think it was better that they were born earlier in that time because they can do more things then than they could now. They had more access to different places and could discover more things on their own. And they were alive to see many of the discoveries and explorations that occurred at that time.
Is there anything you wish had been different?
No, not really I was really happy with my kids. I do not remember having anything I regretted.
What kind of atmosphere or environment did/do you want your child/ren to grow up in?
I wanted them to have loving understanding parents, and have fun. And one very important thing was to be responsible. But most of all I wanted them to have fun.
Is there anything you couldn’t bear to smell, hear, see, or do, that would, so to speak, set off any alarm bells or make you feel queasy? (For example, my mother wouldn’t let anyone say “liver” and couldn’t eat pickles for fear of throwing up.)
Pineapple, it made me feel sick to my stomach and have a bad headache.
How did your friends and family react when you told them you were having a child?
They were very happy too, they were so excited. Just the same reaction I had,
Do you regret having children?
Not at all. I wish I had more. Because they would always have someone to play with.
How old is/are your child?ren now?
They are all in their 40’s.
How do you feel about what your children have been exposed to in their lives so far?
I feel sad they have been exposed to war. It’s sad they have been exposed to things that have been avoided. But it was nice to have them see some of the discoveries of that time.
If you have two or more children, was it easier taking care of the second than the first? Third? Fourth?
It was harder when I had one of my children she was sick all the time. It was a lot harder to take care of her. I had three children in two and a half years. My child after my sick one was a lot easier. I have 4 children total.
If you could go back to the time when you were pregnant, would you tell or warn yourself about anything? Perhaps about the child, or about what would help you before and/or after pregnancy?
I think I would have put my first child in a private school. Because I think that he had a learning disability. It would have helped him later in life.
Name: Jackie D’amico
Phone Number: 941-544-8885
Current Age: 71
Contacted: Phone
Not Teenaged Mother:
Name: Molly Dempsey
Phone Number: 969-8349
Current Age: 46
Contacted: Through School
At what age did you have your first child?
33
What was your first reaction when you found out you would be a parent?
Excited, happy, scared!
What was good about having children at that age?
We had been married for ten years (almost) and were finally ready to have a child. My husband had just finished with graduate school and could devote his attention to a child. Our relationship was very stable.
Did you senses sharpen when you were pregnant?
Not that I recall.
How do you feel about how your child/ren is/are turning out?
We are very happy with the people our children are growing into.
Is there anything you wish had been different?
Not really.
What kind of atmosphere or environment did/do you want your child/ren to grow up in?
An environment of love, trust and honesty; An environment that values an individual's achievements regardless of how others might value them; an environment of faith.
Is there anything you couldn’t bear to smell, hear, see, or do, that would, so to speak, set off any alarm bells or make you feel queasy? (For example, my mother wouldn’t let anyone say “liver” and couldn’t eat pickles for fear of throwing up.)
No, but nothing tasted good for eight months - especially (and most distressingly) desserts!
How did your friends and family react when you told them you were having a child?
They were all thrilled. I think they were beginning to wonder if we would indeed have children at all.
Do you regret having children?
Never!! But we did seriously consider not having any children. Neither of us felt that we needed to have them to live wonderful lives.
How old is/are your child?ren now?
Thirteen and nine.
How do you feel about what your children have been exposed to in their lives so far?
They have been very protected - especially from mass media and that whole culture.
If you have two or more children, was it easier taking care of the second than the first? Third? Fourth?
Depends on what age you are talking about. As an infant my second was far more difficult than my first. As a six year old my first was far more difficult than my second. Overall both of my children have been easy to car for.
If you could go back to the time when you were pregnant, would you tell or warn yourself about anything? Perhaps about the child, or about what would help you before and/or after pregnancy?
Not really. The one thing that I think our society as a whole forgets to tell/communicate is how wonderful and fun it is to have children! No one told me what a great time I would have!! When you hear stories thta parents tell it is always about the bad/disgusting/scary times because those make good stories. "... and then little Jimmy threw up all over the mom sitting next to me on the plane...". As a parent hearing this story one howls with laughter and totally empathizes. But as a not-yet-parent one is totally horrified and thinks "Do I want to do that?? Why do people have children??". BUT, it is a true and total commitment. You lose your heart to a child in a way you can never understand until you have your own.
The results from the surveys that I collected clearly indicate that there is a present but miniscule difference between the emotions and actions of teenage mothers compared to older mothers. There were a few similarities that I found very surprising, mostly given on the age each of the mothers became pregnant, as well as the time period they were in. One was the original reaction was actually the same, of course we must take into account neither of these were unplanned pregnancies. Not only was the reaction of the mother surprising but the reaction of the family and friends which happened to be the same for
both woman. Considering they first became pregnant at very different periods in history, with different concerns running through the publics mind as well as political influences. I was surprised the reaction of the loved ones would be entirely different, but it was not. One similarity that I was not surprised to find out was that at the point of filling out the server neither one of them regretted having children.
One environmental influence that was present regardless of where you were in the world or how well you protected your children. Was how your children as well as the elders were treated. This had certainly changed between the two pregnancies which resulted me in uncovering the difference between the two parents. Which was the parent who’s child grew up in the most recent time period felt as though their child was safer, as opposed to the mother who had her child many year earlier and believe her children were exposed to things that could have been prevented. Overall I believe that both mothers were qualified to take care one or more children regardless of their age, and based on the survey that I received back from them they both did very well.
A Baby Changes Things
At first we were full of excitement and joy,
We were prepared for any challenge that was to come upon us.
We became educated with guides and books that would help us through this way.
But much like everything, an experience and reality is always harder,
Neither a book or tape can help me.
I am now alone