Going through adolescence is not a simple walk in the park for girls. Your parents expect you to know the wrong choices from the right ones. They want you to excel at school, do your chores at home, and possibly get a job in the summer. Then, there are the aspects of finding real friends, weeding out the bad influences, and making sure that your heart doesn’t get toyed with by silly boys. “At these moments, our teens all too often make some pretty bad decisions,” explains Dr. Jess Shatkin.
Another thing that haunts girls is the issue of teenage pregnancy. We have seen the rise of this dilemma in the late 20th century. Instead of attending concerts of NSYNC, West Life, and Boyz II Men – boy bands that became famous during the 1990s – young mothers had to grow up quicker than everyone to look after their kids. While same-aged folks worried about exams, they were busy looking for an employer who wouldn’t mind hiring someone who didn’t even have a high school diploma yet.
Although government units across the globe have made significant movements to lower the statistics of teenage pregnancy at present, we can’t help but wonder why the problem became prevalent in the past.
Here are the possible causes we’ve gathered.
Poverty
One of the common reasons why teenage pregnancy takes place in any country is poverty. The teens have no financial means to pursue a worthwhile hobby or stick to studying. Their parents cannot bring them to an OB-GYN either to put them on birth control. Due to that, many sexually active girls do the horizontal tango without protection.
Feeling Neglected
For teens whose parents are working hard to provide their needs, it’s easy to assume that their family does not care about them or no one loves them. That’s why they opt to look for affection from other people.
Whereas this decision is better than developing depression or suicidal tendencies, everyone can’t always be lucky at finding genuine individuals. If a teenager dates someone who is after that one thing only, she may end up pregnant before she’s even ready for that kind of responsibility.
Sexual Abuse
There’s also the case of rape or sexual abuse. “A person who’s suffered from sexual abuse may feel very depressed, sad, lonely, and hopeless,” says John M. Grohol, Psy.D. It was not easy to prevent this form of violence in the past due to lack of access to hi-tech communication devices. CCTVs on the dark alleys or parties were perhaps uncommon back then too. Thus, the wrongdoers succeed in their evil deeds, leaving a young girl traumatized and pregnant.
Ignorance
Last but not the least, remember that sex used to be a taboo subject. Parents rarely speak of it in front of the kids. The schoolteachers may be mum about the topic as well. Their goal is not to open the teenagers’ eyes to sexual possibilities.
Despite that, we are all born curious. Even if the adults don’t talk about something, teens usually try to satisfy their curiosity on their own. So, you can quickly tell what can happen if a teenage girl who’s only heard of the birds and the bees do the deed all of a sudden.
In Conclusion
In a sense, teenage pregnancy has a bright side as well. Among the pluses are having a little angel to take care of, strengthening the relationship with family members, and finding your purpose in life. However, becoming pregnant when you are technically a child yourself will only make things tough for you and your baby in the future. As what Joni E Johnston Psy.D. said, “It’s not surprising to me that one of the best ways to prevent teen pregnancy is for teens to have long-term goals, good self-esteem, and a caring and consistent home environment.”
Our advice to fellow youth, therefore, is to be smart all the time. Never give in to peer pressure – that will push you to commit acts that come with grave consequences. Ask questions during your sex education class as well so that you don’t end up needing to grow up too fast.