Have you seen "16 & Pregnant"?

[HonnyDipp]

I also watched this show with my 14 year old daughter. But I didnt need to watch it to know how hard it is. I had my daughter when I was 16. I KNOW how hard it is. I hated Farah's mom from the very beginning. She encouraged her daughter to put her child up for adoption telling her that her life was over. She would not have a good education or a good job because she was a teen mom. I also hated the way her mom pushed her to the side after Sophia was born. My parents were not like that. They were there for me reminding me that I had a responsiblity, but they didnt turn their backs on me. I finished high school at the top of my class, four years of college, and I have no regrets. I'm curious to see how Farah and little Sophia are doing now.

 

[HM]

When my son started 6th grade a few years ago, I found out from his counselor that they already had two incoming pregnant 6th graders.....these girls were 11 yrs old people. I was just shocked. Gotta start talking about and guiding a lot earlier in their lives than 14, 15, or 16!

 

[Arielle22]

My nephew was born 12 weeks early in January (only 1 lb 11oz) and just came home a few weeks ago.

I made sure my DD14 and DD15 knew all about what my sister had to go through. He came home with a feeding tube implanted in his stomach and I showed it to DDs while changing him. He has multiple dr appts and a daily visiting nurse for a shot. My sister spends most of her time feeding him (takes 1.5 hrs) or preparing to feed him (needs a med .5 hr before feeding).

I wanted them both to understand that with a pregnancy you never know what will happen and so before they decide to have sex they better be prepared.

When my nephew was in NICU the regulation for visiting had to be bent for another baby. The rule was no one under 16 but a father was 15 (mom was 17 yr old heroin addict).

My DDs both say they don't plan on having sex until marriage. I will be happy if they make it through high school!

 

[luckymom4]

I also watched this show with my 14 year old daughter. But I didnt need to watch it to know how hard it is. I had my daughter when I was 16. I KNOW how hard it is. I hated Farah's mom from the very beginning. She encouraged her daughter to put her child up for adoption telling her that her life was over. She would not have a good education or a good job because she was a teen mom. I also hated the way her mom pushed her to the side after Sophia was born. My parents were not like that. They were there for me reminding me that I had a responsiblity, but they didnt turn their backs on me. I finished high school at the top of my class, four years of college, and I have no regrets. I'm curious to see how Farah and little Sophia are doing now.

Amen to that! My parents never pushed adoption on me. I don't even think it was discussed. Life is what you make it. I've worked hard to make sure my kids are provided for. I'm FINALLY going back to school now for a degree in nursing. My children know the decisions I've made and the consequences of those decisions. I've never tried to glitz it over like it was no big deal. Kids appreciate honesty.

 

[luckymom4]

When my son started 6th grade a few years ago, I found out from his counselor that they already had two incoming pregnant 6th graders.....these girls were 11 yrs old people. I was just shocked. Gotta start talking about and guiding a lot earlier in their lives than 14, 15, or 16!

WHOA! Pregnant at 11! Poor kids. They have no idea what they've gotten themselves into. My heart goes out to these kids.

 

[minkydog]

My nephew was born 12 weeks early in January (only 1 lb 11oz) and just came home a few weeks ago.

I made sure my DD14 and DD15 knew all about what my sister had to go through. He came home with a feeding tube implanted in his stomach and I showed it to DDs while changing him. He has multiple dr appts and a daily visiting nurse for a shot. My sister spends most of her time feeding him (takes 1.5 hrs) or preparing to feed him (needs a med .5 hr before feeding).

I wanted them both to understand that with a pregnancy you never know what will happen and so before they decide to have sex they better be prepared.

That's exactly what I have told my DD16 & DS22--when you choose to be intimate with someone you have to be aware and ready for the possibility of pregnancy. And know that once you have a baby you will be tied to the other person for the rest of your life whether you like him/her or not.

In our situation my kids have seen first hand how a pregnancy can go wrong. Our youngest DS was born with multiple disabilities. His first 2 years were literally a fight for life. They were homeschooled so they saw it all--all the therapy, dr appts, all the difficult feedings, the crying, the worry of fearing that the baby would die. Now DS is 14. He's taller than me and stronger than me. He has seizures, vision & hearing impairment, autism and profoundly mentally impaired. He wears diapers. He has the functioning of a 1-2yr old. There are NO family members or friends who feel comfortable taking care of him. So we do it. All day. All night. All month. All year. For 14 years. And it will never let up until the day we die.

That's some birth control right there.

 

[kilee]

I watched both episodes and I'm on the fence about how I feel. I think it shows some of the reality...but then I think it "glamourizes" it on the other hand.

What bothered me was in the first one, I want to know where 2 teens got the money to rent that apartment, buy new furniture, constantly eat/order out, and drive the new vehicles???? I think he was a diesel mechanic, and that probably contributed to it, but how many teen parents are going to hold a job like that????

The cheerleader, well she just seemed so clueless. I think the mother was a bit over the top rough, but on the same hand, it was a little more "real". My mom and I butted heads on many occasions when I had my son. My husband was laughing his butt off when they were showing the first night home and the baby crying every other hour.

I too was a teen mom, and I owe a lot to my family. I got pregnant my senior year when I was 17 yrs old. I was lucky to graduate high school before I delivered, so 1 hurdle down. I babysat the 2 neighbor children everyday (9 hrs a day) so I could make money during the day and keep my son w/ me. Then I went to college 4 nights a week, and my mom watched him each of those nights. I also waitressed every other weekend for extra money. I just remember it being a lot harder than they showed it........maybe my memory isn't so good......

 

[WeLoveLilo05]

I actually got pregnant @ 20...my parents were shocked at first but have been VERY supportive and I am thankful for that. Me and fiance are still together, living together, planning on getting married in Aug 2010 now that we are more able to save up. I stayed home with DD for 2 years and then decided to go back to night school. Some nights my mom watched DD, some nights fiance did. In Dec I will have my degree and will be certified to teach elementary education/special education in the state of NJ. In May I will walk and graduate with honors. DD will begin Pre-K in Sept, not full time, but its a start.
I say this only because I DON'T encourage teens to go out and get pregnant, but know that if you have a drive then you will be successful. It is NOT easy, I remember going to classes half asleep, coming home to sit down and do work and DD getting up. But if it is wanted bad enough it will happen.

Now, the thing that DROVE ME NUTS about the first episode (aside from her leaving the baby on the couch screaming while she picked at her nails) was the fact that her parents got the baby the dirt bike as a gift at the baby shower. That is not a real practical gift for 2 struggling kids who are about to bring a baby into the world you know? I see diapers, bottles, wipes, and things of that sort a necessity. Are they "fun" gifts, No. But heck, they will def. be used and I would think that the teens would be grateful to have a supply.

 

[SandrA9810]

In our situation my kids have seen first hand how a pregnancy can go wrong. Our youngest DS was born with multiple disabilities. His first 2 years were literally a fight for life. They were homeschooled so they saw it all--all the therapy, dr appts, all the difficult feedings, the crying, the worry of fearing that the baby would die. Now DS is 14. He's taller than me and stronger than me. He has seizures, vision & hearing impairment, autism and profoundly mentally impaired. He wears diapers. He has the functioning of a 1-2yr old. There are NO family members or friends who feel comfortable taking care of him. So we do it. All day. All night. All month. All year. For 14 years. And it will never let up until the day we die.

That's some birth control right there.

That's worked for me... my mom always wanted to blame my brother's syndrome G on my father because it was a "male" problem. To this day I have no idea if there is anything wrong with my dad... but it wasn't until a few years ago that I really figured out how my brother ended up the way he did. And my sister has 3 kids with Fragile X which has been known to show up in neices and nephews of the disabled person with syndrome g. The sad part is, after her first son, she got genetic testing done to prove that she was a carrier of the disease, but still decided on having 5 more kids...

From that, I've realized how strong my chances are of having a kid like that, and how much I really don't want to have to go through that. It's worked as a good birth control try to have a kid through normal ways. So if there's no money for IVF... there's no money for a baby.


minkydog: Do your kids have a chance of passing along what thier brother has?

 

[L107ANGEL]

That's exactly what I have told my DD16 & DS22--when you choose to be intimate with someone you have to be aware and ready for the possibility of pregnancy. And know that once you have a baby you will be tied to the other person for the rest of your life whether you like him/her or not.

In our situation my kids have seen first hand how a pregnancy can go wrong. Our youngest DS was born with multiple disabilities. His first 2 years were literally a fight for life. They were homeschooled so they saw it all--all the therapy, dr appts, all the difficult feedings, the crying, the worry of fearing that the baby would die. Now DS is 14. He's taller than me and stronger than me. He has seizures, vision & hearing impairment, autism and profoundly mentally impaired. He wears diapers. He has the functioning of a 1-2yr old. There are NO family members or friends who feel comfortable taking care of him. So we do it. All day. All night. All month. All year. For 14 years. And it will never let up until the day we die.

That's some birth control right there.

I cant get past this post without this