Teenage Pregnancy

Teenage pregnancy is perhaps one of the worst nightmares of all parents across the world. There are many social, emotional, physical concerns that are associated with this problem. Most of the parents feel that this can never happen to them.

However, this is not true and teenage pregnancy is a problem that is quite common across the world and almost every year a number of kids face this problem in spite of all the awareness. We will discuss how to deal with this issue in details.

We will fist start with what you can do to actually avoid the problem of teenage pregnancy:

Teenage-Pregnancy

1. You must communicate with your child about sex and pregnancy as soon as they reach puberty. This is essential for both boys and girls. They must know what pregnancy is all about and how they can be in trouble if they have unsafe sex.
2. Many teenagers get pregnant as they are sexually assaulted and they do not know how to communicate the same with the parents. You must be friendly to the child and ensure that they can open up to you if anyone is sexually assaulting them.
3. You must trust your child completely and do not try to spy on them. If the child finds that you are suspicious they might be provoked to do something wrong.
4. You must spend time with the teenager and talk to them on daily basis about what is happening in school and in their personal life. The child should be comfortable to discuss with you anything that is bothering them.
5. If the child is looking disturbed and is not able to perform well in school you must try to look into the matter immediately and find out what the problem is so that the child can open up to you and if there is a concern they can share with you.
6. You must give the teenagers good knowledge on the physical and medical implications of teenage pregnancy. They must know that abortion at such a young age can be a problem for the rest of the life. They must also know that if the pregnancy gets to the second trimester they might have to deliver the child which can be a huge risk at such a tender age. When you logically explain the situation to the teenager they will be able to understand and appreciate your concerns better.
7. You must tell the kids that they can have friends and also be in a relationship but they should know how to draw the line and manage themselves.
8. One important part here would be to tell the teenagers that how they can find out if they are pregnant. You must tell them that in case they get pregnant they must tell you immediately so that you can take the necessary actions. This will assure them and also stop them from doing a wrong step.
9. Many teenagers take to contraceptives and abortion bills as per the advice of their peers. This is not right and you must discuss the pros and cons of these to the child beforehand itself so that they are saved from the aftermath.
10. If you find a contraceptive in the bag or room of the child do not make a big deal of it. Sit with the kid and try to understand what is going on. The way you react can really damage the situation and your relationship for life as teenagers are generally very rebellious.
11. You must know where the child is going and what he or she is up to. Ensure that the teenagers do not come home very late every single day. You must also ensure that the teenager stays over with a friend you know. If you have even a single doubt you must confront the teenager.

What if in spite of all the points that we have mentioned above the teenager gets pregnant. Then you will have to follow the following points:

1. Please do not shout at the child as if the world has ended. You can be upset as you had told them to be careful. Remember that the child too is in a state of shock and do not know how to handle the situation. She needs help and you have to support her else she will shatter.
2. You must take her to a doctor immediately and get consultation done. Based on the consultation alone you can decide what the future course of action should be.
3. You must try to find out who the father of the child is and you must inform the parents of the boy too before you decide on what must be done. If they are a sensitive and caring family they will also be there with you in this situation of crisis. Do not shout at the boy as he too will be scared and would not know how to deal with the situation.
4. It is obvious that you will be angry and disappointed but you must keep your calm and try to take control of the situation. You must tell your daughter that all we fine and she should not worry and cry as you are there for her. Do tell your partner to be patient and be calm as you are as over reacting is just not going to help the situation.
5. You must consult with the parents of the boy and tell them the doctor’s verdict and then as a family decide on what is it that you feel the kids must do. If the abortion becomes a rare possibility due to medical complications then this discussion is very essential.
6. As a parent you cannot put your opinion on the child. If she and her boy friend want to keep the child or wants to be a single parent you must tell her that it is going to be a very tough decision. Tell her of all the hardships that she will have to face as a parent is such a small age. Tell her about the social, financial, emotional and mental concerns that a pregnant teenager has to face all her life. If after all the explanation she decides to have the child you cannot force her for an abortion as that will make her more depressed.
7. Give the pregnant teenager the time that she may need to decide on what she wants to do. Only when she is sure of what she wants take the next step.
8. The challenge will be to get her back to a normal life. Try to go on a vacation and make her concentrate on things other than what happened. Try to pamper her and make her happy. You must ensure that she does not consider this as end of life and gets back to her usual life at the earliest.
9. Tell the pregnant teenager that it’s all over now and she will have to move on. It was a mistake and it cannot ruin her life. Do not blame her as it will only make her more depressed. If required you can send her off to a new city or a new school so that she forgets about all that happened in the past and moves on.

We hope that these suggestions on how to deal with teenage pregnancy and will help you to manage a situation like this better. Do keep your calm and be assured that you will be able to deal with this challenge as a family.