How I Beat The Statistics
I got these statistics from the 2 links on my Statistics page
WHAT I DID
STATISTIC
I did not fall in this 70%. I am in the 30% that did recieve proper prenatal care. I started going to the Dr and taking care of myself as soon as I found out I was pregnant.
- Aproximately 70% of all pregnant adolescents do not recieve adequate prenatal care, when in reality, this is the group that needs the most care.
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- About 1 out of 4 teen mothers go on to have a second baby within 2 years after the birth of their first baby.
I did not have another child within 2 years after having my first. My daughter is almost 5 years old, and I am still a mom to only 1.
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Well, because I did get the proper prenatal care, my child was not premature, as a matter of fact she was 4 days late, and she was not a low birth weight baby, she was 8lbs 5 oz, not small at all:)
-The Babies are more likely to be born premature and/or suffer from low birth weight
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-Teen mother's are more likely to drop out of high school than girls who delay childbearing. A recent study showed that only about 64% of teen mothers graduated from high school or earned a GED within 2 years after they would have graduated, compared to 94% of teen women who did not give birth.
Maybe this is because lack of support, and the negative discretion we get from our high school's when we get pregnant? However, I held my head high and beat this one too. No one was going to tell me I wasn't graduating. I graduated ON TIME with good grades, and got my high school diploma.
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This one I am sure goes along with the fact that teen's don't get proper prenatal care which can indeed lead to these problems later in life. Kacie is just starting school but so far she has proven to be very smart and seems to have lots of common sence, and she is VERY healthy.
-Children whose mothers were age 17 or younger when they were born tend to have more school difficulties and poorer health than children whose mothers were 20-21 when they were born.
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And I know alot of adults that do not have good parenting skills. I for one believe that I have very good parenting skills.
-Teens may not have good parenting skills, or have the social systems to help them deal with the stress of raising an infant.
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note- I am not in any way trying to say that Teen age pregnancy is a good thing. Having my daughter so young did make me miss out on alot of teen things. It made me have to grow up a whole lot faster then I should have. Reality smacked me in the face a little too soon. I think that teens should do everything they can to prevent pregnancy because it is not a joke. It is a very hard and stressful thing to have to deal with. Having a child is not cool or fun, it is hard and alot of work. However being a teen mom does not in any way mean you are a bad parent. I feel that people should stop looking at it like that. I feel that Teen pregnant girls should have information for them easier to get, and better support from society. That will probally lead us to be better parents. I also feel that birth control should be easier for teens to get and more accepted. Teens are going to have sex whether it is right or not, so lets stop these unwanted pregnancies with birth control.
