Jamie Lynn Spears didn't try to glamorize teen pregnancy

She's nearly 21 years old, but Jamie Lynn Spears fears she'll always be an example of teen pregnancy in our eyes...

At age 16, Jamie -- the little sister of pop sensation Britney Spears -- was the star of Nickelodeon's Zoey 101. But everything changed after she finished shooting the 2007 season.

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"After we wrapped shooting, I just wanted to go home to Louisiana and finish high school, be a cheerleader, all that. Then I found out I was pregnant. I was 16. I'd had one boyfriend,"the actress shares in the March issue of Glamour magazine. "It doesn't make it perfect or all right. But I was judged for something that probably most everyone does. I was young. I was in love. I was like every other teenager, except I had this last name. And I made a decision that is forever my decision."

Jamie Lynn made instant headlines. Paparazzi were in constant pursuit of her and her baby daddy, Casey Aldridge. Parents groups criticized her for setting a dangerous example and for making teen pregnancy look glamorous. Caving under media pressure, Nickelodeon canceled Zoey 101. Jamie was scared and felt an overwhelming sense of guilt. 

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"To have the world come down on a situation that was already affecting my family hugely was hard," admits Jamie Lynn. "I did feel responsible for the young girls and the mothers who I probably confused and let down. I apologize for that. But I wasn't trying to glamorize teen pregnancy. I hated when [the tabloids] said that. Everybody is dealt a hand of cards. It was my choice to play them the way I played them. But the hateful comments hurt."

Daughter Maddie was born in June 2008, and Jamie Lynn has removed herself from the spotlight. She and Maddie have lived a quiet life in Mississippi, not far from her Louisiana hometown. 

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As for having unprotected sex as a teenager, Jamie Lynn reveals, "I believe in safety and birth control as prevention. But like many young girls...I was really scared to go to the doctor. And I was on a Nickelodeon show, and it [felt] especially embarrassing to ask someone to put me on birth control. I didn't want to ask my doctor, because she had a little girl."

Jamie Lynn and Casey were engaged at one time, but they're not longer together. The young mom isn't in any hurry to get serious, but she does look forward to someday bringing a guy home to meet her daughter.  

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"I just want to be a soccer mom. I want to cook dinner every night. I want the kids to come home and be dirty and make the house messy," Jamie Lynn says. "At the same time, I have to be patient and wait for the right time and the right guy. I would have never known that until I went through what I went through. I'm just patiently waiting for Prince Charming."

For now, Jamie Lynn and Maddie are in Nashville, where the former actress can pursue a singing career like Britney. Of her famous sister, Jamie Lynn had this to say: "She's in such a good place right now. She's in love. She has her kids. So I'm happy for her. Of course [our bond as mothers], it's such a big thing, you know? Especially 'cause there's an age gap there -- she's 10 years older. I think if I were just a normal 20-year-old, I wouldn't be able to relate as much to her."

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