no offense taken, Genevra. your situation there does sound quite sticky. i would feel rather betrayed as well. i did not choose to become pregnant, but i did know that its one of the things that can happen.

I believe that both parents and schools are at fault. First of all, parents should take a step up and participate in their children's lives more and make good relationships with them so they want to be able to talk to you. My parents made it a point to ask me what was going on in my life and actually tried to befriend me so that I would not be afraid to talk to them about the important stuff in life, like sex. Secondly, schools need to step up the sex education a notch. They are teaching about sex, protection, and STD's but they are not really taking enough time on teaching teens the perils of becoming parents at such young ages. When I was in High school sex ed focused mostly on transmitted diseases and using the right protection. If they had focused more on how expensive and hard it is to raise a child, I believe that the 15 out of 150 kids that got pregnant in my grade would have thought twice about it and taken more precaution.

I was 19 when I had my son. I remember the nurse's face when I went for my first prenatal appointment at my clinic which I had been going to for more than a decade. She looked digusted and knowing my mother which was a strict pentacostal, was in shock. Even though I had moved out when I graduated highschool(2 yrs prior) and I was managing a staffing agency at the time- I still got looked at like I was in a school uniform and wearing pigtails.
People are always going to have their opinions, and whether you like it or not will feel the need to share them with you.
Though my sons birth was not planned, I chose to proceed with it because I was told at a very young age that I would have a problem reproducing. After having my son I realized how much of a miracle baby he is; after discovering my cystal ovaries, didelphis uterus and weak cervix(which had precancerous cells in its lining). God has blessed me and reaching 23, I am now expecting my 2nd child. I still get "looks" and I caress my belly a lil bit extra whenever I do!
PS As far as teenie boppers -> 13-16yr olds having babies, I do not approve of. However, I beleive that if you think you are old enough to enjoy the pleasures of sex, you should be old enough to learn the responsibilities of its outcomes. Parental guidance can only go so far. Parents can not be everywhere. At the end of the day each person- even teen has their own mind and character. As the old saying goes "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink."

Even tho my parents were not there for me alot, I still believe its all my fault I knew what was going to happen but I went with unprotected sex any way and now I am pregnant its my fault.

Ok, so I still blame a little on my family but you get the point.
But Scott thinks its his fault hes the one who got me in bed hes the one who who had the sperm to make the babies.

-Josephina

I got pregnant when I was 19. You could say I was a teen mother. I know it wasn't my parents fault, they had the sex talk with me and I'm the one who choose not the have unprotected sex. They did everything they were supposed to as a parent. Yes, it is true some parents don't educate kids about sex...but what about sex ed in school. You can't blame everything on parents. What happened to personal responsibility or common sense?

I am 26 and having my first baby however quite a few of my friends had kids really young. I was 16 when my oldest godson was born- his mom was 17. I had him with me a lot when he was little often out in public. People usually assumed that he was mine. I got the discerning looks from people in stores and such ( I'm sure the gothic make up and dyed hair didn't help) which could be really uncomfortable at times. It was different of course because I knew he wasn't mine but people can still be very rude.
At the same time, I really wish that more girls would wait longer to have children. I realize that mistakes happen but it seems like they happen so frequently these days. Then you hear girls saying 'I want to get pregnant' when they're like 15 and I just find it so disheartening. They just don't seem to fathom the weight of a decision like that and who could blame them- they're still so young. Your whole concept of life is so drastically different as a teen. I do think that parents play a big role but it isn't just talks about contraception that they need to be having- it's also about instilling confidence, self respect, and goals in young girls so that they can see that there is more out there for them and they can have a baby just as easily in 10 years but they only get to be young once.