Sex Education Should Start At Home
What number of teenagers do your know? Who are you likely to associate with when they become mothers? I’m certain we can all identify a number of these teenagers in this generation. Teenage pregnancy has become a serious problem in America. But there are many things you can do to prevent this. You have many people to ask for advice, and many choices that a parent of a teenager must make. The best way to stop teenagers getting pregnant is education. You don’t need to be taught sexuality in a school setting. These teens would be better served if their parents educated them about the risks and benefits of becoming a parent as teenagers. It’s time to have “the conversation”
One of the biggest problems teenagers have is not realizing that sexual activity can lead to a pregnancy. You can’t see that you are planning a pregnancy. According to statistics by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), nearly half of high-school students have experienced sexual intercourse. Teenage pregnancy presents a number of challenges for the mother and child. The mother must now deal with social, economic, and health problems throughout her entire life. If you become pregnant before you know it, you will likely lose the support of your family. She is often left without support and care when she most needs it. The teenager’s mental and emotional well-being can be greatly affected by being financially independent and alone. Pregnant teenagers may also abandon their education. This could lead to long-term unemployed and a heavier financial burden on the mother. Because of this, mothers are more likely than ever to take low-paid jobs. The result is that the child’s overall growth is affected. It is not surprising that “in 2013, a total 273,105 babies were delivered to 15-19-year-old women, for a live birthrate of 26.5 per 1,000.” Parents who don’t have sex with their children are making a big mistake. According to Leslie Kantor MPH, national director of education, Planned Parenthood Federation of America, “Mothers need to be aware that they are an important voice in their daughters’ sexual education.” Despite these stats, many parents don’t have open conversations with their kids about sex. We are failing to educate our teenage girls about teenage pregnancy. It is impossible to have a conversation about teenage pregnancy with our children if we don’t open up. Nearly one-third of 600 12-15 year olds surveyed said that they hadn’t spoken to their parents about sexuality. While kids today are more knowledgeable about sex than they think, is this factual? Dr. Berman believes that children today are being forced by their peers to make sexual decisions. These include receiving explicit text messages from their parents, and then feeling pressured or even under-restricted to perform acts such as oral sex. While some mothers may avoid the conversation out of fear that they might offend their children, others will say they do not want to make it seem as though they condone sex. Ann Shoket is the editor-in–chief of Seventeen Magazine. She says, “Girls want more than the nuts-and-bolts conversation about sex. Sometimes parents believe they’ve done all the work and leave it to their daughters. She said, “It’s evident that these daughters are doing very advanced sex things.” But they want their mothers talking about the emotional side. Their mothers should talk to them about the emotional side of their sons. How can I tell if this boy is using me?
Parents should be educating their children and helping them understand the implications of being a teenager parent. This will help to reduce teenage pregnancies. Dr. Berman has written a book called “Talking to Your Kids about Sex,” which contains tips and guidance for having these conversations with your kids. “Talking to Your Kids about Sex” is a book that one parent found helpful. It asks parents questions to encourage them to think through their values and attitudes before starting to talk with their children.
