five young women will become pregnant before age twenty, and four out of five of those pregnancies will be unintended, including about half of those among married teenage girls. Whatever their circumstances, though, the news that they are pregnant usually comes as a shock, and often not a welcome one.
The unforeseen development typically throws young lives into turmoil, at least for a time, forcing the girl to make perhaps the most agonizing decision of her life. Does she carry the baby to term, as 50 percent of pregnant teenagers elect to do? Or does she terminate the pregnancy?
It is hoped she knows she can count on her mother and father for guidance and support as she confronts these choices. Youngsters who fear meeting with rejection or abuse at home may try to keep the pregnancy a secret as long as possible. As a result, they often don’t receive adequate prenatal care and counseling during the crucial early months of fetal development.
One-third of girls aged fifteen to nineteen, and one-half of girls under fift