High schools girls made pact to get pregnant together

Let me vent for a minute.

When I read this article yesterday about a dozen or so Massachusetts teen girls (all under 16) who pledged to get pregnant together, I wanted to slap them.

While this site is about young moms, this is ridiculous. Getting pregnant while in high school is not a goal. It is not something to aspire to. Being a teen mom is no picnic, which I’m sure these girls will soon find out.

I wasn’t a teen mom (I was six days away from turning 21), but it was hard enough on me. Imagine trying to study with a baby attached to your nipple. Imagine trying to figure out how you’re going to go to class when your babysitter cancels (or, if you’re like me, you don’t have a babysitter.)

These girls aren’t yet 16, so that makes them, what, sophomores? Juniors? Will it still be “cute” to be a teen mom when you’re studying for the SAT with a screaming baby in the background?

What made these girls decide that getting pregnant and having babies was the route they wanted to go? The principal of the school said the girls who were pregnant were the ones who lacked self-esteem (obviously) and didn’t have much love at home.

Having a baby so you’ll have someone to love you is a very flawed reason. Babies are selfish. Sounds harsh, but it’s true. Babies don’t care how your day was, they won’t ask you if you’re feeling okay or if you need a break, they don’t care if you’re hungry or hot or tired. Babies exist for you to take care of. That’s IT. For the most part, the love that comes from having a baby is mostly one-sided.

That’s one lesson I wish these girls had learned. But I’m sure they will soon enough.