Is it okay for a teenager to want to have a baby?

Answer 1

It is okay to want to have a baby - it's akin to wanting a puppy - they are adorable and the difficulty of it is hard to imagine before you actually bring one home - but HAVING a baby as a teenager is a different matter than wanting a baby. Babies are hard. Capable couples in their 30's and beyond think it's hard. People who have done hard things, like medical school or Peace Corps think babies are even harder. A labor of love, for sure, but more difficult than most any other achievement, physically, emotionally and otherwise. Additionally, most teenagers do not have the financial resources to raise a child. This is not a shallow, money grubber observation. It's reality - you need a dependable flow of income and money to raise a child in the way every child deserves to be raised. Further, you should never have a baby to fill an emotional need, like loneliness or wanting to be loved. Having a baby is about doing for the baby, not doing for the parent - it is or should be, a selfless act of love. Most people choose to have a baby with a spouse, in order to create a family. Families are vital and help each other and society. In my opinion, this is the best reason. If you can't fathom why you shouldn't have a baby as a teenager, then put yourself in the baby's shoes for a moment.... Imagine you are a soul in heaven and you have a choice to be born into A) a happy marriage of two mature adults, both of whom are emotionally and financially stable, or B) a teenager - who cannot know where life will take her at this stage; who has not completed college or career training and therefore is unlikely to be financially stable; and who won't reach her full emotional maturity level until her mid-20's? What would be your choice?