Hosts:

Welcome to a very special part of our pregnancy garden made just for teens. Pregnancy can seem pretty overwhelming, especially when you're a teenager. Just know that you're not alone. You're not the first girl in her teens to get pregnant and though you may have some rough times ahead, you've also got a lot of great things to look forward to. I'd like to introduce you to two friends of mine, Amber and Sarah. They'll guide you through the teen section of the pregnancy garden.

Hi, I’m Amber, and this is my friend Sarah. Hi, today we're going to talk to you about what it's like to be pregnant when you're a teenager. I know that we both learned a lot when it happened to us. I was pretty blown away when I found out I was pregnant. Telling my parents and my boyfriend was really tough because I didn't know how they'd react. Yeah, and I was pretty embarrassed at school too. Some of my friends pressured me to party with them, and they just didn't get it that if I smoked or drank or anything it would go right into my baby. Most of my friends are really supportive, though, and I just learned to stay away from the things that I knew weren't good for me. Sarah's right. It's really important to take care of ourselves and it really helps the baby. I learned a lot from my health care provider. She's really cool, and I couldn't have gotten through it without her. Today she's going to tell us some of the things we should know about when we're having a baby.

Doctor:

When Amber was pregnant, I told her that teenagers need to take care of themselves the same way that other pregnant women do. The most important thing that you can do for yourself and your baby is to make sure you go to all of your prenatal appointments and follow the instructions your provider gives you. They really do care about you and your baby. This will mean taking time off from school or work, but it's definitely worth it!

One of the things that your provider will talk to you about is eating right and exercising. It's really important that you eat lots of nutritious food and gain the amount of weight that your provider suggests. That way, you’re giving your baby every chance to be strong and healthy. Just think of it as the world's greatest excuse not to diet! There'll be plenty of time for that later!