A teenage mother describes becoming pregnant, saying that although she and her boyfriend had sex, she had no idea it could lead to pregnancy.
“The guy proposed to me in April, so he asked me to meet him at his house and I went. The first relationship he had with me, I found out the next month, May, when I didn’t get my period, so I knew I was pregnant but my belly didn’t develop. So I thought it was a normal thing. She told Joy Prime.
After discovering that her romantic relationship with her boyfriend had paid off, she was afraid to reveal it to her aunt and her grandfather, fearing that they would not react favorably to the news.
After the teenager hid it for five months, it took her teacher to break the news to her parents.
“I went to the hospital after missing my periods for two months, and they told me I was pregnant. I myself have not told them (parents). It’s been five months, my madam told me where my pregnancy is going, she needs to tell my parents. She said I should tell them first, but I told her I was scared, so she should help me tell. She called my grandfather and said. she said.
In fact, when it came to the attention of her parents that instead of being in school and taking her studies seriously, she was engaging in sexual activity to get pregnant, her aunt threw her out of the house and did not spare her despite her pleas. On the little girl.
“My aunt, who was with me, threw away my things. My grandfather told her to be patient, but she would not let me in her room during pregnancy. My grandfather went on his knees and begged, but he gave me days to come back. She told me that I should leave her house before giving birth. She narrated.
Now that she has given birth, the young mother says she has learned her lessons and wants to return to school to pick up where she left off. According to her, she doesn’t want this “mistake” to be the end of her bright future.
“I know I made a big mistake; That’s why I was thrown out of the house. It’s a big mistake, but I need someone to help me continue my education and become mature in the future. I want my future to be better for me,” she pleaded.
She is one of the three schoolgirls featured in Joy Prime’s documentary “Classroom Mothers” produced by Emmanuel Djivenu.
The documentary highlighted the rising cases of pregnancy in senior high schools in the country and the efforts of stakeholders to keep these pregnant girls and young mothers in school to safeguard their future.
Mercy Djifa Afi Akwada, a senior homemaker at Addidome SHS, disclosed that her school has measures in place to ensure that students who become pregnant do not become dropouts.
“In an average semester, around 10 girls get pregnant. During these first years, as they were coming to school, two of them were pregnant. We were able to handle it. She’s given birth, and she’s back at school. she said.
The headmistress opined that lack of sex education creates misconceptions about sexuality among school children, which leads to unwanted pregnancies.
Globally, one of the gender-related barriers militating against girl-child education is the inability to continue schooling during pregnancy and postpartum.