Wow, I didn’t think it was possible for me to get so weepy over a television show. The adoption episodes of 16 and Pregnant are always the most gut-wrenching, so it’s only natural that the reunion special required a box of tissues as well.

In this special episode, Dr. Drew met up with two of the three 16 and Pregnant girls to discuss pregnancy, adoption, and moving on.  (Lori, an adopted teen who also chose adoption for her baby, wasn’t featured.) Dr. Drew gave the audience some great information regarding adoption, like that only 1% of pregnant teens choose to make an adoption plan. If choosing adoption was easy, more teen moms might have gone down that path. That’s why it makes me so irritated when some call adoption the “easy way out.”

Catelynn, a Teen Mom regular, and Ashley (from the 16 and Pregnant Season 2 finale) recap their painful decisions and sit down with their babies’ adoptive parents to discuss their developing relationships as birth and adoptive parents. If you recall, Ashley had decided that her aunt and uncle were the best people to raise baby Callie; she didn’t initially stick to that decision though, and actually changed her mind and took Callie back once. Ashley is clearly still struggling with her decision, and still fights the urge to demand her baby back, even after a year and a half. It worries me that her aunt and uncle might comply with her demand should she ever be determined to get Callie back. I think the hardest part for Ashley is accepting that she wasn’t enough for Callie. Dr. Drew and Catelynn try to help Ashley see that she is good enough, but her aunt and uncle would be able to give Callie things Ashley couldn’t.

On the other end of the spectrum, Catelynn and Tyler are model teens in the advocacy for adoption and contraception. I wasn’t aware that Catelynn actually traveled to schools to talk about teen pregnancy and adoption, but I thought she was incredibly moving as a promoter of safe sex. She talks about how people tell her “your show is like birth control!” and “I would choose adoption because your story inspired me!”

This episode was jam packed with great information. Like Dr. Drew and Catelynn said—pregnancy is 100% preventable. You don’t have to consider adoption if you protect yourself against unsafe sex in the first place!

The best part of the episode was the surprise video adoptive parents Brandon and Teresa made for Catelynn and Tyler of Carly’s daily life. If the happy squeals of baby Carly yelling “Ty! Cate!” when she hears their voices in the audio storybook don’t make you cry, then you’re made of stone.

How about you? Has 16 and Pregnant or Teen Mom made you think about the consequences of sex?

This post was written by Kate, an intern for The National Campaign. Kate is a senior at George Washington University, studying journalism and sociology. She loves theater and cooking, and eats mashed potatoes every single day.