Did you know nearly 78% of teens say they have all the information they need to avoid an unplanned pregnancy? So, if that’s the case, why are there more than 750,000 teen pregnancies in the United States each year? That means more than 2,000 girls get pregnant each day. Holy Hannah! Maybe they think it can’t happen to them? Except that really doesn’t count as protection.  And because I insist on continuously emphasizing this, I may as well say it one more time…there are only two ways to prevent an unplanned pregnancy—and those two ways are abstaining from sex altogether, or using protection carefully and consistently every time. Sex happens—so really, it’s just better to be prepared!  

This week, good-girl Jamie and bad-boy boyfriend Ryan weren’t using any kind of protection.  No condoms. No birth control. So yup—you guessed correctly, the ended up pregnant. Jamie was a straight-A student who had aspirations of going to college after graduation in the spring. However, now that baby Maya is on the way, that’s going to be much harder to do. Certainly it’s possible, but the odds are definitely against her. Only 2% of teens who get pregnant before 18 end up getting a college degree by age 30! Yikes!

As Jamie’s pregnancy begins approaching the end, her relationship with Ryan starts to get a little rocky. Even though he promised to stop partying after the baby is born, he really isn’t doing a good job of showing it because he never stops. In fact, when Jamie goes into labor, she’s unable to get in touch with Jamie. He eventually shows up at the hospital—but he’s late, reeks of alcohol, and is hung over (and let’s not forget the fact that he’s only 17, so drinking isn’t even legal for him). Sure doesn’t sound like Ryan is off to a good start with this whole parenting thing, does it? 

Around the time of the delivery, Jamie and Ryan break up. Much like other teens who are faced with parenthood, this is a common occurrence; 8 in 10 teen fathers won’t marry the mother of their child. This isn’t just bad for the mom either—it sets the child up for a series of potentially harmful situations throughout childhood. Kids who grow up without a father in their lives are more likely to be poor, more likely to be involved with drugs, struggle in school, and suffer neglect. Such a sad scenario. Fortunately, Jamie has a very supportive mother who is willing to help her through these tough years ahead. Can you imagine what it would be like if she didn’t have a supportive mom though? Probably much harder. I’m sure many teen moms out there can vouch for that too, because most are not as lucky to have a support system like Jamie does. 

When Jamie returns home from the hospital, she goes without Ryan (understandably because she is quite upset). You may have noticed that Ryan tried very hard to convince Jamie to let him take baby Maya for a few hours. Fortunately, Jamie realizes that newborns are completely reliant on their mothers, and should not be taken away from mom for that long. Why do you think Ryan is trying so hard? Is this something a good father figure would do? Maybe Ryan should have thought about what it means to be a supportive fatherly figure before he continued to party.  

Make sure you let us know what you think! There is a lot to discuss with this episode—everything from Ryan’s behavior, to how Jamie will be raising the child without the father in the picture, and what Jamie’s life would be like if her mother wasn’t so supportive.  Let’s hear it all! 

This post was written by Sarah Wilson, an intern for The National Campaign, and originally appeared on the Campaign's blog Pregnant Pause. Sarah is a senior at the University of South Carolina, studying public health. She has a golden retriever named Brady, named after none other than the Patriots quarterback, Tom Brady.