For most teenagers, dating the wrong person or having an angry outburst are mistakes we all make, and can actually help us grow as people. But what if one bad decision as a teenager (say, having unprotected sex?) changed your life forever? This week’s Teen Mom was all about the consequences of being a young mother. The girls are faced with obstacles that might not have been there if they hadn’t gotten pregnant.

Let’s start with Maci. No matter what your situation, it’s always awkward for the new boyfriend to meet the old boyfriend…maybe in some relationships that confrontation can be avoided, but not when your ex is also your baby’s father. After weeks of pressuring both Kyle and Ryan to finally meet, the boys have a forced exchange where the feuding testosterone is almost visible. Luckily, they share a bro handshake and no one throws a punch, so I’d call the meeting a success.

Next we have Amber, who has to deal with mounting pressure from child protective services and the police in the aftermath of her violence towards Gary. After meeting with a lawyer and learning their daughter Leah could be taken away from them, Amber starts to pull away from Gary. Blaming him for provoking her, Amber leaves their home for a few days to cool off and escape from the pressure.

Finally, there’s Farrah, who definitely had the most emotional moments of the episode. First, she meets with the father and stepmother of Sophia’s father Derek, who died in a car crash while Farrah was pregnant. They give her baby pictures of Derek, prompting her into letting his family into Sophia’s life. However, things take a soap-opera twist when Sophia is denied Derek’s social security benefits on the grounds that Derek never acknowledged Sophia as his child (even though a DNA test proved Sophia is Derek’s child!). Even MORE maddening, Derek’s mother serves Farrah with a court summons to demand grandparent visitation, even though she won’t legally acknowledge Sophia as her granddaughter. Make sense to you? Me neither.

Farrah is so overwhelmed and angered by all of this that she refuses to seek legal counsel. I understand that the angry part of her doesn’t want to give Derek’s mother the satisfaction that she’s achieved a reaction, but Farrah needs to come to terms with the gravity of the situation. After seeking advice from her therapist she breaks down and is the most vulnerable and honest I’ve ever seen her. She admits that she feels totally alone…evidently, none of her friends stuck around after she had Sophia.

“You had to grow up really fast,” says Farrah’s therapist, “you didn’t have much of a choice.”

Having a baby as a teen change everything. Being a teen parent means every rash decision you made as a teenager could follow you around for the rest of your life. A big fight with a boyfriend, like Amber had, or choosing to start a sexual relationship with someone who wasn’t right for you, like Maci did, might affect the rest of your life and your child’s life. And for most teenagers, not getting along with your boyfriend’s mother, like in Farrah’s case, wouldn’t land you in court.

Pregnancy is 100% preventable, so wait to have sex and make sure to protect yourself when you decide the time is right. Half of teenagers haven’t thought about how a baby would change their lives, so take a minute to think about why you want to stay teen!

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. Have a question for Kate? Email us!