This piece was written by Courtney Macavinta, founder and CEO of Respect Rx and award-winning and nationally recognized journalist, coach, speaker and co-author of RESPECT. It is cross-posted from RespectRx.com.
Preventing unplanned pregnancy is not just about having the "talks" about how babies are made, STDs and the perils of parenting without resources. Kids need to be supported--and invested in--on so many levels before the day even comes for those talks.
Based on my own risky journey with sex as a teen, to me a big part of the "solution" (there isn't one cure-all) comes down to boosting self-respect from many fronts. Imagine from age 0 that kids have a community, role models, school, organizations, family, friends and values around them that support the development of healthy self-respect. Well then risky choices become less of a risk factor, right? This is true for all the biggies that can derail a teen down the line from dating violence to drug abuse to, yes, unplanned pregnancy.
For me, this is where the Respect Basics come in. They are a worthy layer to add on to pregnancy prevention work. Through the Basics, you learn to envision the life you want and to set the boundaries you need to set to get there. You learn to build your confidence, communication skills and support network. And the people around teens (like me, their teachers and families) need to work the Basics too. It just sticks better that way! And teens need to teach the Basics to younger kids. It just flows better that way!
To push this mission forward, we have a new program guide coming out--the RESPECT: Keep It Going! Kit--for teens that includes up to 24 sessions you can lead that focus on self-respect, relationship respect and respect leadership to create change. Sign up for our NEWSLETTER if you want to be alerted when it comes out.
The thing is, the self-respect connection is not just true for kids and teens. Guess what? 20-somethings are getting "Knocked Up"--yep, unplanned just like the movie--at record rates too. More than 1/3 of all unplanned pregnancies (1.1 million) occur to unmarried women in their 20s and almost half of the nearly 19 million new sexually transmitted infections that occur each year affect 15- to 24-year-olds, according to The National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.
I have to say I was inspired to post about teen pregnancy (again!) by a recent conversation I had with the team at The National Campaign. The org just launched, Sex.Really to spark more convos among 20-somethings about their sex lives and relationships.
In your 20's, you likely know how babies are made and that you can catch some nasty STD if you're not careful (and even if you are!). So to me (broken record) it really does come down to self-respect. How are you taking care of yourself and your needs? Are you speaking about said needs? These Respect Basics (trust your gut. set boundaries-speak up! know you're valuable.) need to be developed to prevent unplanned pregnancy, too.
When you have respect on the inside, you have the foundation to make choices that work for you--and you have the ability to recover and learn from mistakes, too. Mostly you are empowered to break the cycles that need to be broken for you to thrive. And this world needs you to thrive.
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