Young motherhood is not all doom and gloom Dr Andreana Dibben
T
eenage mothers are all too
services, and discourses that framed
stereotypes. Many participants
familiar with the phrase ‘children
their lives. Many participants
had assumed caring roles and
raising children’. From professionals to
considered being a mother as
responsibilities from a young age, so
politicians, media, and even strangers
a deeply positive experience.
caring for children was something
on the bus, everybody has something
Knowing full well about the teen
they had learnt to do early on.
to say about the perils of teenage
motherhood stigma, they reclaimed
pregnancy. Yet, when I spent two
the pejorative phrase ‘children raising
accidental as is publically presumed.
years attending a weekly mother
children’ and saw their young age as
It was often an active choice, framed
and baby support group, hanging
advantageous because ‘you and your
as a positive step towards family
out with 24 young mothers (ages
child grow together’. They felt they
formation. Research participants saw
13 to 21) for my doctoral research,
had more physical energy to carry
their early romantic relationships,
I learnt that the reality was much
out motherhood-related tasks, and
often with older men, as an expression
more complex than a clichéd slogan.
expected a better mother-child bond
of psychological maturity. Some
due to a minimal generation gap.
claimed the baby was healing the
My research looked into the lived
Opinion
experiences of pregnant young
10
What impressed me was that
Pregnancy was not always
sufferings of their difficult childhood. There is no denying that some
women and young mothers in Malta,
teenage mothers know how to care.
specifically capturing detailed insights
The level of attentiveness and the
pregnancies were not planned. Often,
into how participants defined their
responsibility with which young
this was due to imbalanced power in
sexual, reproductive, and mothering
mothers cared for their children
relationships and control over sexuality.
choices in the context of the policies,
starkly contrasted with society’s
‘We didn’t use condoms because he
