Beyond Knocked Up: Unintended Pregnancy, Baby Bumps and Other Pregee  Issues

 S

Carol Cassell, Ph.D

            I believe more or less as the poet John Ciardi put it: we are where we put our attention. As shortsighted as it may seem, too many people in our society are unwilling to even entertain the possibility that there are vast numbers of women and men caught in the trap of an unintended pregnancy, one that is likely to be totally unwanted.  Although some considerable attention has been paid to our high rates of teenage pregnancy, the increase in the number of homes without a father leaving single mothers to go it alone raising children, along with the continuing controversy and even violence over abortion, the common link among all of those issues—a pregnancy that is both unplanned and unwanted—is essentially invisible.

              While polls tell us that American’s strongly support the goal of reducing unplanned pregnancies in the US

—a solid 70%--they greatly underestimate the extent of the problem.  Only one in five Americans know that women in their 20s have the largest number of unplanned pregnancies; most people believe it is teenagers.    

             Why is this issue so compelling?  Simply put, an unwanted pregnancy—whether it results in an abortion, an adoption or an unwanted child—merits the concern of all of us even if we aren’t directly involved.  A child born unplanned for can set off a significant socio-economic crises among families, and be a major impediment on their ability to cope with earning a living.  And unwanted childbearing comes hand in hand with high levels of stress and financial strains for millions of women who struggle to raise their children without much help from the father, or anyone else for that matter. The burdens of those families obviously negatively affect their children who inherit a legacy of economic and social disadvantage.  It is a no win situation.

            Turning a blind eye to the ramifications of the sheer number of unwanted pregnancies—millions every year—has only served to squash any potential dialogue about solutions to the problem.  My aim is to open up that dialogue—one that gives voice to both women’s and men’s personal experiences —to bring attention to the need to make contraception more available, acceptable and much more effective. 

            Margaret Sanger best articulated and framed the underlying heartbeat that pulsates throughout my career:  “Every child should be a wanted child.”  That is why this is an important topic, and one we should all care about.  

Please contact me at:

carol cassell