Guilty Pleasure: Teen Mom

Well, if I am admitting to watching [and thoroughly enjoying] 'Teen Mom', I might as well confess to watching '16 & Pregnant' and 'Teen Mom 2'.

But seriously, MTV catches a bit of flack for these shows "glamorizing teen pregnancy," which is clearly coming from people who have never actually watched the show. To say that anything in these shows is glamorous is a complete, outright lie.

I find it really interesting to watch the people in these shows, analyze the choices that they make and see who steps up and who bails out. Also, with the 'Teen Mom' shows, you get to see people change and progress as well as make the same mistakes over and over. Some of the moms [and dads] are surprisingly better than the majority of parents I come into contact with on a daily basis, and others seem to be just letting their lives spin out of control with their child becoming collateral damage. If anything, I think the 'Teen Mom' shows really illustrate the hardships and heartbreak that comes with having a child so young. I may actually force my children to watch these shows so that they can make better informed decisions when the time comes.

What I find nice, is that the teens who seem to take to parenting easier are those with healthy relationships with parents who are very supportive. Now, don't get me wrong, I would be super disappointed if my kid got pregnant at such a young age. However, in the end I would help them as much as I could while still encouraging them to be independent and gradually weaning them off of my support. But to just throw your child out the minute you learn that they are pregnant [or as soon as they give birth] is a bit harsh. These children already have so much that they are dealing with, to have a supportive and stable home environment seems to make a huge difference amidst the drama of intimate relationships, loss of friends and learning to be a parent.

I will admit that continuing the '16 & Pregnant' series seems a bit unethical, because some teens may get pregnant just so they have a chance of getting their 15 minutes of fame from MTV. Granted, you would have to be a moron to do this, but what teenager doesn't make horrible decisions? How MTV goes about recruiting teen preggos for the show, I don't know. I would hope that they have found a respectful and ethical way of doing so, but who knows.

Anyhow, there is my defense for liking such a trashy show.