Judy Gelman wrote:
+AD4-If a girl sees herself as a future neurosurgeon, getting pregnant and all
the things that lead to it (eg sex, not using contraception, skipping
classes to be with a boyfriend,etc) have a lot less appeal.  But it is a lot
harder to get girls to have goals than to hand them a doll that makes babies
seem less appealing.+AD4-

I wholeheartedly agree.  The Baby Think It Over doll is marketed as a tool
and it doesn't claim to be the answer.  Nor is it, IMO.  Perhaps being
breastfeeding advocates, we could take pleasure in how teens who have a
temporary parenting experience with the doll and the bottle may view the
ease and availability of the breast and breastmilk as a far more attractive
choice.

The truth is that teen pregnancy is a very complicated issue and there are
no quick fixes.  There is a very successful program for dealing with this
multifaceted problem, which has become a model for nearly 50 other programs
currently being replicated around the country.  It's the Teen Pregnancy
Prevention Program of the Children's Aid Society in New York City.

Under the leadership of Dr. Michael Carrera, with sites located
throughout the city, this program addresses many levels of the problem.  It
provides access to reproductive health care, and stresses that excellent
predictors for teen pregnancy prevention include success in school and
athletics, strong self esteem, having a goal in sight, and understanding
that a pregnancy will likely have a negative effect in achieving those
goals.

The program provides inner city teens with human sexuality education, the
importance of goals and visions, self esteem building, mental health and
counseling support, employment, individualized education, healthcare from
head to toe, social work services and more.  The program has been widely
recognized for its tremendous success.  Carrera and his staff choose to see
the teens as AT PROMISE rather than AT RISK.   Much as Lactnetters feel
about our own children, and the babies and moms with whom we work....  Teens
involved in the program have been and are being studied along with a control
group who are not receiving the services, and the different outcomes between
the groups continue to be striking.

Of interest is the fact that this critically acclaimed program in NYC does
NOT use the doll.  Instead, they staff their program with some extraordinary
people.....who go over and above the call of duty in their commitment to
these teens.  Would it surprise us that among them are people who were
breastfed and attachment parented when they were children?

Their site can be visited at http://www.stopteenpregnancy.com

Joyce Blangiardo RN, LCCE, FACCE, IBCLC
Long Island, NY
LamazeLady+AEA-msn.com

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