As I walked through the halls of Kennedy High during my years there, I often saw pregnant students or students with children. I always thought, "It will never happen to me. I will not be one of those teenage statistics."

But I am. I’m in the 11th grade and I’m a parent.


Last January, I’d been sick with the flu for two days. It kept me home from my school, which is in Paterson, New Jersey. I kept feeling pains I never felt before, but I thought it was from the flu.

Then I started to bleed badly and I prayed to God to get me through whatever was happening. I told my mother I was bleeding, and she told me to lie down. But the pain was unbearable, so my cousin took me to the hospital.

The Baby Arrives

My daughter, Amira Malika Izquierdo, was born on Jan. 29, 1999. I had a baby and I didn’t even know I was pregnant. People think things like that can’t happen and that I’m lying. But it was just as hard for me to understand and believe as it was for anyone else. I had no morning sickness. I had a period every month. I never felt the baby move. How would you feel? As I look back, maybe there were some signs I was just too foolish to recognize. My chest grew and my hips got wider.

When I had Amira, I was surprised, overwhelmed and scared all at the same time. I thought my mother was going to kill me. She used to tell me and my siblings if we had kids at a young age, she was going to kick us out. But she didn’t. I love her for that and will think about that for the rest of my life. Sometimes, I still can’t believe Amira is mine.

My baby’s father was very different from any person I ever met. He was nice and sweet to me, and I thought we would be together forever. I don’t know why we never used birth control or even talked about it. Maybe I was scared he would reject me if I told him to use condoms. So I just went along with it. But I should have known I wasn’t ready to have a kid.

I was lucky to have a baby instead of some incurable disease, but I should have known my relationship with my ex-boyfriend was too good to be true. Good things for me seem to wither up and die because of my bad luck.

Dad Isn’t There

To tell the truth, the father really doesn’t do anything for Amira but watch her from time to time. That isn’t enough for me. Financially, my mother does it all, and I feel bad that my mother supports someone I brought into our household. My mother buys her clothes, milk, Pampers and everything else. So maybe you’re wondering, what gives me the strength to go to school and take care of my baby.

Two words. What if?

What if my mother decides she has done all she can and it’s time for me to go? Where would I go? What could I do without her help and an education? I am not going to get public assistance because I don’t want my daughter in a system that brings you down, instead of bringing you up. But it isn’t easy. I have to take plenty of days off from school to do what’s right for Amira, and because of that I’m on the verge of getting kicked out.

What’s so ironic is at school they tell you do what’s right for your child, and when you do that they have no hesitation about failing you or kicking you out of school. I understand it’s not their problem, but since a lot of teenage mothers want an education, maybe schools should do more to help.

Stressed Out

Being a parent is the hardest thing you are ever going to do in life, especially being a single parent. The stress keeps me up at night, and I have to hide my real feelings. I keep them bottled up inside so much that I could explode. People wonder why I smoke cigarettes. It’s stress.

Amira is well-loved. But since I had my daughter, I took on a responsibility I would never want someone my age to have. It’s hard to put your own life on hold to raise a brand new one. I regret having her so young and not waiting until I got married.

But you can’t turn back time. Time is the most precious thing in life. But we young people don’t understand that — until a piece of our lives has been tampered with so badly it will never be the same. There are plenty of days when I feel like walking out of school and never going back. But that would be ignorance, and ignorance is what keeps people from doing what they want in life.

I’m not letting them push me out when I worked so hard to get where I have gotten. It might not be much, but I’m here. I’m not leaving until I get my diploma in my hand.

Editor’s Note: At press time, Shariem had dropped out of school and moved out of her mother’s house. Her whereabouts was unknown, but teachers at her high school were hoping she would return someday to finish her education.

Signs of Pregnancy

Most of the time, pregnant females experience at least some of these symptoms:

-Missed period or period that is late or unusually light.

-Breast tenderness.

-Nausea with or without vomiting, anytime during the day or night.

-Having to urinate more frequently.

-Weight gain.

-Changes in appetite.

-Suddenly not liking certain foods or odors.

Source: University of Medicine and Dentistry — Robert Wood Johnson Medical School