likely to have lower school achievement drop out of high school give birth as a teenager and face unemployment as a young adult despite the litany of shortterm and longterm effects of becoming a mother as a teenager the decision to terminate a pregnancy can also be challenging there can be profound grief chambers said battling the stigma of being a teenage mom and the stigma of having an abortion the ultimate decision to terminate can be very lonely they feel a little traumatized or guilty or shameful smith added abortion rights activists rally at the supreme court for abortion access on may 5 2022 in washington dc allison baileynurphoto via shutterstock medical and surgical abortions are also not without risks including the risk of bleeding or infections some girls smith says become more responsible after terminating a pregnancy the experience changes them because they dont want to be in that situation again and know they dont have the resources or supports to care for a baby right now they make different decisions around sex and contraception according to smith both smith and chambers agree that for teenagers prevention is the best strategy but when prevention is no longer an option the ability to seek safe abortion is even more important smith adds that reversal of roe vs wade which would limit options for pregnancy termination in many states would be particularly detrimental for the teenagers that she serves more what abortion funds are and how they work its an invasion of that sacred space where the doctor and the patient are making decisions together said chambers it is in that space that a woman brings her specific experiences hopes fears and goals and uses that context to make the very difficult decision to terminate a pregnancy if that is the decision she chooses she said the teenage mind is still developing with impulse control being one of the last parts of the brain to fully develop so elimination of safe options may make young girls go to desperate dangerous measures chambers said they are gonna find a way to do it google youtube performing it on each other smith said abortions will always be done chambers agreed its a matter of making it harder for disenfranchised patients those typically with lower socioeconomic status lower health literacy and limited access to healthcare including teenage girls who are still children themselves chidimma j acholonu md mph is a pediatric resident physician at the university of chicago and a contributor to the abc medical unit