Pregnancy Among Homeless Youth

63% of teens also suffer from being homeless due to parents kicking them out for being pregnant, drugs, and others. Some teens also run away because of physical and sexuall abuse.

Homeless youth face an abundance of challenges, especially if they are on their own, such as finding food, shelter, income, and potential medical expenses. Some youth experience additional hardship by facing the effects of abuse they endured at their previous place of residence. According to the National Conference of State Legislators (2013) 46 percent of runaway and homeless youth reported physical abuse, 38 percent reported emotional abuse, and 17 percent reported being forced into unwanted sexual activity by a family or household member. Therefore, the chances of emotional vulnerability are high.

Years after the National LGBTQ Task Force released their report calling LGBTQ youth homelessness an epidemic, these youths are still fighting each other for limited resources. Unfortunately, LGBTQ youth still do not have access to services that respect their identities. National

Homeless teenagers are a vulnerable population that faces many challenges just in terms of daily existence in addition to their overall development in the transitioning to adulthood. Current studies are reported to indicate that the primary cause of homeless among youth is "family dysfunction in the form of parental neglect, physical or sexual abuse, family substance abuse, and family violence." (Runway & Homeless Youth and Relationship Toolkit, 2009, p.1) Homeless youth are generally defined as "an unaccompanied youth ages 12 and older who are without family support and who are living in shelters, on the streets, in cares or vacant buildings and who are 'couch surfing' or living in other unstable circumstances." (Runway & Homeless Youth and Relationship Toolkit, 2009, p.1) Son (2002) writes that it is "...unknown how many homeless youth are out there. Most of them are not in the child welfare, juvenile justice, or mental health systems, making it difficult to accurately gather statistical data." (p.2)

The condition of homelessness for a pregnant woman creates all kinds of complexities to their care. The Nurse-Family Partnership and Invest in Kids program in Denver is a provider dedicated to forming relationships with patients and sending skilled nurses to help at risk mothers and their children. The health assessment needs of homeless pregnant women revolve greatly around prenatal health, nutrition, mental health, substance abuse and physical abuse screenings.

Many services are available that can positively impact protective factors, however, barriers to these services exist for LGBTQ youth; particularly transgender youth (Mathematica Policy Research, 2014). The barriers to providing services to LGBTQ homeless youth are twofold. First, LGBTQ youth are not always open to accepting services for a variety of reasons. Stigma, discrimination, and victimization are factors that impact the willingness of LGBT homeless youth to utilize services, especially homeless shelters; as is prior rejection at home and school (Hunter, 2008; Whitbeck, Chen, Hoyt, Tyler & Johnson, 2004). It is important to consider that many LGBT homeless youth have previously been in the foster care system and have reported that abuse

Teenage pregnancy is occurring throughout the United States, and it is a stressful time for everyone involved. The teen mother has to not only worry about herself, but now for the child that is growing inside of her. She will have to face the rude comments and looks she gets not only from her peers, but also random strangers on the streets. Much like pregnant teenagers in school, there are pregnant homeless teens: “Studies suggest that pregnant and parenting homeless youth and young adults face even greater social, health, and mental health challenges than homeless peers who are not

2). The center also indicated an increase in the numbers of youth who were kicked out of their homes during the past few years. Nearly nine out of the ten agencies reported assisting LGBT youth, and seven out of ten homeless LGBT youth indicated family rejection as a major contributing factor to their homelessness (Grant, et al 2).

Twenty percent, about 320,000, of America’s homeless teens identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (Leuween, 2006, para. 5). So many LGBT teenagers become homeless because they don’t receive support or acceptance from their family, community and friends. Homelessness doesn’t only occur because of runaways (Cochran, et al. 2002, para.3). Teenagers can find themselves homeless because their parents lost their jobs and are not able to support them anymore.

With a total of 10,416 reported unaccompanied children and youth, 9% of the homeless population in California is made up of people under the age of 25 without any family connection. California had an increase of 1,786 reported homeless youth in 2015. More than 13.5% of California's homeless youth are experiencing chronic homelessness, that is a yearly average increase of 978, a 3.5% increase annually. California offered an additional 2,998 bed emergency shelter beds, however, there was a decrease of 1,094 beds in transitional housing. These are not statistics talking about far off children in distant lands, these statistics are talking about kids all over California that are facing the same problem as hundreds of UCSC homeless students. While UCSC attracts students from all over with various backgrounds, UCSC specifically attracts LGBTQ students and students who are in need of counseling or supportive systems who are also more at risk of being homeless or have experienced

Homeless youth are an unseen population. They may go unnoticed because they are forgotten about. They are not easy to identify because they do not have permanent housing. They may stay with friends and move from place to place or couch surf. Numerous homeless youth have left home for countless reasons. They may have nowhere to go, lack familial support, they may have suffered abuse at home, or they might be defiant with the rules at home and want to experience more independence an autonomy.

Walking through a major city or metropolitan area there are a countless number of people who are wearing old and ripped clothing, carrying bags or pushing grocery carts full of junk, looking like they have not bathed in weeks and most of them holding signs begging for change just so they can eat something that day. Over the past eight years the amount of homeless individuals has continuously decreased throughout the country. Homelessness in America is a serious problem, especially with higher rates in unemployment happening. Americans

Another risk is that an estimated 40% of homeless youth attempt suicide (Martin, 2014). Both of these risks may be due to runaway youth being in a vulnerable stage in their life, where they are left to fend for themselves and may partake in whatever it takes to survive (Martin, 2014). What actions they partake in may lead to shame, mental health issues, and substance abuse (Martin, 2014). This same risk can lead to dangerous behaviors and risks such as drug abuse, panhandling, theft, HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and sexually transmitted disease (Martin,

The Palette Fund, True Colors Fund, and the Williams Institute joined forces in conducting a web-based survey from October 2011 through March 2012 designed to assess the experiences of homeless youth organizations in providing services to LGBT youth. The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Homeless Youth Provider Survey also assessed the prevalence of LGBT youth within the homeless populations being served by these organizations. According to their findings, as many as 40 percent of homeless youth identify as LGBT. The most common reason found to have caused homelessness amongst LGBT youth was family rejection after coming out. The next most common reason for LGBT youth homelessness was being forced out of their homes by their family as a result of coming out. It is often difficult for parents that are just learning that their child identifies as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender to process the news and adjust smoothly. If more parents sought guidance in how to adjust to their son or daughter coming out, then perhaps the number of homeless LGBT youth would plummet.

Group homes for pregnant teens and government programs assisting young mothers could improve the chances for this population. According to Krauss and Cross, pregnant teen girls who receive support through housing are capable of becoming parents and effective community members (2013). Homeless women who do not receive support may find themselves in a cycle of desperate survival not learning valuable skills to raise a healthy child. They may lose their ability to pursue their own dreams in life. An excellent example of the impact comes from a true story demonstrated by Krauss and Cross when Apple’s mother describes the impact of becoming pregnant as a teenager and having no one to help her. “You fighting for your baby, and you’re so young and