Lizbeth Asencio spent the second half of her sophomore year trudging up and down the stairs while being pregnant. Now a senior, Asencio has stayed in school and continues to raise her son.

“I got pregnant when I was 16 years old,” Asencio said, “It was my sophomore year. I found out maybe around November or October, and I did have my big belly all year.”

Teen pregnancy can be extremely difficult at times and surrounded by many tough choices.

“When I first found out, I didn’t know what to think, and I was really sad. I was like ‘wow what did I just do’ but I wasn’t thinking about abortion, abortion was not an option for me,” Asencio said.

Sometimes teen mothers don’t find out until later into their pregnancy that they are expecting a child.

“Eventually I figured out I was

pregnant, except it took me a long time to figure out I was pregnant, so I only realized once I was in the third trimester,” junior Ayanni Pineda said.

Pineda has a son and was pregnant through her sophomore year. Now a junior, she has more responsibilities serving as a parent and a student.

“I do a lot of homework at school so that when I’m at home, I can focus on Ollie,” Pineda said. “I definitely spend less money on self care, like going to get food or anything that I think is cool because now I spend it on things like cute baby clothes.”

Being a teen parent can pose challenges that other students don’t have to face.

“The most challenging for me is at night,” Asencio said. “I have to watch him every night, and he’s still not at that stage where he sleeps all night. He’s still at that age where he wakes up two or three times a night, and I have to feed him, so I’m waking up in the middle of the night feeding him, so I don’t get enough sleep.”

There are places and organizations young moms can be a part of that surround them with support.

“With Loving Choices and Bloom, which is a Bible study for young moms, I feel really put together even though I’m in a situation where I shouldn’t be,” Pineda said.

Both students have found ways to balance their school work with being a parent.

“I didn’t expect my parents to help me out as much as they did,” Asencio said. “They help me out way too much. When I’m at school, they’re watching my son. When I’m working, they’re watching my son.”

Pineda receives support from her family as well as her boyfriend’s mom watches her son during the school day.

“I’m very lucky that my boyfriend’s mom can watch Ollie during the day, and I don’t have to worry about daycare,” Pineda said. “She’s a labor and delivery nurse, so she’s trustworthy and my parents and my family are all super supportive, and they love being around Ollie, so I can do my school activities that I want and still have Ollie taken care of.”

Both students have made the best out of challenging situations.

(To read more, go to

harberherald.com)