But for teenage mothers it can be a stressful, lonely experience. Society often brands young mums as irresponsible or selfish. That's not to discount the pressure a young father can find himself under when he's excluded from a central role in the child's upbringing.
And this social pressure is a particular issue in Northern Ireland compared with elsewhere in the UK.
Throw in a system where the age of sexual consent is, at 17, a year older than the rest of the UK, even though the age of medical consent is 16, and the waters are muddied further.
Sexual health charity fpa's Northern Ireland branch has fought a long battle against prejudice and ingrained attitudes in the public arena and the courts. Audrey Simpson, fpa NI's director, says issues such as violence - including kneecapping and reprisals - need to be addressed before fpa NI can tackle contraception, pregnancy and sexuality.
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