Purpose:  Little is known about parenting for adolescent mothers in the early post partum period.  The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of parenting for adolescent mothers during the 4 to 6 week post partum period.

Background:  Adolescent mothers need to express their feelings about parenting so they can identify what they need to know in developing this new role.  Adolescence is a time of transition where psychosocial adjustments and identity are developing.  When an adolescent becomes a parent unanticipated life style changes occur.

Methods (Design, Participants, Setting, Data Collection, Analytic Approach): 

This study was a secondary analysis of qualitative data collected from a quantitative study on the Factors Contributing to the Self Perceptions of Parenting in Adolescent mothers.  Content analysis was used to analyze the additional narrative comments provided by participants to open ended questions on the questionnaires. The sample consisted of adolescent mothers who were up to age 19 years old, primiparas, and had given birth to one health newborn.  Adolescent mothers where asked to comment on what the experience of parenting was during this time.  Analysis of data involved transcription of comments expressed by the adolescent mothers and the emerging of themes from the adolescent mother's responses.

Results:  They expressed common themes about the experience of parenting, including, “being caught between two worlds,” “feeling alone and desperate,” and “if I knew then what I know now.”

Conclusions and Implications:  Adolescent mothers need support and guidance.  Programs that address their needs can assist them in sharing parenting experiences.  They need to form friendships with other adolescent mothers and become involved in discussion groups about parenting. Only when nurses become aware of the meaning and experience of parenting for adolescent mothers can interventions be developed to address their needs.