Tuesday Health & Wellness

Why Are There Still So Many Unplanned Pregnancies in 2025?

This question has been sitting with me—and not from a place of judgment, but from lived memory and real concern.

When I was coming up, we had sex education in high school. We had Planned Parenthood. Information wasn’t whispered—it was taught. You might not like the conversation, but it happened.

When my daughters were in high school, there were Teen Health Centers right in the schools. Bowls of condoms sitting openly at the front desk. Access to birth control through clinics like Country Doctor. No shame. No secrecy. Just access and information.

So here we are in 2025—arguably the most information-rich time in history—and unplanned pregnancies are still happening at a high rate, especially among women who are not in committed, equally yoked relationships.

That begs the question: why?

Because this isn’t about a lack of information.

Young people today are highly informed about gender identity, sexual expression, and autonomy. With phones in their hands and answers one click away, it’s reasonable to assume there’s awareness about sexually transmitted diseases and birth control.

So if the information exists, what’s missing?

Information doesn’t always change behavior

Knowing what to do and doing it in the moment are two very different things. Birth control requires consistency. Condoms require intention before passion takes over. In sexually charged moments, logic often gets pushed aside.

Condom resistance is real

Let’s be honest. Many men don’t like condoms. Some don’t want to buy them. Some don’t want to interrupt the moment. Some want the “full experience.” Too often, women are left holding the long-term consequences of a short-term decision.

Birth control responsibility still falls mostly on women

Hormonal birth control isn’t always simple. Side effects are real. Access can be inconsistent. Appointments get delayed. Pills get missed. And when stress, emotions, or attachment enter the picture, prevention isn’t always prioritized the way it should be.

Emotion changes everything

Sex isn’t just physical—it’s emotional. Hormones are released. Attachments form. What some call soul ties. People don’t always think clearly afterward, especially when feelings get involved without commitment or clarity.

Access doesn’t always mean ease

Even when clinics exist, barriers remain: cost, transportation, privacy concerns, fear of judgment, insurance gaps, or simply not thinking it will happen this time.

Power dynamics matter

Sometimes women agree to unprotected sex to avoid conflict, to feel wanted, or to keep a connection. That’s not ignorance—that’s emotional negotiation. And it’s more common than people like to admit.

And then there’s another layer that made me stop and really think.

We are watching famous women and men—people constantly in the spotlight—openly have babies with multiple partners. It’s not whispered about anymore. It’s discussed casually. Sometimes even normalized or framed as empowerment and freedom.

And when behavior at the top becomes visible without context, it trickles down.

Young people watch who gets attention, admiration, and cultural approval. When public figures move from relationship to relationship with pregnancies in between—and there’s little conversation about the emotional, financial, and relational impact—it subtly sends the message that this is just another acceptable life path.

That normalization matters.

Because when unplanned pregnancy is constantly visible without showing the cost, it can begin to feel less like a life-altering event and more like an expected outcome of modern dating and sex culture.

And this isn’t about shaming anyone’s choices.

It’s about not confusing visibility with viability.

What works for people with money, teams, childcare, and resources doesn’t translate the same way for everyday women navigating work, health, housing, and emotional support—often on their own.

So what’s the real why?

It’s not that women don’t know.

It’s not that protection doesn’t exist.

It’s that human behavior is complicated, and sexual decision-making lives at the intersection of emotion, impulse, access, power, and responsibility.

Unplanned pregnancies aren’t just a medical or educational issue. They’re a relational and cultural one.

Until we move past “you should know better” and start talking honestly about why this keeps happening, the numbers won’t change.

This isn’t about blame.

It’s about awareness.

And it’s about supporting women before, during, and after the choices they make.

Because knowledge alone isn’t prevention.

Understanding behavior is. 🌻