Teen Pregnancy

                Teen pregnancy is a rising issue all over the country with young girls. To be completely honest, I don’t know how I feel about this topic. I have to start out with saying I disagree with the government taking away Plan Parenthood. This is where girls went for help, advice, etc. about their sex lives. For many teenage girls, it is a struggle to talk about those issues with their parents. The information and knowledge that they aren’t receiving is making them not care as much as they should. Getting pregnant at a young age is something girls think is okay due to the television show on MTV, Teen Mom. There have been many seasons of this show, in which they all started out on the show 16 and Pregnant. I myself have watched episodes of this show before and it documents their lives and shows the difficulties and struggles of raising a child as a teenager.

            Most girls don’t think raising a child is hard, but little do they know it changes everything about their lives. Waking up in the middle of the night to feed them, financially taking care of them, and not to mention you don’t have much of a social life because your baby becomes your life. It also takes a toll on your body. The stress of having a baby when you’re so young can also conflict with school and a job. Finding the time to work around a busy schedule can cause a lot of stress to any young girl.

            I know from an onlooker that it can be tough having a baby when you’re just 18. My oldest sister had a baby, Isaac her senior year of high school. I was an aunt at the age of eight. My mom watched Isaac a lot while Heather went to school and then sometimes went to work. Heather probably wouldn’t have been able to raise him without my parents help. That’s another thing girls don’t understand, you need help. To be a teenager with a child, you need someone else there to help you. A part of me thinks that our society is somewhat to blame for the rising numbers of teen pregnancy, girls get it in their heads that it’s okay to be pregnant. They just need to be happy with their lives while they’re still young. We all have to make choices as we grow up, I think this issue just needs to be avoided until you’re old enough to support a baby.

Family Matters

          When I think about the relationship I have with my family, I am truly blessed. I am surrounded in life with people who care about me more than anything and would do anything for me in a heartbeat. To have this kind of relationship, it can really affect the way an individual grows up in life. My parents have taught me everything I need to know in life to be a respectful, kind, and all around well-mannered person. Also having the support from them in everything I do is very important to me. If I make a decision and they don’t approve of my choices, it really gets under my skin. However they want me to do what’s best for me, and to learn from my mistakes when I make them. I call my mom a pusher because she is constantly calling me and reminding me of everything I need to do and asking if and why I haven’t done some things. It can be the most annoying thing ever some days, but I know she means well.

            My sisters on the other hand are constantly on my social life along with encouraging me about school. My oldest sister, Heather is a nurse at the women’s hospital and my other sister Holly is a physician assistant. They both are very smart people who I look up to in every way. I know if I ever need anything; advice, help, or just to talk too they are there no matter what. Heather got pregnant when she was a junior in high school, so sometimes she treats me like a daughter. She gives me the sex talks and reminds me all the time that I don’t want to get pregnant until I’m married and have a good paying job, as if I don’t already know this. I am honest with Heather the most because we are a lot alike, so I think that scares her in a way. We also have a tendency to get into arguments a lot. Holly on the other hand is totally different. She’s not married, doesn’t have kids but does live with her boyfriend. She is the definition of a nerd. She can tell you anything and everything about your body, if you’re sick she diagnoses you with what you have, and she’ll be right. She amazes me at times, but then again it gets annoying. Sometimes she puts herself above you because she knows she’s smart and makes good money and that just gets on my last nerve. I’ll tell her to stop when she gets ahead of herself sometimes.

            However, no matter what we fight or disagree about we’re always there for each other. It really can give you hope and relief when you know you always have someone to go too. I know that no matter where I go in life, I’ll always have them with me. Their support, love, and just them being there for me gets me through every day. For me, family matters most and come before anything else.

Observing a Life with Alzheimer's

Many people can sit and contemplate about this deadly disease. They can say it makes people forget things, but it’s more complex than that. This disease takes your mind slowly. Almost as if it just creeps up on you without your acknowledge of it. My grandpa is an 87 year old, 5 feet tall, grey haired man who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease a few years ago. When I first noticed it, his case was mild. He would get names mixed up with different faces, misplace things around the house, tell the same story over again, or tell you something and five minutes later tell you the same thing. As the years went on he got worse, it was a hard concept to be able to accept. It took a toll on everyone at first.

It was just yesterday him and my grandma came over for dinner. They ate with us and had only been over for about 20 minutes and the questions had begun. Every five minutes he would ask where the keys were and if it was time to go. My grandma gets frustrated and annoyed at times, but she would just reply with a simple not yet and ignore him. As I watched him, he just sat there in the chair and played with his fingers as he watched everyone else’s actions. He makes this quiet, but apparent mumbling noise constantly. His appetite is weak because he always thinks he is full.

            The best thing to do is to get him smiling and talking so he forgets to ask questions. He gets angry at times so if you blame something on him he’ll frown and use vulgar language. You have to use humor out of it because there’s nothing you can do about it. It’s something we’ve learned to accept it’s a part of life that we can’t control. Today, just like any other day is a day of memory loss for Gus. He continues to tell people he is 85 years old and how he was the best Whirlpool checker for 31 years. The hardest part dealing with this situation is he doesn’t know my name, or that I’m his granddaughter. However, I have to tell myself to enjoy what’s still there of him and his mind before it’s too late.  

When I get where I'm going...

I was six years old and graduating from Kindergarten when I knew I wanted to be a nurse. Looking back at this it baffles me on why I wanted to be a nurse at such a young age. However, since then I have continued to follow that dream of becoming a nurse and that is my career path I am hoping for. My mindset is scattered, I have confidence then I have doubts. As a student I am focused for the main part, but I like my life outside of school way too much. I am an employee at a tanning salon; I work there about five days a week. It’s not a hard job, but when I’m not working I’m at the gym, with my boyfriend or friends, going to the mall, or just finding something to do. One of my older sister’s is incredibly smart; she is a physician’s assistant for a Doctor at the Women’s Hospital. For her everything just comes easily, she’s naturally smart. I’m not that lucky. I have to make time for homework and studies, if I don’t I won’t have a clue what is going on in my classes. This is just a motive for me though; I have to work hard for the stuff I want. Some days are rough and I second guess myself if this is really what I want to do for the rest of my life. Those days occur when I get a bad grade back or if I’m struggling with something.  I think everyone has this issue though. It’s definitely a life lesson.

                I know that getting into the Nursing program is going to open many doors for my life, including meeting new friends. That is my motivation for working hard in school and getting good grades. Also, my parents are big motivators in staying on top of things. I wouldn’t say they’re strict, but they encourage me in every way to succeed because they want me to be happy. The tough classes now are just preparing me for the real world when I’m faced with actual problems that I have to overcome. I know it will be worth it in the end. I’m the type of person to never give up on something. If it’s a challenge the better it is for me, I like to make things better or change things for the better. It’s a way of accomplishing something and knowing you succeed. Having two older sisters who one is a nurse and the other a physician assistant, sets the bar at what I need to achieve also. All of the help and support I have around me there is no reason why I won’t be able to achieve my goals of becoming who I want to be, a nurse. I also know that this will benefit me in the future so I’m giving it my best now to get the best results later.

Writing and Education

To be completely honest, I like to write. However it takes up a lot of my time because I constantly worry about typos and other mistakes I make. I feel as if writing is a way anyone can express their feelings, thoughts, or other ideas. When I am writing and I am stuck somewhere in my paper, I’ll take out a blank piece of paper and free write. Free writing allows me to just write whatever I have on my mind down and then later I can always go back and edit it. I learned this writing technique in English 100. It helped my writing process tremendously. I was able to come up with more ideas, which created vivid details. In writing, giving that reader the image of what you’re saying is crucial. When I am reading something I want to be able to see it in my mind, almost as if I were writing the essay through personal experience. I try to give my readers that as well. However a writer will not be able to do this in one day. It takes time, practice and effort to become a good writer.

            My experience with education has been an eye opener this year. High school is a whole different ball game compared to college. You have more independence as in being on your own. The moral is the same concept though; you get what you put in. In other words the amount of work you do will determine whether or not you succeed. I’ve had to change some of my study habits and work harder towards my school work. I can honestly say procrastinating will always lead you nowhere but behind. I’ve had such a bad problem with this in the past and it’s what I’m working on to change now. The courses that I have to take for my major are of course more challenging than some of the core classes I am taking. My overall experience with the education so far has been good though. I’ve learned more than what I have expected too. I also feel as if my learning ability is expanding.

Who Am I?

Who is Hannah Bender? I am here to tell you that I am not your average girl. I try to surround myself with the people who matter most, because throughout the years I have learned that a lot of people will come and go throughout your life. With this being said, I have a hard time trusting people because I have been hurt by some people who I thought were my closest friends. Humor runs in my family, so I would have to say I’m a pretty funny person to be around. When everyone around me is in a good mood it’s so much better to be around them. I have two older sisters and a niece and a nephew. My family comes first no matter what, they are most important to my life. I have a soft and kind heart and I tend to put others first, most of the time. However, I do like getting my way.

I have naturally light brown hair which I just dyed it dark for the first time from being blonde. I don’t like eating meat, it tastes weird. I am athletic and love to spend the majority of my time being outside. One thing I absolutely love in life is animals.

            Growing up in Evansville, Indiana I was raised a Catholic and attended mass every Sunday and I still do with my parents. I went to a private school which had a total of 134 students, Kindergarten through eighth grade. It seemed like a huge deal to some people, but there I made some of the best friendships I’ve ever had. Then I attended North High School for my next four years. I can honestly say they were the best four years of my life, so far. I was able to find out a lot about myself as a friend, daughter, sister, and girlfriend through this time. It helped me realize that life is too short not to cherish every moment. Now I am a freshman at USI and I am majoring in Nursing. It has been a challenge but I like it so far.