The aim of the current study was to undertake a phenomenological investigation on teenage motherhood and to learn how this experience forms part of the teenage mother’s life. Using the snowball sampling method, five women aged between 26 and 35 years were selected to participate in the study. All the five women became mothers during their teenage years. In-depth interviews were conducted in Northern Sotho and Tshivenda depending on the language preference and fluency of the participant. The interviews were audio-taped, and later transcribed and translated.

A phenomenological method of analysis was used to transform the original data into natural meaning units (NMUs) which were further interrogated so as to distil central sociological themes that were associated with the experience of teenage motherhood. Apart from the finding that the participants got pregnant when they were aged between 16 and 18, five sociological themes associated with teenage motherhood were identified. These are:
· Lack of knowledge about sexual relationships contributes to teenage pregnancy and motherhood.
· Early childbearing has a negative impact on the teenage mother’s social relationships.
· Teenage mothers tend to experience emotional problems after delivery of their babies.
· Teenage motherhood has a long term disruptive effect on the teenage mother’s educational and occupational opportunities.
· Teenage motherhood leads to significant lifestyle changes in those who have been through the experience.

In view of the above themes, sexual education both at school and at home, is suggested here as a more viable option to help minimise the risk of teenage motherhood in society. Whilst other options like abortion and the newly introduced child support grant are also available to the teenage mother, these are not considered favourable.

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