5 Questions From Season 6 of TLC’s Unexpected

By Maggi LeDuc and Cat McKay

We've been watching the sixth season of TLC’s Unexpected and so much has already happened with each of the five couples! It’s time to stop, recap, and reflect on how their stories can spark conversations between young people and the adults who care about them. Talking openly about sex, love, and relationships is crucial for young people to help them make decisions that align with their visions for the future.

Watching Unexpected (together or separately) with the young people in your life and then sitting down to talk through what each of the couples are experiencing is a great way to open the door to these important topics. Decades of research show that parents have a major influence on their teens’ decisions about sex, and that when teen pregnancy is portrayed in pop culture, it helps young people think more about their own risk. That’s why Power to Decide is collaborating with TLC and Unexpected to help support these conversations.

To help get things going, try asking the young people in your life these five questions, based on this season of Unexpected so far.

Birth Control

None of the young parents in Unexpected planned to get pregnant. Aniyah said that she got pregnant just after she began taking the pill. Graham and Kayleigh were using a condom, but she got pregnant anyway.

• Which types of birth control do you know about? Where do you most want to learn about birth control methods and how they work? Do you know the difference between "typical use" and "perfect use"?

Kayleigh and her mom Mandy had talked about sex before, but Mandy had no idea her daughter was having sex. Nate’s mom Taryn didn’t know he was sexually active either until he told her that Emalee was pregnant.

• What do you think teens need most from their parents and champions when it comes to making decisions about sex? What makes an adult "askable" on these topics?

Love and Relationships

JJ has given Jenna a promise ring as a symbol of them being together and putting in the effort. While he’s told Jenna’s dad and his mom that it’s not a promise of engagement, he does believe that she’ll be his wife someday soon.

• What does love feel like to you? What qualities are “must-haves” to make a relationship strong and healthy?

Pregnancy

Emalee admitted that she didn’t think that she and Nate would last as a couple. Now we’ve seen that Nate is concerned that after the baby comes it might be so hard that it breaks them up.

• How do you think a pregnancy would change your life right now? How would it affect your relationships?

Advice

Lilly and Lawrence have now been engaged for over three years. Planning a wedding in just three months, celebrating Christmas, and raising two children doesn’t leave them a lot of time to be together as a couple.

• If you could give relationship advice to Lilly and Lawrence this season, what would you say? 

Watch new episodes of Unexpected on Mondays at 9/8c on TLC, and catch up whenever you want on max. Throughout the season, we will provide viewers with more ways to talk about unplanned pregnancy and use the situations in the show to jumpstart your own conversations. Check out PowerToDecide.org/Unexpected for more information and join the conversation in social media with @PowerToDecide, @TLC, #Unexpected, and #TalkingIsPower!

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• Meet the Teens of Unexpected
• 5 Takeaways from Unexpected
• Power to Decide - Unexpected

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