It is the first spin-off of 16 and Pregnant, and it focuses on the lives of several young mothers as they navigate motherhood and strained family and romantic relationships.
[2] The series originally focused on the lives of Maci Bookout (now McKinney), Catelynn Lowell (now Baltierra), Amber Portwood, and Farrah Abraham, who were featured on the first season of 16 and Pregnant.
participant Cheyenne Floyd and television personality Bristol Palin joined in the second half of the seventh season replacing Abraham who departed from the show.
She started seeing a therapist to discuss the rocky relationship with her family, because she could not cope with her mothers actions as well as dealing with her emotions regarding Underwood and his death.
Abraham defended her decision to make and sell her porn video, claiming that she wanted to "celebrate [her] awesome body".
Maci McKinney (née Bookout) (from Chattanooga, Tennessee), the mother of Bentley Cadence Edwards, is described by MTV as the classic teenage overachiever who is popular, athletic, and successful in school.
"[10] She has gone back to college after dropping her online classes, and now is majoring in journalism and hopes to write a book about her experience being 16 and pregnant.
[11] In December 2014, Maci announced she was expecting her second child, a daughter, with her boyfriend of two years, Taylor McKinney, due in June 2015.
Described as a smart and funny high school senior, she struggles to go back to her normal life after her emotional decision to place Carly for adoption.
[9] Catelynn moves back home with her parents but learns that her mother and stepfather, who is also the father of her boyfriend Tyler, have still not accepted her decision to place her daughter for adoption.
The problems have led to physical violence in front of her child, Leah, including an incident where Amber beats him so severely, he is left with permanent scars.
[22] As of June 2012, Amber was serving a five-year jail sentence, the result of a December 2011 arrest for possession of drugs and failing to complete a court-ordered rehab program.
Originally, the wedding was scheduled for October 10, 2016; however, the wedding plans were suspended when it was revealed that, unbeknownst to Portwood, Baier had several children by different women and had fallen behind on child support payments, and that he had reached out to fellow Teen Mom castmates Farrah Abraham and Jenelle Evans before finally pursuing Portwood.
[26] Whilst filming Marriage Boot Camp, Portwood met Andrew Glennon, who was onset working as a cameraman.
[28] Footage of Amber Portwood's violent behavior towards her child's father, Gary Shirley, including an assault in which Shirley refused to physically defend himself, prompted an investigation from both the police department of Anderson, Indiana, and that city's branch of the state Child Protective Services, along with sparking hundreds of public complaints questioning Portwood's suitability to be a mother.
NBC's Dan Abrams discussed the possible legal consequences Portwood could face under Indiana law, including the felony charge of conducting abuse in the presence of a child under 14 (namely, the couple's 2-year-old daughter, Leah) and misdemeanor charges including but not limited to domestic assault and battery.
[citation needed] On November 18, after an extensive investigation, Portwood was charged with three counts of domestic violence, two of them felonies, in connection with separate incidents of on-camera abuse of Shirley.
[31] The same day, MTV released a statement concerning the charges filed on Portwood: "We are cooperating with all parties and hope for a quick and fair resolution that allows everyone involved to move forward in a positive manner.
"[32] In December 2011, Portwood was arrested for the Class D felony of possession of a controlled substance and was later charged with violating her probation on her earlier domestic-violence charges by breaching conditions including behaving well in society, obtaining a GED certificate, completing six months of anger-management training, paying her probation fees, and setting up a $10,000 college fund for Leah.
At the ensuing probation violation hearing, the judge in the case declined to reimpose any portion of the suspended sentence, instead requiring Amber to complete 30 days of daily drug tests.
[33] On June 13, 2012, Portwood began serving her five-year sentence, during which she is expected to attend substance abuse classes and earn her GED.
Portwood also revealed that she was high on prescription and illegal medication for most episodes of Teen Mom and that she is sober with no intent of ever using again.
Portwood is working on obtaining a joint-custody agreement with her ex-boyfriend Gary Shirley and is trying to focus on being a good mom to her daughter.
[42] Bristol Palin (from Palmer, Alaska) announced her pregnancy and engagement to Levi Johnston at the 2008 Republican National Convention.