Teens Lend an Ear to Troubled Peers

It’s about 6 p.m. and the teen caller says he’s worried about a burning sensation when he urinates. Before that, an anonymous caller is cautioned to leave an air bubble at the tip of a condom when putting it on her partner.

These aren’t what many would consider typical evening conversations between two teens. But six nights a week, they are exactly the sort of topics teenagers calling the Teen Reproductive Health Help Line discuss with their peers.

“One night it could be all about relationships and the next it could all be about pregnancy,” said Brenda Castaneda, 17, who has answered phones at the help line since it began about 18 months ago. “I’m there to give them the facts. They make their own decisions.”

The line operates out of the Valley Community Clinic three nights a week and out of the Westside Women’s Health Center the other three. It is sponsored by the California Family Health Council, which uses government funds for family planning and reproductive health care.

Teens--who are trained in subjects such as self-esteem, abstinence, contraception, sexually transmitted infections and AIDS--give callers information and clinic referrals.

“There is nobody that has more credibility to teens than teens,” said Diane Chamberlain, chief operating officer of Valley Community Clinic. “If they hear it from a teen, it’s gospel.”

While those on staff may be young, when the phone rings, the attitude is professional.

“Sometimes it might not seem like much, but it turns out to be more,” said Castaneda, recalling a two-hour conversation that started with birth-control options and ended with stalking, rape and death threats.

If calls require more expertise, or if a caller becomes abusive, an adult, licensed social worker Diane Espino, steps in.

Many calls are difficult, especially if they deal with abuse or rape. April Banda, 19, took a call from a 17-year-old boy who said his mother sexually abused him for 10 years.

“You just let them talk and try to get them to report it and get some counseling,” Banda said. “I wonder if he actually called the numbers I gave him; if he ever got help.”

The help line is usually open Monday through Thursday, 4 to 8 p.m.; Friday, 4 to 7 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. to noon. The number is (888) 396-5463.