Pregnancy & Choices
Pregnancy, no matter what happens, is a life-changing event.  For that reason, when you first find out you’re pregnant, you need to give yourself some time to allow the initial shock calm down.  Be sure to confirm the pregnancy by requesting an ultrasound, and then meet with a counselor to talk about your situation and discuss your options.

One number you can call is 866-942-6466, where you can speak with a pregnancy specialist and talk about your options locally.  You might also decide to write down what your feelings, thoughts and fears are with the pregnancy and with the options that are available to you.  Speak with a pastor.  Decide what your beliefs and values are on the matter.  It’s important to explore every possibility open to you so that you never wind up regretting the choices you make.

Most mothers come to realize that being a parent is both rewarding and challenging.  They feel that it’s a special privilege they have to help a the life that’s growing inside of them develop into an independent person, with its own individual personality, looks, talents, and interests. It’s a privilege to be able to guide them through life, encouraging and providing for them as they grow into adulthood.

However, none of this changes the fact that parenting is also difficult, emotionally-draining, and sometimes not easy financially.  Therefore, ask yourself these questions:

• Are you married to the dad, or is marriage with him possible? Either way, will he agree to pre-marital counseling?
• Will the father be involved in the child’s life, supporting it financially and as a role-model?
• If you don’t live with the father, then can you and should yo live with you family, or perhaps with another single mother?
• In what ways can your family assist you (For instance, offering child-care, a place to live, and so on)?
• Do I have the capacity to live on my own with the new baby? If not yet, then what would I need in order to make it on my own?
• How will this new child affect my future plans and goals for my life? How can I keep on striving toward those goals?
• If after all of these questions, you decide raising a child is more than you’re equipped to handle, have you explored the process to have the child adopted?

Let’s talk some about the choice to pursue adoption.  There are actually several options available to you–ranging from open adoption to closed adoption. Even once you choose the “adoption option,” there are still more choices to be made.  For instance, you can help select the adoptive family, and you can choose whether you want to continue to have any kind of relationship with the child or to cut all ties.  There are support groups and counselors available to help you through this process, so you can also choose which of those to seek out.

So if you’ve decided on adoption, these are some of the questions to ask:

• What do I, as the birth parent, want to provide for the child?
• What do I think would be the perfect home for him or her?
• Do I want an open adoption (birth parent is allowed contact) or closed?

Again, feel free to speak with a counselor and a pastor to help you with making the right choices.