An unplanned pregnancy can be very upsetting. No longer do you have just your life to be concerned about, but you have created another life that is growing inside of you. You have a difficult decision to make.
There are three choices with an unplanned pregnancy:
If finances are a concern for you, parenting is the most expensive option. The average cost of raising a child from conception through the first year of life in the United States is $24,642.22.
Click here to learn about early symptoms of pregnancy from the Mayo Clinic.
Can you/do you want to raise your child, either by yourself, with a partner or with the help of family and friends. For many women who have unstable housing or job security.
Know that the father of the baby has rights if you decide to parent. Whether or not if he pays child support he has a right to be involved in the child’s life. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the birth father doesn’t care about the baby. So think through whether you and the father can co-parent. To protect the child you should consider whether or not it’s important to have a court order for custody and child support.
If you are not going to have the support of the father, will family or friends help financially, emotionally and with all of the work involved in caring for a new baby. It is important that you are honest with yourself about the financial resources and emotional stamina necessary to be a single parent.
If finances are a concern for you, parenting is the most expensive option. The average cost of raising a child from conception through the first year of life in the United States is $24,642.22. You can see a detailed accounting of your pregnancy costs and access to an interactive Baby Cost Calculator to see how much you will need to cover expenses from conception through the first year of life for your child.
If you choose adoption all of these expenses will be covered and you may even be eligible for additional financial support for items like basic living expenses during your pregnancy. Speak with an adoption counselor 24/7 for help in making your birth plan and decide if adoption is right for you. Call our Pregnancy Hotline: (919) 971-4396 or Text: Pregnant to (919) 971-4396.
Adoption – You Are Not AloneAdoption is another choice that you have with an unplanned pregnancy. There are over 2,000 adoption agencies in the United States. Surveys indicate that there are approximately 56 to 60 adoptive parents for every child who is available for placement.
When choosing adoption one benefit available to you is an emotional support network. Your adoption counselor will work with you every step of the way and is always available to answer your questions and help you as your pregnancy progresses. Depending on the type of adoption you choose – open, semi-open or closed –you may also have opportunities to connect and interact with the adopting parents.
To speak with an adoption counselor 24/7 for help in making your birth plan and decide if adoption is right for you. Call our Pregnancy Hotline: (919) 971-4396 or Text: Pregnant to (919) 971-4396.
Abortion – The Morning After and the Days AheadToday in America abortions are by far the most frequent choice of women with an unplanned pregnancy. A recent study by the National Institute of Health indicates that of 200 women that get pregnant 149 chose abortion and the remaining 51 chose either adoption or parenting.
Since the morning after pill has become an over the counter option many women almost immediately regret the decision to have had unprotected sex and seek out the morning after pill. The pill has to be taken with 72 hours of having unprotected sex. To be effective. Effective rates are debatable and for many women, it fails probably because they don’t take the pill soon enough.
Even if the morning after pill is effective, that may not be the end for feeling regret. Emotional and psychological effects following an abortion are more common than physical side effects and can range from mild regret to more serious complications such as depression. It is important to discuss these risks with a trained professional who can address your questions and concerns. The emotional side effects of having an abortion are just as real as physical side effects.
It’s important if you are considering abortion that you go to a clinic as soon as you can in the pregnancy to have an ultrasound done and find out exactly how far along you are in the pregnancy. Many women put off this step only to go in and find out their pregnancy is past the legal limit or they cannot afford the costs. The abortion procedure used to abort the baby depends on how far along you are.
A Dilation and Curettage (D&C) is the most common type of abortion. The cervix is dilated and a physician uses an instrument known as a curettage to scrape out the fetus.
For women who want to abort further along in the pregnancy, a saline solution is used. Saline is a salt solution and is injected in the womb. The fetus dies from the toxicity of the salt solution and passes out through the vagina or is delivered a few days later.
There are financial costs to having an adoption. It’s a medical procedure and an elective abortion costs from $1,000 to $3,000 depending on how far along you are in the pregnancy.
Before you make an irreversible decision, speak with an adoption counselor 24/7 for help in making your birth plan and decide if adoption is right for you. Call our Pregnancy Hotline: (919) 971-4396 or Text: Pregnant to (919) 971-4396.