Take the Baby and Run - Free Help Available
The most important things to remember are that you're not alone, and you need to take care of your health.The Net can be a wonderful place to stay anonymous and get an eyeful of experiences and support.
Your options
Finding out you're pregnant can send common sense out the window, and it may be easy to jump at the first suggestion - which may not be the right one for you. Learning about the choices you can make is an important first step.
Talk about it
There are some great online support groups for expectant teens like the Unplanned Pregnancy Forum at Adoption.com, but, as helpful as these places might be to talk things out and hear what others have to say, remember that people in your daily life are also there to help. Counselor Mike Hardcastle suggests:
- Your parents. Unless you're afraid of physical harm or that they'll force you to keep/abort when that isn't your choice (in which case talk to another adult you trust and can confide in like an aunt, grandparent, family doctor), your parents' initial reaction may be disappointment or anger, but the truth is that most parents really want to help and support their kids.
- The baby's father. Just because biology connects you more closely with the pregnancy doesn't mean the father isn't involved. Unless the guy is abusive or a real jerk, his support is something you should consider.
If you know...
...you want to place your child for adoption, there are agencies with programs that will not cost you anything and can:
- offer confidentiality in most cases,
- cover your medical expenses,
- provide you with your own legal representation,
- provide pre- and post-adoption counseling, and
- result in a legal adoption.
- State Adoption Specialists: Source for information about agencies, the programs they offer, if they have free counseling before and after the adoption (very important), and more.
- National Adoption Information Clearinghouse (NAIC): This is one of the best resources for information about your rights, options, and public and licensed private agencies in every state, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico.
- Adoption Agency Selection Checklist
- Birthparent Check List
- Lifelong Issues in Adoption
- Things I Wish I Had Known
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