In my last post, I talked about being envious of a friend who is experiencing an unplanned pregnancy and although she thought she would make an adoption plan, her family has agreed to help her. I suggested that if you are pregnant, you should consider talking to your parents about whether or not they would be supportive of your decision to parent, but you may be wondering how you go about this.

I know if I were reading that post in the position I was in over six... more

Have you ever heard the phrase “green with envy?” I’m feeling a little envious of someone at the moment. Her situation is so similar to mine. She’s parenting a child with special needs (not as involved as my son though) and she is pregnant. Her first child’s father passed away and her unborn baby’s father does not want to be involved so she has no father involvement just as I did.

Originally she was considering making an adoption plan. She thought it would be the most responsible thing to do in this situation because her parents are already helping with her first... more

Thanksgiving is a time in which we usually get together with family members or dear friends, give thanks, and eat turkey, dressing (or stuffing as some call it), cranberry sauce, and all the fixings until we are too stuffed for words! But there may be some uncomfortable moments during the giving thanks and the stuffing mouths for those of you who are experiencing unplanned pregnancies.

Every pregnant woman gets some of that unsolicited yet well meaning advice and I think many women in unplanned pregnancies may receive twice as much of that unsolicited yet well meant... more

One scenario that you might be facing in dealing with your family and their reactions to your pregnancy is their reactions to your choice. For example, in my own situation, my parents (my Dad especially) were supportive of adoption, but were leery of open adoption. They weren’t purposely trying to be unsupportive but they just didn’t understand the concept of open adoption or really even know anything about it. In their day, closed adoptions were the norm, the girl who was pregnant was sent away to have the baby, and it was never spoken of again, supposedly to be forgotten. It could be... more

In my last post, we discussed telling your parents that you are pregnant. They are likely to have any number of reactions. In this post, we will explore some of those possible reactions. Your parents may be shocked at an unexpected pregnancy no matter what your age is, but it may be especially harder for them to deal with if you are young.

First of all, it’s important to remember that these are the initial reactions your parents may have to this new. Remember how you felt when you... more

We need the support and unconditional love of our family and friends and we probably need it the most during an unplanned pregnancy. You may be afraid to share the news of your unplanned pregnancy with your family, especially your parents. You may be tempted to not tell your parents or hide your pregnancy from them. However, this is not a very good idea for a number of reasons.

Hiding a pregnancy can be very stressful and can add additional stress to an already stressful situation and will not be good for your own health and the health of your unborn baby. Additionally,... more

In my last two posts, I have talked about how to tell your baby’s dad you are pregnant and how to tell your parents you are pregnant.

Telling your friends you are pregnant may not seem as daunting as telling your baby’s daddy or your parents, but it can have its challenges as well. The challenges with your friends may not lie in how... more

Telling your family, especially your parents, that you are pregnant can be scary and overwhelming. Our family wants the best for us and often an unplanned pregnancy is not in their version of how your life should play out.

Below are a few ideas to help you in telling your parents and other family members you are pregnant.

If the prospect of telling your parents (or other close family members) that you are pregnant alone is too frightening, consider asking someone (such as a close friend, counselor, teacher, clergy person, or your baby’s... more

I enjoyed the change of format in my post in the open adoption blog yesterday entitled Top 10 Ways to Keep an Open Adoption Running Smoothly and was inspired to do more “lists” so today I give you my top five things you should not say to pregnant women considering adoption.

If you are pregnant and considering adoption, feel free to send this link to people who are supporting you in your pregnancy. After my first... more

There’s no better time than pregnancy to bombard a pregnant woman with well meaning advice? It could be simple things like you should breastfeed or don’t eat such and such while your pregnant. But then as the bigger issues of an unplanned pregnancy come into the play, the well meaning advice becomes more often and of course, more well meaning.

It’s overwhelming and can be very hard at times to deal with all this advice, especially when you know it is well meaning and heartfelt. I mean in general, people want to help each other and be helpful, right?... more