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You’ve taken a pregnancy test and it has 2 lines screaming positive! Now what??
I’ll never forget taking that first pregnancy test when I found out I was pregnant with my son. By the 3rd test, my friend who was there for moral support, says, “You can take 100 pregnancy tests and I think they are all going to be positive. You are pregnant.”
In a moment, reality hit. I was really and truly pregnant! It was about that time when my friend said, “Tons of women get pregnant everyday. You can handle this. You will figure it out.” Those first few days of reality in an unplanned pregnancy, I wasn’t thinking “adoption versus parenting.” I was simply thinking “survival.” How do I make it through the next 9 months? What is the next step I need to take? Is this really happening? Everything was so overwhelming! I could only think of things in “baby steps” not looking at things down the road regarding what choices I would make for my unborn baby.
If you’ve just finished staring at that positive pregnancy test, I have a few tips for you.
- Before you start trying to decide if you should parent or make an adoption plan, give yourself a few days to breathe and deal with the reality that you are in deed pregnant.
- Find an OBGYN and make an appointment to find out far along you are.
- Stop any activities that may be harmful to your unborn baby.
- Depending on your situation, share the news with your baby’s father.
- Take care of you. You are probably feeling very overwhelmed and stressed, so be sure to take care of yourself. Get plenty of rest, eat properly, and drink lots of water.
- Remember that you are not alone. Although, you may feel like you have little support, you are not alone. Many other women are faced with unplanned pregnancies so you are not the first going through this. And you certainly will not be the last.
Just give yourself a few days to deal with this news. You are going to have some tough decisions to be making in the upcoming months and you shouldn’t rush into them.
Awesome post – great advice for anyone reading those two pink lines!
I was in this situation before there were tests or pink lines, but recall vividly when I had to finally admit to myself that I wasn’t just ‘late’.
One thing I’d add to your very helpful list: Tell someone you trust and who cares about you as soon as possible. You’ll need someone to talk to, to listen to you, to lean on, to cry with.
Thank you Sandra, that is a very helpful thing to add!
Great article with lots of encouragement and great ideas. I know this will help lots of women who will be experiencing this in the future.