Parenthood is one of the most beautiful things in the world. It makes you realize that there’s much more to life than living for yourself. Moreover, when you become a grandparent, the joy is even more intense. But what if your daughter is too young to become a mother, i.e., pregnant in her teens and doesn’t want an abortion?
Yup, this is a pretty tricky situation to find yourself in. The feelings of happiness mix with doubts and fears about both your little girl and her future baby. Regardless of how miraculous it is to have offspring, it is also an enormous responsibility. Many people fail at it even if they have the best of intentions. As such, we’ll try to provide you with some parent tips for teen pregnancy.
What You May Be Feeling
Even with great news, you can’t help but feel a range of emotions when you hear that your child is going to become a young parent. From outrage and letdown to heartache and worry about what’s going to happen next, the negatives can overshadow that hidden joy and happiness somewhere deep inside you.
Depending on what type of person you are, you might even go as far as to worry about what others are going to say. Your friends, neighbors, and coworkers will eventually find out, and if you’re insecure about the way others see you, you might find it hard to come to terms with this new situation. But we’re not here to judge you. That’s not the point of this article.
The most important thing is to keep the family together. It is going to be a hard time for everyone around the house if you are not supportive yourself. Still, this is the moment to make the most of your parenting skills. Your child is going to need all the assistance in the world.
It’s essential to recognize your feelings but put them away just as you did when you or your partner was pregnant. Even if you planned your child, it wasn’t a time to give in to emotions and fears; it was the time to be responsible. The wellbeing of your child and her baby is at stake, so don’t lose that from your sight.
What Your Teen May Be Feeling
In most scenarios, teenage pregnancies are accidental. Just like when you were their age, teenagers are all about having a good time. From hanging out with friends to traveling around the world and falling in love, they don’t expect anything like this. But their inexperience and naivety often lead to problems.
As such, some will try to hide from their parents that they’re pregnant. It might happen due to fear of rejection or overwhelming shock. But finding the courage to speak up and ask for support might be harder than you’d think. This can, unfortunately, lead to numerous additional problems.
A good parent will notice that there’s something wrong with their child’s behavior. But if they do, they won’t condemn the situation. At least not out loud. Pregnant teens need all the help in the world, and you should provide them with that, no matter what. Nothing’s more important than their happiness and health.
Special Concerns of Pregnant Teens
Since teen pregnancies are so delicate in social terms, they can lead to special health concerns too. A young pregnant woman needs special care to avoid numerous risks that could endanger both her and her baby’s health. If they receive proper medical attention, they’re more likely to give birth to a rosy-cheeked child. If not, many things could go wrong.
Your child may experience fetal death, meaning that her baby might die before it fully forms in her womb. Also, high blood pressure and anemia commonly occur during an unhealthy pregnancy. But that’s not all. Both labor and delivery complications can come into play, which means premature parturition that results in low-weight infants or sadly, stillbirth.
These are just some of the terrible scenarios that can happen. Therefore, we’d strongly recommend you provide your pregnant child with proper health care. It will allow for normal child development and preserve the mother’s physical and mental health, but also the father’s psyche if he’s around.
Medical Care
If you choose to act as a proper role model, you’ll help your pregnant teen visit the doctor. As such, it’s key to be prepared for all the procedures that will follow. Some might be unpleasant, but they’re good for both the mother and her baby. Below, we’ll list a couple of things you can expect on her first prenatal visit.
Every pregnant woman gets a complete physical check, which includes both blood and urine tests. The doctors will also screen the future mother for STDs (sexually transmitted diseases) and do a set of preemptive tests for dangerous diseases like rubella, measles, or mumps. But this is only the beginning when it comes to medical care.
Her doctor will talk about scheduling prenatal visits as well as what she might feel during the nine months of pregnancy. It will have an effect both on her psyche and body. Hence, she should prepare for nausea and vomiting, body changes, and mood swings.
Lifestyle Changes
A great thing about prenatal visits, besides checking her and the baby’s health, is that the doctor will talk about what lifestyle changes need to be implemented. Depending on the relationship you have with your pregnant daughter, it might be hard to explain that some things are no longer acceptable. However, if she hears it from the doctor, she’ll take it more seriously.
They’ll talk about quitting smoking if she’s a smoker. No matter how obvious it might seem to you, if your daughter likes to smoke from time to time, she needs to stop, at least while pregnant. Smoking will increase the chances of miscarriage, sudden infant death syndrome, stillbirth, and much more.
The same goes for alcohol as it’s as dangerous as smoking. We don’t have to talk about using drugs while pregnant, do we? Furthermore, they’ll advise her to keep her levels of caffeine intake below 200 mg daily. Aside from that, the doctor will emphasize the importance of a proper diet, resting, and unsafe sexual activities too.
Preparing for New Responsibilities
As we’ve said, becoming a parent is all about being mature and taking responsibility for your child. Your daughter will need to prepare for some serious decisions. These include raising the baby with or without the father, going to school, working, and so on.
The answers to these questions depend solely on her. We can’t tell you anything specific since everything depends on you and your daughter. Still, we can say this — whatever she chooses that’s good for her baby is something you should support. If she seems confused with her new role, there’s no better person than you, her parent, to be there to listen and lend a helping hand.
None of this means that you should interfere with her life if she doesn’t want you to. You must be respectful of her new role. The best way to do that is to always be there for your daughter and grandchild. Nothing and no one is more important than their happiness, safety, and health.
