TeenHelp - Ithink im pregnant

The first step is to take a test, as the above poster said. It's normal to freak out, but you need to remain calm. Stressing out and other factors could be to blame for your missing period. But, since you mentioned a "mistake", there is a possibility of pregnancy.

Go to your local pharmacy and buy a pregnancy test. Some are fairly affordable, while some of the better ones are pricier. If you can't afford the name brand tests, go to your local dollar store and buy a test from there. They work just as effectively as the name brand ones. Here are some tips of taking pregnancy tests.

Check for expiration dates. Just like any product for use, they do have them. They are somewhere on the packaging, and from my own experience, they are on the sides of the package where you open up the product

Make sure you read the directions. Thats vitally important. You don't want to take the test and figure out that you've done it wrong.

Take the test first thing in the morning. The hCG hormone, or pregnancy hormone is most potent in the mornings when you first wake up, when you first urinate. You'll have better chances of getting an accurate result if you take it in the morning

Only take the test if it's been two weeks since you've had unprotected sex, or as you mentioned, this mistake. If you take earlier than two weeks, you could get a false result, which will only freak you out more, or relieve you when it turns out that you're truly pregnant. Two weeks is the standard, so if you have to wait for a little while, do so. Your chances of getting an accurate result are 14 days after a "mistake"

Now, once you've taken the test, you have 3 options, which I'm sure you know about but, I'm going to go ahead and give you some information here.

Keeping it: This is definitely an option for you, though difficult since you're still young and in high school. Not only will it ruin you socially, since you won't have time to go to parties, sporting events, or school dances like regular teenagers do these days, but also financially. Babies cost thousands of dollars a year, including costs for medical expenses, diapers, clothes, food, and everything else a baby needs to essentially survive. I'm sure you know that babies need more than love from their parent. At 15, this would be very difficult to handle, but if you choose this as your option, having a support system behind you to help you out, like your parents, would be better for you.

Abortion: Another option for you. It's pretty self-explanatory, but there are two different types. A medical abortion and a surgical abortion. A medical abortion (from what I understand) is where they give you the abortion pill, but from what I've also heard, it might not work. I prefer, if you choose this as your option, to get an abortion done surgically, where a certified doctor will before a DNC on you, which means scooping the fetus out of the uterus, ultimately terminating the pregnancy.

Adoption: Another great option if you don't think you could handle being a parent at 15, or getting an abortion done. There are two types of adoption services open to you. The first is called an OPEN adoption. This is where you'll have contact with your child and his/her adopted parents. You'll receive letters, photo updates, and possibly visits with your child. Of course, this is all to the discretion of their adoptive parents. Some are willing, while others are not. If you'd like an open adoption, you should speak to the agency you choose to interview or choose parents who are open to an open adoption. Some of them are even quite willing to pay for your medical expenses while pregnant. This is something you'll also need to discuss with the agency, and which family you choose. The other type of adoption is called a CLOSED adoption. Again, pretty self-explanatory. You'll have no rights as a parent, no visitation and ultimately, no contact with your child until he/she reaches adult age at 18, or before then with their parents permission to find you.

I know this is probably a lot to take in right now, especially since you haven't taken a test yet, but better to be prepared than think about this later when things become more overwhelming. You have a lot of choices to make ahead of you if you're pregnant. But, the first step is finding out for sure if you are, or you aren't. If you are, I'd recommend contacting your local Planned Parenthood (www.plannedparenthood.org). They have great counseling services, and they'll be able to go more in depth with you about the options I've mentioned. They can guide you to the right choice for you without pressuring you into making the right or wrong one. If you aren't pregnant, I'd still recommend contacting your local Planned Parenthood, and getting on some type of birth control to ensure that something like this doesn't happen again.

First things first, however, just find out.