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Unplanned pregnancies are very common. It’s estimated that there are around 200,000 unplanned pregnancies in Australia every year. Unplanned doesn’t always mean unwanted – in many cases, the woman is pleasantly surprised and looks forward to parenting her baby. In other cases, the news comes as a shock. Pregnancy options, when the mother does not wish to become a parent, include abortion, foster care and adoption.
A wide range of government and community counselling services offer information on pregnancy options, which can help a pregnant woman to make this often difficult decision.
Issues to think about
An unplanned pregnancy prompts a woman to think about a range of complex issues such as:
- Her feelings about parenthood, abortion and adoption
- Her health and age
- The needs of her existing children (if any)
- Her relationship with the baby’s father
- Career options
- Finances
- Life goals
- Religious beliefs
- Moral values.
Professional counselling is available
Deciding on the best course of action is not always easy. It may help to talk to family and friends. However, it is important that the woman makes her own decision. A woman should not allow pressure from other people to sway her own judgement.
Talking over the options with an independent, trained counsellor, who doesn’t have a vested interest in the woman’s ultimate choice, can be helpful. An independent counsellor can also provide up-to-date information on each pregnancy option, which allows a woman to make a more informed decision.
Pregnancy options
Options include:
- Parenting
- Abortion
- Foster care
- Adoption.
Parenting
Becoming a parent is rewarding and challenging. Prenatal (pregnancy) care is extremely important for the health of the woman and her unborn baby. The doctor is a good starting point for information and referral.
The woman needs to decide quite early in her pregnancy where and how to have her baby. Various options are available. Factors that may influence a woman’s decision about childbirth options include:
- Where she lives (all options may not be available in every district)
- Her health and life circumstances
- Previous experiences of pregnancy or birth
- Her feelings about particular types of care
- Whether she is a public or privately insured patient.
Parenting – single or partnered
Depending on the woman’s relationship with the baby’s father, her parenting options may include:
- Shared parenting as a married couple
- Shared parenting as a de facto couple
- Shared parenting while living apart
- Single parenting while living independently
- Single parenting while living with family, such as parents.
Talking to an independent counsellor may help the woman to understand and discuss the pros and cons of each option.
Parenting advice is available
Parenting is not a skill we are born with, it must be learned and relearned as the child grows through its different life stages. Various government and community support services are available to help parents through every stage of the journey. The doctor is a good starting point for information and referral.
Abortion
Some women decide to end their pregnancy. Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy. Estimates suggest that almost half of unplanned pregnancies in Australia end in abortion. About two-thirds of women who have an abortion were using contraception when they became pregnant. So it’s a myth that only irresponsible women fall pregnant by accident. No form of contraception is 100 per cent reliable.
Generally speaking, when a woman decides to end a pregnancy, she is most likely to suffer emotionally if she feels the decision to terminate the pregnancy was, in some way, not fully hers to make. Women who experience guilt, depression and grief tend to be those who felt coerced into the operation.
Abortion laws are different in each Australian state and territory. See contacts listed under Where to get help for information about how abortion is regulated in your area.
Foster care
Foster care is when a child is temporarily placed with another family (perhaps with relatives or with carefully screened strangers) while the birth parent or parents work towards resuming care. According to government statistics, about 20,000 Australian children were in foster care in 2003. The birth mother can have regular contact with her fostered child.
Adoption
A relatively small number of women continue with the pregnancy but give up the baby for adoption. This means that the adoptive parents become the baby’s legal parents, which affects the baby’s name, birth certificate and inheritance rights. Current law dictates that the birth father, if he is known, must also sign for adoption consent.
Where to get help
- Your doctor
- Women’s Health Information Centre, Royal Women’s Hospital Tel. (03) 9344 2007
- Family Planning Victoria Tel. 1800 013 952 or (03) 9257 0100 www.fpv.org.au
- The Action Centre (for young people less than 25 years) Tel. 1800 013 952 or (03) 9654 4766
- Foster Care Association of Victoria Tel. (03) 9489 9770
- Adoption and Permanent Care Program: Eastern Metropolitan Region Tel. (03) 9843 6413, Southern Region Tel. (03) 9521 5666, Barwon-South Western Region Tel. (03) 5226 4540, Northern Metropolitan Region Tel. (03) 9304 0799, Western Region Tel. (03) 9687 5200, Gippsland Region Tel. (03) 5133 9998, Grampians Region Tel. (03) 5332 1434, Loddon Mallee Region Tel. (03) 5440 1100, Hume Region Tel. (03) 5832 1500
- Parentline Tel. 132 289
- Things to remember
- Pregnancy options include parenting, abortion, foster care and adoption.
- The doctor is a good starting point for information and referral about pregnancy options.
- It is important that the woman makes her own decision about which option is best for her.
You might also be interested in:
Abortion - counselling options.
Abortion - emotional issues.
Abortion in Australia.
Abortion pill - RU486 (mifepristone).
Adoption explained.
Parenting services.
Permanent care explained.
Pregnancy - birth choices.
Pregnancy - signs and symptoms.
Teenage pregnancy.
Want to know more?
Go to More information for support groups, related links and references.
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