What are my options if I’m pregnant in Maryland? Am I ready to be a parent? How do I decide what to do if I’m not ready to be a parent? Can I choose adoption in Maryland?

If you’re experiencing an unplanned pregnancy in Maryland, any of these questions (and more) may be running through your head right now. That’s understandable; it can be a stressful time in anyone’s life. It’s normal to feel unsure of your next step. However, our first advice is to breathe.

Our adoption specialists are available 24/7 if you need a shoulder to lean on. To get the guidance you need, call 1-800-ADOPTION or fill out our contact form.

You aren’t the first woman to experience an unexpected pregnancy in Maryland, and we’re sure you won’t be the last. The second piece of advice we’ll give you is to learn as much about your unplanned pregnancy options. In Maryland, there are three:

• Parenting
• Abortion
• Adoption

Our adoption specialists can give you information on all three of your options, not just adoption in Maryland. Continue reading below to learn more.

Note: While we are, obviously, an adoption agency, that does not mean this article is written to sway you toward adoption. Adoption is not for everyone. This article exists solely to help educate Maryland women on their unplanned pregnancy options.

1. Parenting

The first question to ask in this situation is, “Am I ready to be a parent?” If the answer is yes, then this article will be useless to you. If you feel that you are ready to parent, no one should ever tell you otherwise. You know what’s best for you and your baby. However, if you aren’t quite sure whether parenting is the right move for you, you may consider some of these aspects of parenting:

• Raising a child until he or she turns 18 costs an average of $245,340, and that was a figure the Wall Street Journal reported in 2013. This number will only continue to rise. This can be an extreme strain on a budget if you haven’t been financially preparing for a child.

• Will the child’s father help you to raise him or her? Of course, it’s entirely possible to be a successful single mother, but some women prefer to have a partner in raising a child.

• Will raising a child affect your education or career goals? Many women choose not to become parents as they pursue schooling or the early phases of a career.

• Do you wish to be a parent? Not all women do, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Motherhood isn’t for everyone. It’s also possible that you wish to be a mother someday but aren’t ready quite yet, and there’s nothing wrong with that either.

If you still aren’t sure that parenting is the right choice for you at this time, there are still two additional unplanned pregnancy options in Maryland.

2. Abortion

Abortion is by far the most sensitive of Maryland’s unplanned pregnancy options. Some adoption agencies will ignore that it is even an unwanted pregnancy option at all, but that’s not the case with American Adoptions. We do recommend, however, that you make sure to obtain any information about abortion from reliable sources only, such as Planned Parenthood. Some notable Maryland abortion facts are:

• In 2014, there were 41 facilities in Maryland that provided abortions. Approximately 67 percent of Maryland’s counties did not have one of these facilities. 

• As of April 1, 2017, a parent of a minor must give permission for an abortion to be provided, although health professionals can waive parental involvement in some circumstances.

• Abortions performed in Maryland represent 3 percent of all abortions performed in the United States.

3. Adoption

Adoption is, of course, the third unplanned pregnancy option in Maryland. As you might expect, we have quite a bit to say about the subject, but for the sake of space we’ll simply explain some of the benefits of this unexpected pregnancy option that don’t accompany the other two:

• Adoption gives you the opportunity to remain in your child’s life. By choosing open adoption, you can watch them grow into successful, stable young adults — and you can have a relationship with them as they mature.

• If you have negative feelings associated with abortion but aren’t ready to parent, adoption allows for an alternative to both of those Maryland unplanned pregnancy options.

• Because adopted children are raised in homes that are both financially and emotionally prepared for them, they are more likely to participate in extracurricular activities or pursue secondary education.

• Adopted children will grow up knowing they have not one but two sets of parents who love them and value their best interests above their own.

While reading this article may not have magically made clear the perfect unexpected pregnancy option for you, we hope it did help to educate you about what those options are. For more information about any of your three choices in Maryland, please call 1-800-ADOPTION to speak with an unbiased social worker for free. 

Disclaimer
Information available through these links is the sole property of the companies and organizations listed therein. American Adoptions provides this information as a courtesy and is in no way responsible for its content or accuracy.