Here are some questions to ask yourself as you think about the possibility of adoption: 

•    Am I ready to give the next 18 years or more of my life to love and be responsible for my child, and place concern for his/her wellbeing above my own?
•    Could I raise a child and still meet my own school, career, and social needs?
•    Could I do this without having to depend on my family to take over for me?

If you answer no to any of these questions, you should seriously consider adoption as the best and most loving choice you can make for your baby. 

Think of how many people win in this situation:  baby wins, because he or she gets to live and grow up with a carefully chosen family; the family that adopts your baby wins, because now they can raise the child they have desperately wanted; and you win, too, because you can go on with your life knowing you have taken care of your baby in the best way possible.

Adoption is not the mysterious process that it once was, either.  Today, a birth mother has a great deal of control in the situation.  She can screen families and select the one that her baby gets placed with, she can change her mind about adoption even after the birth of the baby, and she can choose to have contact with her child in the future.

Adoption does involve a natural grieving process.  Nine months of pregnancy creates a bond between birth mom and baby, and there will naturally be a sense of loss. But the pain of such a sacrifice is a sweet kind of pain, not the bitter kind of sorrow that so many women have experienced after abortion.  It is a very mature and unselfish act to give your baby life and yet allow another family to parent him or her. 

Consider the many positive aspects of this loving and beautiful choice if you are in an unplanned pregnancy.  If you have questions or would like information on adoption agencies, please contact: