An unexpected pregnancy is well … unexpected. It’s a surprise and unplanned. If you are facing an unexpected pregnancy, you are not alone. Whether it is unwanted or mistimed, almost half of all pregnancies in the United States are unexpected pregnancies. It is true that many unexpected pregnancies occur in teenagers, but there are women in their late 20s, early 30s, and 40s who find themselves unexpectedly pregnant. If you are looking for unexpected pregnancy stories from women who are at least 20 years old, you have come to the right place. Below, you will find five unexpected pregnancy stories that I have gathered from adult women in my circle of friends. These stories come from faithful women who chose to parent. I believe these unexpected pregnancy stories will bless and inspire you.
1.
Many women desire to have children. Some women are blessed to be able to conceive naturally, but some women cannot so many turn to fertility drugs. The following unexpected pregnancy story comes from a current teacher living in Carthage, Missouri.
Betty (name changed to protect privacy) and her husband have three children who are now all in college. Betty stated, “Our first two children were conceived with the help of months of fertility drugs. With our second child, we were on the last round of the highest dosage and preparing for the possibility of surgery if we wanted to have a chance to conceive another child.” Betty did not have to have surgery. By March of 2001, Betty and her husband had their second child. The doctor informed the couple that it would be extremely difficult to conceive a third time. The couple decided that having just two children would be enough. Betty had her Master’s in Elementary Administration and her husband was growing his business. Life was going great for the couple. Betty was applying for principal positions, but a few weeks before their second child’s first birthday, Betty began to feel sick. She tried staying home from school and taking medication, but the sickness would not go away. Betty and her husband believed it was impossible for her to be pregnant so when a colleague mentioned that possibility, Betty just laughed. Betty decided to get a pregnancy test to get that thought out of her mind. Days before the first birthday celebration, Betty bought a pregnancy test and took it. The test result was positive! This was an unexpected pregnancy for sure. The couple was shocked. Betty said, “In the next few months, we made many life changes to prepare for our surprise.” Betty’s husband closed his business and pursued a job that allowed him a steady income and an opportunity to be present as a father to his children. Almost 19 years later, their youngest child has been a huge challenge yet one of their greatest blessings. Today she is a very talented musician and plays basketball. She will be attending Mid-American Nazarene University in the Fall of 2021 and plans to double major in worship arts and youth ministry. Thank you to Betty for sharing her unexpected pregnancy story with me and with women who are expecting.
2.
There are many women who desire to have children, but only want to have them when they believe the time is just right. For some women, it does happen at the right time in their lives, but for some others, it is often mistimed. This unexpected pregnancy story comes from a good friend of mine. Joan is currently a missionary in Haiti. I met her when I did an internship with Project Hope in Haiti a few summers ago. In 2018, we both traveled to Haiti together for the first time where she remained when I returned for the school year to work full time. It was there where she fell in love with Dr. Joseph. They became best friends and married in February of 2020. Dr. Joseph and his wife desired to have children but they wanted to wait at least a year into their marriage before they began to try to conceive. Joan and her husband did everything they could to protect themselves. Joan said, “Five months after we got married, I got a yeast infection.” Joan began to do some research on yeast infections and read that it was common to have one during pregnancy. Joan began to think about it and realized that she was three days late on her menstrual cycle. Joan decided to purchase a pregnancy test. When she looked at the results, it read “positive”! Joan could not believe her eyes so she got two other pregnancy tests. Both of those tests were positive as well. Joan remarked that, “it was definitely an unexpected surprise.” Joan and her husband will be welcoming their baby boy into the world in April of 2021. They are both very excited for this unexpected blessing in their lives. This is an awesome unexpected pregnancy story. This child will be loved and I am so excited to meet him.
3.
There are many young unmarried women who dream of being married and having children. For most women, this occurs later on in life when they have met the love of their life. For one young woman, in particular, this was not the case. Like plenty of women, Megan was on birth control. She had an intrauterine device implanted that was 99.6% effective. This type of birth control is also known to stop women from having periods. Megan said, “My period stopped and I never thought twice because it was supposed to happen on that particular birth control.” Her sister made a joke that she was pregnant which freaked Megan out. Before going to work one day, Megan stopped by Walmart to purchase a pregnancy test. Once she arrived at work, Megan proceeded to the pre-kindergarten bathroom in her classroom where she took the test. The test results showed that she was almost two months pregnant. Shocked as she was, Megan decided to visit the doctor to get a confirmed pregnancy. There, Megan’s doctor did an ultrasound and saw nothing in the womb. They diagnosed her with an ectopic pregnancy. Megan decided to return to the doctor two days later where they did another ultrasound. This ultrasound confirmed her pregnancy. Megan said, “The doctor was amazed. That’s the day I knew God was real. There was no baby one day and two days later, a baby.”
Today, Charlotte Rae Inglis is one year old. She is a happy, healthy, and a precious baby girl who is well-loved. Megan will be getting married in less than a year. I believe that this unexpected pregnancy story is one that shows that God is real. He revealed Himself through this story, showing that God can reveal himself in unexpected ways.
4.
Most women like to plan their lives. They plan to get married and then how many children they would like to have. Sometimes, women have more or less children than they planned for. In the case of one woman, she has an unexpected pregnancy story to share that shows that you can’t always have what you planned for. Jean was already a mom of two children and she and her husband decided they were happy. Jean decided to have permanent rings placed on her tubes. Jean told me that, “the doctor said absolute permanent sterilization.” To her and her husband’s surprise, Jean became pregnant a year and a half later. Luckily, this was a normal pregnancy, not a tubal pregnancy. Jean gave birth to a wonderful daughter nine months later. This daughter is now 37 years old and has a daughter of her own. Jean is retired and enjoys spending time with her eight grandchildren.
5.
There are many women who get married but don’t expect to have any children. Most women think it will be a year or two before they can have any. For one woman, having any children so soon after getting married was unexpected. Katelyn is currently a preschool minister at a church in Springfield, Missouri. She is married to a fireman and has three beautiful children. Prior to being married, she attended school at Southwest Baptist University. In October of 2011, Katelyn married her firefighter husband. Three weeks into their marriage, Katelyn got sick and was placed on a very strong antibiotic. This antibiotic was known to mess with birth control. Katelyn was unaware of this. In December, a mere two months into their marriage, Katelyn found out she was four weeks pregnant. Katelyn confessed that, “It was a scary and overwhelming time for us.” Katelyn and her husband may have been overwhelmed and scared, but with their faith in God, they persevered in this pregnancy and gave birth nine months later to a beautiful baby boy. Katelyn is so thankful for her son and was so glad that God blessed her with him when he did. Katelyn now has two other children, two daughters. These children are beautiful, happy, and healthy children who are being raised in a Godly home.
The five unexpected pregnancy stories above were shared with me personally from dear friends of mine. I am so thankful for these friends who were willing to share their unexpected pregnancy stories with me for other women to read. It is my hope that you find them full of inspiration. I pray that you will relate to one of these stories and that no matter what, your child will live a fulfilling life.
While these five women ultimately decided to parent, you certainly do not have to choose to parent if you are not comfortable with it. You do have options. Many women become pregnant unexpectedly and choose to place the baby for adoption. If you choose this, you will work with a lawyer or adoption agency to find the right family to raise your child. You will have the opportunity to choose the type of adoption you would like to pursue: open, semi-open, or closed adoption. With all this in mind, you must remember that when placing your child for adoption, it is not just a one-time decision; you are choosing the life your child is going to have. For more information on placing your child for adoption, visit Unplannedpregancy.org.
Another thing to keep in mind is that the five women who shared above had great support teams. If you are facing an unexpected pregnancy, it is important for you to find a support team. This support team should be there for you no matter what happens. They should make sure you receive proper medical attention to ensure the health of you and your baby. A great addition to your support team may be other women who have experienced pregnancy. You are off to a great start by reading these stories. Search for support groups in your area or maybe find some online.
Remember, if you are facing an unexpected pregnancy, you are not alone. There are other women out there who are either currently facing an unexpected pregnancy or have faced one in the past. Seek out these women. They are all around you. I was surprised to find several women in my circle of friends who have faced an unexpected pregnancy.
For more information on unplanned pregnancies, see these links:
10 Facts about Unplanned Pregnancy
How to Accept an Unplanned Pregnancy
How to Deal With Unplanned Pregnancy
4 Unplanned Pregnancy Statistics
Emili Schurke is the youngest of three children. She was adopted when she was three years old. She has a huge heart for adoption and foster care. She currently resides with her parents and assists with the children in their care. Emili holds a special place in her heart for children with special needs. She works as a special education paraprofessional while she is pursuing her Masters in Teaching Special Education from Drury University. In 2018, she graduated with her Bachelors in Elementary Studies from College of the Ozarks, located in Point Lookout, Missouri. She is excited to share her adoption story with those around her.