I am NOT in any way a professional. All this is from my point of view. I have never seen any list put together that states what our responsibilities are.
If any of you have... Please send them to E-mail me so that I may post them here.
So let's figure out together the answer here.
1. Watch out what you say! Think very carefully about what you say to your child before saying them... it could affect your future relationship with them.
2. Depending upon your child's age, your responsibilities are the same for you and your child. Assume this goes through the age of 18 years unless you know for a fact that your state has a different age.
3. I assume that you will need to find out how the babies birth will be covered.
a. Will your child's insurance cover the babies birth?
b. Will the father's parent's help pay for the costs?
c. Will you need to check into state aid?
4. Help your child find an understanding ob/gyn. You may feel comfortable with your doctor... but s/he may not be as nice to pregnant teenagers. Their attitude will definitely show and it does affect the attitude of your child's pregnancy.
5. Hopefully you won't have to also deal with this... but you need to find out if your child is taking any drugs. Not only drugs that are legal, but illegal ones but also abusing alcohol.
6. You would also want to find out how to help your child continue on through school. Many of the larger cities now have special educational programs for pregnant teens. Check out your daughters school system for any guidance. Talk about the importance of finishing school, even if this will cause things to be harder.
7. If your child decides that s/he wants to put the baby up for adoption, help him/her to find a good, honest lawyer to handle the legal responsibilities.
8. If you son is the father, find out what his plans are. Is he going to accept responsibility enough to help pay for his child? If so, does he need a job?
Personal note: Many times the boy isn't positive if the child is his. If there is any possibility that he could be the father, help him learn to act responsibly. My son started up a savings account for the baby when he learned the girl was pregnant. (Talk about shock... I didn't even suggest it or think of that. He did it all on his own. Actually, he talked to someone in Social Services, and they suggested it to him. I was shocked.) Sometimes they make us so proud. (G)
Please send me any others that you may think of that I haven't!!
