Pregnancy

Finding out that you are pregnant may give rise to very different feelings for different people. Some people may feel excited and happy, others may feel scared and uncertain. All of these feelings are normal.

If you are pregnant there are four choices available to you:

• Keeping the pregnancy and having the baby
• Abortion
• Adoption
• Fostering

If the pregnancy was unplanned the decision about what to do can be a very difficult one. You may need to consider your age, relationship with the father, family, financial situation, housing, and cultural factors amongst others. You can get advice and support with decision making from your GP as well as friends and family.

Continuing the pregnancy

If you want to continue the pregnancy, you should go to your GP as soon as possible to begin your ante-natal care (care leading up to the birth of the baby). They will arrange appointments with the midwife and scans as necessary.

The GP and midwife will give you lots of information about how to care for yourself and your growing baby during pregnancy.

This will include:

• Taking folic acid during the first twelve weeks of pregnancy (a supplement which is available to buy from most pharmacies and supermarkets)
• Avoid drugs and alcohol
• Avoid smoking and cigarette smoke
• Eating healthily and taking regular gentle exercise