CHILDREN BY CHOICE ASSOCIATION INCORPORATED

I think I'm pregnant ?

If you are thinking or worried that you are pregnant, the first step is to confirm if you are pregnant or not.  A pregnancy can be confirmed in a number of ways, including home pregnancy testing, or seeing a doctor for a blood test and physical examination.  Early symptoms of pregnancy include breast sensitivity, nausea, frequent urination and fatigue, as well as missing your period.  Some women experience none and some women experience all of these symptoms.

Home pregnancy tests can be bought from supermarkets, chemists, or posted to you from a telephone or internet order.  Read all the instructions in the packet before you do the test and follow the instructions carefully.  Home pregnancy tests are very accurate - they work best when you test your urine first thing in the morning, when the concentration of the hCG hormone would be the highest.  For the test to work, the body must be producing enough of this hormone to be detectable with a urine test.  This should happen about 15-19 days after you have had unprotected sex or a contraceptive failure.   

If you don't have your period when you are expecting it to happen, it is a very common sign that you are pregnant, and it would be best to use a pregnancy test.  However, some women do get their period or bleeding like a period even though they may be pregnant.  If you have any doubt, take a pregnancy test.  Pregnancy tests will still work if you are taking contraceptives or antibiotics.  Some fertility drugs do interfere with the test.

Blood tests can detect hCG at lower levels - so can be done sooner.  Even if you have used a home pregnancy test, it is best to have the pregnancy confirmed by a doctor.  If you have done a pregnancy test but still think you might be pregnant, you can wait for a few days and test again, or ask a doctor to refer you for a blood test.  Levels of the hCG hormone do vary between women and between pregnancies.

If within the past 120 hours you had unprotected sex, or your contraception may have failed, emergency contraception may be an option to consider if you want to reduce the risk of a pregnancy occurring.

If you are pregnant you have a number of choices to consider.  For some people the decision will be clear, and others may be unsure which choice to make.  These are three choices to consider:

Abortion - terminating the pregnancy.  Be aware that you need to decide quite quickly if you want to have an abortion.  The availability, cost and locations of having an abortion change as your gestation increases.  

Adoption - continuing with the pregnancy and adopting.  An adoption order can only take place after the child is born.

Parenting - continuing with the pregnancy and becoming a parent.

If you are unsure of how to decide you may like to click on Making a decision.

It can be hard to tell important people in your life about your pregnancy. For tips on how to have this conversation, click here.

If you are not pregnant, and you do not want to fall pregnant, this may be a good opportunity to look at the many options available for contraception. 

If you want to fall pregnant you may wish to explore issues relating to fertility through the Australian National Fertility Group, the Qld Fertility Group, Wesley Monash IVF or City Fertility.

Important note: The gestation of the pregnancy is calculated from the first day of your most recent normal menstrual period (this tells you how many weeks the pregnancy is).  It can be important to calculate the gestation as accurately as possible, to ensure timely access to termination services or antenatal visits.  Your GP or Family Planning Doctor can assist you to calculate gestation.