Am I Ready to be a Parent
The test results are positive and the world stops as you try to see everything in perspective. You’ve got a lot to think about over the next several months. If you are struggling with the question of what to do after you find you are pregnant, the following are a few questions to ask yourself to determine whether or not you are ready to raise this child.
Ask yourself these questions:
- Am I able to give this child what he or she demands and needs?
- Would I have to count on my parents to help me out?
- Can I raise a child and meet my own needs? To finish school? To move forward in my career?
- Am I ready to become a good parent on my own?
- What do I want to achieve in life and experience out of life?
- Could I handle a child and a job and/or school at the same time?
- What would I need to sacrifice when this child comes into the world? Am I ready to give up the freedom to do what I please, on my own time?
- Am I willing to make adjustments or stay home while my friends go out?
- Would I miss my free time and privacy?
- Can I afford to support this child? How will I pay for housing, clothes, food, diapers, and other living expenses?
- Do I want to raise a child where I am living now? If not, where?
- Do I want my child to be like me?
- Am I expecting my child to make me happy and to love me?
- How do I feel when I’m around children all the time?
- How would I treat this child if I got angry?
- How would I discipline this child as it grows into a toddler?
- How would I take care of this child’s well being?
Source:
“Is Parenting For Me Now?,” Loving and Caring Inc.
Last updated: 12/2006