How to Tell Your Parents You're Pregnant

By Tashianna Munford, 17, Staff Writer

Originally Published: Jul 17, 2008

Revised: Jul 17, 2008

When I was about 10 years old, my 15-year-old sister found out she was pregnant. It was difficult for me to understand what was going on, but I did. Of course, it was even more difficult for my sister to tell my mom. My mom wanted my sister to finish high school, establish a career and get her life on the right track before thinking about having kids. My mom was upset for a while, but in the long run she was there to help my sister get through this.

Adapted from karindalziel

Creative Commons Attribution License

My sister chose to have her baby. Seeing her raise a child on her own, I understand how difficult it is. No matter what age you are or how grown up you may think you are, you still need a strong support system to raise a child.

It is hard to tell your parents or guardians that you’re pregnant or that your girlfriend is pregnant, but telling them too late means you or your girlfriend won’t get much needed care—whether you or she chooses to continue the pregnancy or not. So, I decided to pull together some tips for helping you through this difficult conversation.

Seek outside help from a counselor or other trusted adult. Telling her or him will be good practice for telling your parents. Planned Parenthood provides counseling and can answer your questions about adoption, abortion and teen parenting. Find a low-cost, confidential clinic near you or call 1-800-230-PLAN (7526) to find a Planned Parenthood near you.
Include the guy who’s responsible for the pregnancy, too—whether he’s your boyfriend or not. You didn’t get pregnant by yourself. And if you’re the guy, support your partner. Being there when you talk to both of your parents and going with her to see the doctor are just two ways that you can help.
Get your partner and both of your parents or guardians together for a meeting. Tell them face-to-face as soon as you find out. Listen to what they have to say and use the information to figure out what your next step will be.
Have a backup plan, especially if you don’t know how your parents or guardians will react. Before you break the news to your parents or guardians, tell another trusted adult that you are worried about what will happen and ask this person to check on you after you to talk to your parents or guardians. Ask a close family member or other trusted adult to take you in if you get kicked out. You can also contact your local youth shelter or the National Runaway Switchboard at 1-800-RUNAWAY (786-2929). While very few parents or guardians would put their child out on the street, it’s best to be prepared if you believe it may happen to you.

Your parents will probably be disappointed, but they hopefully will be right by your side. If you want their support, you’ve got to take the first step and tell them that you’re pregnant or your girlfriend is pregnant.

Get more info on your options and talking to your parents about being pregnant. Got more questions? Ask our experts or come to our next chat.

Your Comments

re: I am pregnant

Posted by: CJT on Jan 12th, 2010 11:58am

In addition for the tips in the article, you may find some
help from the website http://www.momdadimpregnant.com It's
hard to know how parents will react to this sort of news,
but particularly when you're young it's really helpful to
have adult support as you figure out your own options and
what choices will feel right for you.

i am pregnant

Posted by: omgiampregnant on Jan 9th, 2010 8:35am

you might not belive it but im 13 and pregnant how do i
tell my parents i have no idea how they will react??? does
anybody have any ideas??

I Don't Know How To Tell My Parents?

Posted by: confusedidk3 on Dec 8th, 2009 2:54am

So, I recently found out that I am pregnant...and well I
have to tell my parents. But the thing is that I have
already been pregnant once before and had an abortion. When
I did tell my parents about that pregnancy they were
FURIOUS. So how do I tell them this time? I know they are
going to be mad and devastated. Thanks --

MY COUSIN

Posted by: DISHA on Oct 28th, 2009 4:27pm

WHEN MY COUSIN WAS 16 SHE GOT PREGNANT AND SHE DIDNT TELL
HER MOTHER UNTIL SHE WAS 6 MONTHS PREGNANT IN THE LONG RUN
THIS AFFECTED HER AND HER CHILD BECAUSE SHE WASNT EATING AND
NEITHER WAS HER CHILD. SHE DECIDED THAT SHE WASNT GOING TO
GIVE HER CHILD UP FOR AN ADOPTION AND SHE WAS GOING TO KEEP
HER CHILD NOW HER BABY BOY IS 6MONTHS OLD AND IS HEALTHY AS
CAN BE AND SHE IS HAPPY THAT HER SON IS OKAY

Sister...

Posted by: Domonique on Sep 30th, 2009 10:00pm

My sister got pregnant with her baby when she was 15. The
dad was a guy from school. They only did it one time with no
protection and she was pregnant. The guy left and never
answered calls or even talked to her. On her own, she
decided to keep the baby. When she told my parents, she was
crying. And my parents were angry with her. Also upset and
they felt so let down and betrayed. They yelled at her
numerous times about how foolish it was. But they ended up
helping her raising a handsome boy! <3

RE: my baby Traeh..

Posted by: DanR on Jun 15th, 2009 1:41pm

It sounds like you have given this a lot of thought. Have
you ever considered adoption as an option? There are many
types of adoption, and some even allow you to still be a
part of the child's life in some way. If you haven't made
up your mind 100% yet, check out this link:
http://www.pregnancyoptions.info. I am sure none of this
has been easy on you, but I am glad that you are putting a
lot of consideration into your future and the future of your
baby. Best of Luck to you!

my baby Traeh..

Posted by: brehnlynn on Jun 14th, 2009 6:29pm

I am an 18 year old soon to be parent. My baby is due in
less than 2 months. It might seem like such a wonderful
thing but its not. I do not believe in abortion and I
refused to do it to this precious life inside of me. Even
though I am 18 years of age I still am not mature enough to
be having a baby. I am terribly afraid of ruining my babys
life and not giving her everything she should have. The
daddy is no where to be heard of and me and my single parent
mother are doing this on our own. I wis

I'm so glad...

Posted by: xtrole on Apr 26th, 2009 10:27pm

It's so cool that your sister had her baby and didn't abort
it.Innocent life is so beautiful and it is amazing to see
the development of the human life. Every person ever
conceived is unique and amazing. An abortion stops the
beautiful process of life and it's sad that so many people
feel they should choose it. Choose life! :D

RE: how...

Posted by: DanR on Mar 18th, 2009 9:07am

In addition to the points made above, I would also suggest
having a friend or another relative there with you when you
tell your mum. That way you will have someone there to
support you if she does get super angry. I also want to
stress the point above about having a back up plan.
Remember, this is not going to be easy for your mum to hear,
and she may get upset, but hopefully you can work through it
together to the point that she supports whatever decision
you make. Good Luck!

how...

Posted by: ilovejimbo4eva on Mar 14th, 2009 7:24am

how do i tell my mum if i know she's gonna get really really
angry and probably do something stupid??