Young, pregnant and in college a difficult, stressful combination

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“It will never happen to me,” that was my motto.

I truly believed it because I have experiences that would back that statement up, but things changed on a recent Wednesday night.

After going to Urgent Care for abdominal pains, I found out that I was pregnant, then was immediately sent to the ER on a doctor’s suspicions of an ectopic pregnancy.

After the discovery that the baby was fine, the shock set in.

I am going to be a mother.

The balancing act between 19 credit hours and a 32-hour-a-week job was about to become even more complicated.

Some may judge me for getting “knocked up,” but the fact of the matter is that it really can happen to anyone. Whether you’re super safe or not, if it’s your first time or 100th, it can happen — and it can happen surprisingly.

The real importance is that it is going to be a lot harder than anyone can imagine. I respect the single parents who still go to school and have a life beyond the classroom and I hope people will hold the same respect for me.

It takes a strong person to raise a child on their own and balance school and work along with it. The people who manage to successfully do this amaze me.

It is not fair to judge someone just because they are pregnant or have a child. Just because they went out and were doing the same thing every other college student does and actually had to suffer a consequence because of it does not make them a bad person.

I don’t know how I’m going to balance my motherhood with work and classes, but I have faith that I will figure it out. I only have a little over one year left in school, so I do know that I will be taking advantage of any daycare and pregnancy services.

Some people are not supportive of my pregnancy, but that is only a shame for them. They will miss out on being involved in this child’s life. It should be understood that telling a person that they are disappointed in them does not make the pregnancy go away, it only hurts that person.

I know that it is going to be a rough road for me here on out, but it is not going to stop me from pursuing my dreams. I only wish people would understand that just because I am pregnant does not mean my hopes and dreams are going down the drain. It just means things will be a lot more difficult to accomplish.

I am just lucky that I have a supportive community of friends here, and my heart goes out to the many who do not because I do not know what I would do without them.