im 17 in a month and a half
and i recently had a pregnancy scare
me and my partner were both scared but secretly excited
but the pregnancy test revealled negative
we were so relieved but then i got really upset
i guess i kinda hoped to be pregnant but me and my partner talked and were gonna wait til were 18

were both working and are getting good money for our age but i need advice to prepare for the future
i wanna make sure i get everything right and know all there is to know

i would say i'm experienced due to doin a childcare course and having 5 siblings to look after but i would ove any help and advice with things such as:dealing with pregnancy ...money matters ....what i would need for the baby.... and basically anything that would make this more enjoyable and relaxing

i look forward to hearing from you all

Hi There,

Well personally i would say you are mad planning for a baby at such a young age. you have your life ahead of you. I got pregnant at age 19 with my son who is now 7. Dont get me wrong i would not swop him for the world but if i could of chosen to have him a little later in life i would have jumped at the chance. At that age you think you and your partner are going to be together forever and that may well be the truth but do you not think you are better off waiting till you are fully prepared such as being married, having a house that you can afford which will provide security for both you and your child. A good job where by you can get good childcare or be in a position to be a stay at home mum.

You may have what you consider a good job for your age now, but 6/7 years down the line when your career doesnt seem as hot as it does now and all your friends are off travelling around the world and you are stuck in cause 1 you cant afford to go out and 2 your knackered from juggling kids, work and homelife. All im saying is that kids are a blessing and they can be the best thing in your life but they can also be the hardest thing you ever do, so if you have the luxury of planning it i would make sure you are in a comfortable position and you have accomplished whatever it is that you want to do with your life.

I had a great job when i got pregnant but what with juggling childcare and trying to get somewhere to live, it was very hard, unfortunatly i am not with my sons father now which i am not sayinng will be the case for you, but you are still very young,

Anyway thats my 2 cents thrown in.

My advice would be wait untill you are both about 25. I had a baby at 17, and it can hold you back from job oportunties as well as from having a life. What's the rush?

I'm 18 right now and pregnant with my first, I wasn't planning on having a baby this early but it seems the pills don't work very well.

Anyways my fiance and I both had very good paying jobs, considering neither of us have any education beyond highschool. Unfortunately, due to pregnancy related problems I was fired from work (my place of work has done this to all their pregnant employees that have complications i.e pre-eclampsia or having a hole in the amniotic sack) So now, I can't try to find another job since it has been deemed dangerous by my dr, and my fiance is stuck trying to pay all the bills with just his paycheck. This is not as simple as it may sound, you have to look into how much insurance would cost for the mother (in my case no one will touch me since pregnancy is pre-existing) and look at how much rent is, utilities, food, gas, and things needed for the baby. Let me tell you from experience, those aren't easy things to try and figure out how to pay. Personally, I was hoping that I could have waited another couple of years, while I finished at least 2 years of schooling, unfortunately that isn't how it turned out. Don't get me wrong, I am over joyed that I'm having a baby, but this would have been so much easier if I had a better education and more money coming in.

Also, there are a few more complications that can arise in younger pregnancies, such as pre-eclampsia, so those are things to look into before you decide on anything, and make sure to look at the fact that you might be forced to leave your job, so how will your fiance be about supporting you, will you have enough money to pay all your bills and survive at the same time? Also take into account that even after the baby is born, you won't be able to go back to work right away.

If you wait a few years though, go to school and get a degree you will be making a good deal more money. To get an idea of just how much more you can type in what occupation you want to go into, i.e nursing, vet tech, whatever, and see how much the average salary for that is, and you don't have to go to a four year, a two year is good to, you just make more money after a four year.

Anyways, if both of you went to a two year tech college and got a job then having a baby would be much easier and you would only have to wait a few more years.

ok brace yourself this is a super long post..

yes it can be done, i had my first at 18. i had alot of luck my side tho.
-we own a house because i had a $600,000 trust fund, and it all went to purchase, renovations and schooling. and the basemnet isnt finshed yet.
-i had my dream wedding at 21 because we made some good investments, and opened multiple savings accounts with high interest rates and gic's. we are rebuliding them now.
-my husband is apprenticing to be an electrical engineer, which consumes alot of his time. he started right out of highschool, and his mum had loaned us some of the $ to get him thru that.(we are still paying her back). i have to finsh my education to be a marine engineer i have one certificate but need to do my apprenticeship as well, and have a great big student loan for that.

so even after all that extra $ we still owe around $10,000 plus groceries, bills, etc and we are putting all of our kids child tax in savings for both of them.
-we have a car because his parents gave him one for a birthday present last year. mine went to car heaven.

so a few things to consider are what money do you have saved, what sources of income do you have? what sort of education do you both have, as it will play a huge factor in your future income. also if your in the u.s. you need to think about insurance.

im canadian, so these figures my differ from yours a bit, but this is your estimated cost for a baby's first year.

diapers $467.74
formula(breastfeeding doesnt always go as smoothly as planned)$832-1066 depending on the type
stroller/carseat $400 for a standard travel system, if you want a jogging stroller etc, expect to pay more
crib/ mattress $300+
bedding, blankets, clothes $1000
plus rent, food, bills, things for yourselves. gas& maintenace if you have a car.

i could have made it alot easier on myself by waiting, i am 21 now and have 2 kids. we rarely get to go out with friends or each other, we pretty much missed out on the party life your supposed to have in your late teens/early 20's.

its not impossible, but i hope that helps you put it into perspective.