If you are experiencing an unplanned or unintended pregnancy, you are not alone. Each year in the United States, more than 3 million pregnancies are unintended, and worldwide, nearly 30% of all pregnancies are unplanned. In today’s post, we will discuss some of these numbers, their implications, and what AIM Adoptions is doing to help.
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Unplanned Pregnancy Statistics
The Facts About Unplanned Pregnancies
Unplanned pregnancies represent nearly 30% of all pregnancies worldwide and are considered to be an epidemic here in the United States where nearly 3 million pregnancies each year are unplanned. Most unplanned pregnancies are not the result of failed birth control, but due to the absence of the use of contraceptives. Most of these unplanned pregnancies are in situations where parents did not want to get pregnant, but did not actively avoid it. Unplanned pregnancies occur in teen mothers, unwed couples, and married couples alike, although the numbers are much higher in teens and couples who live in poor socioeconomic areas.
Unplanned pregnancies include both those that are unwanted and those that are mistimed. Meaning that of the 3 million unplanned pregnancies, approximately 40% were to women who wanted children, but were not trying to get pregnant at the time — mistimed. And, the other 60% are to those who never wanted children or pregnancy. Of all of the unwanted pregnancies, 42% result in abortion and 58% result in live birth. Of those 58% of pregnancies that are carried through, nearly one-third of the mothers considered adoption, but only half of that one-third took any action toward it.
Implications of Unwanted Pregnancies
Unplanned pregnancies create a considerable amount of stress for the parents who did not intend a pregnancy. Furthermore, nearly 60% of unplanned pregnancies are also unwanted pregnancies and it is this population that poses a significant threat to the health and welfare of both the pregnant woman and the unborn child. 92% of the more than 1.5 million abortions that are performed in the United States each year are the result of unwanted pregnancy and less than 4% of unwanted pregnancies result in adoption. The horrifying truth about these numbers is that there are more than 2 million qualified couples waiting to adopt a child in the United States, many of whom will either adopt from the overflowing foster care system (which is undoubtedly filled by unwanted pregnancies), or will adopt from out of the United States. For every abortion performed in the United States AND every child in the foster care system, there is a family looking to adopt a child.
If you are one of the 3 million pregnant women who is facing an unplanned or unwanted pregnancy, consider placing your child for adoption to one of the 2 million families who are searching for a child to love as their own. You can avoid abortion and rest easy knowing that your child is well cared for and won’t end up in the US foster system. At AIM Adoptions, our mission is to pair women facing unwanted pregnancies with a family who is eagerly awaiting adoption. We help with everything related to the pregnancy and can help turn your unwanted predicament into an event that saves lives and completes families. For more information about the adoption process and resources, contact us today.