Counseling and Support for Unplanned Pregnancy
When you find yourself facing an unplanned pregnancy, you may not know where to turn for help and support. It can be incredibly overwhelming and scary to be faced with the big decisions regarding what to do next. Adoption Choices Colorado provides counseling services free of charge to anyone facing an unplanned pregnancy
It is normal to feel terrified and unsure in the event of an unplanned pregnancy. Trying to sort through your emotions and make choices that are best for you can be incredibly hard to do alone. Our trained counselors will work with you to help you understand, and sort through what you’re thinking and feeling and make practical choices regarding the next steps to take. Our counselors understand how important a support network is to helping you make the decision that is truly best for you. Getting counseling and support for your unplanned pregnancy is a crucial step you can take right now to take care of yourself during this unprecedented time.
Who?
Adoption Choices Colorado provides free counseling to anyone facing an unplanned pregnancy, as well as any birth fathers or close friends and family who are supporting you in this process. Our counselors are specifically trained to provide support and counseling for those navigating an unplanned pregnancy. You do not have to have decided on adoption yet to use our services.
What?
Counseling is highly individualized to your needs. However, in general, our counselors will offer a safe space for you to talk through all your thoughts and feelings around your unplanned pregnancy. It can be both frightening and isolating to be facing this unexpected life change, and it can be deeply reassuring to be able to talk about it with someone who is offering care and support rather than judgment or their own fear.
Your counselor can also help you talk through the pros and cons of different choices and what your desires are going forward. We support all birth mothers in choosing whatever option works best for them. Talking through this process with a trained provider, who is an expert in working with people in the same situation as you, can be really clarifying and reassuring. Our counselors are also able to give you more information about adoption specifically, the different types of plans available to you, and potential next steps. Utilizing our counselors gives you this added benefit, whereas some resources that provide counseling and support for unplanned pregnancy may not be able to provide you with the resources to understand the practicalities of choosing adoption in its many forms and will need to refer you elsewhere.
How?
Contact us to schedule a time to talk with one of our counselors. We are providing full services right now even amidst the COVID-19 pandemic in order to support you fully during this unprecedented time. We will respond to your inquiry promptly and find a time that works for you so that you can get the support you need in this time. Counseling services are always free of charge.
Why?
We are dedicated to supporting you in every way we can throughout your unplanned pregnancy. We have been providing empathetic and empowering care to birth mothers in Colorado since 2002. Our team is committed to listening with care and compassion and to assisting you throughout this process. Sometimes it is difficult to get unbiased and unconditional support from close family and friends during this time due to their own emotional reactions. Counseling allows you to have a safe space in which to fully express how you’re feeling, without needing to worry about impact or judgment.
Similarly, our counselors are not here to try and convince you of any particular path or decision. We want to provide you with the education and resources necessary for you to make an informed decision about practical next steps in the process. If you do choose to pursue adoption with our agency, you can continue to use our free counseling services during and after this process.
Counseling and Support for your Unplanned Pregnancy
During this confusing time, getting support is so important for your emotional health and well-being. You are not alone on this journey.We are here with resources and counselors to support you in whatever areas you most need. Our services allow you to talk through your stress, confusion, and fear, as well as your needs and desires. Taking care of yourself when facing an unplanned pregnancy is so important.
Adoption Choices Colorado is here to help you in this process and provide you with a safe place to express your emotions and find practical resources to help you pursue whatever next steps you need to. We are always fully supportive of your choices in this process and want to provide you with the professional counseling and education you need to support you in making decisions that are the best for you going forward.
If you are facing an unplanned pregnancy and want to learn more about your adoption options, contact Adoption Choices of Colorado by email, phone, or text: Email Us, Text us: 720-371-1099, Call us: 303-670-4673 (HOPE). If you are hoping to adopt, please contact us here.
Meet the Author: Kara Bringewatt is an English major and psychology minor at Queens University of Charlotte. She plans to get her masters in social work and work at a nonprofit as a case manager for at-risk youth. She loves using writing as a means of creating community and bringing attention to causes she’s passionate about.
Kara is particularly interested in educational and mental health interventions for young people in foster care. She’s worked as a tutor, professional caregiver, preschool teacher and acting instructor, and loves being able to utilize her wide range of passions to support young people and plans on being a foster and adoptive parent.
Stephanie joined the Adoption Choices family in 2014 as the Child Placement Supervisor. Her love for adoption began in first grade when she made friends with twins adopted from Vietnam. Her heart grew strong over the years for adopted children and ultimately led her to graduate school where she continued her focus to her dream of working in the adoption field. Stephanie earned a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Denver in 2001. Over the past 15 years, Stephanie has worked as a pregnancy counselor and as an adoptive parent counselor for foster care, international adoption and domestic adoption, writing hundreds of home studies for families, and helping build their forever families. Stephanie is married and has three boys ages 12, 9, and 5. Together with her family she enjoys riding bike, playing games, watching her three sons compete in their various sporting and musical activities and go on vacations.
Christy Ikeler, is our Executive Director and Birth Parent Director. Christy has been with Adoption Choices Team for 18 years, since opening the doors in 2002! Christy has a true passion for what she does and her true love is working with and helping each birth parent. Whether she is up all night on the phone talking with them, taking them to doctors appointments, out for their favorite treat, providing counseling or at the hospital during labor and delivery, Christy is very involved every step of the way. She has a contagious laugh and a spunky personality that our birth moms all can bond with and relate to. As an adoptive parent herself, adoption holds a very special place in her heart and she can relate on every level with both birth parents and adoptive parents. In her free time Christy loves spending time with her daughter, gardening, baking and taking vacations with her family. Christy is an excellent leader for our team at Adoption Choices and is truly one of a kind!! As Executive Director, Christy spends time with the staff, birth parents and adoptive families in order to ensure that the agency is running smoothly. She has placed a huge emphasis on community outreach and programs for birth parents. Christy loves the opportunity to lead the agency into a brighter future.
Ms. Mackenzie has built a successful counseling career over the past 20 years, supporting mothers and families, people of all ages and genders, students, community professionals and fellow clinicians. Liv values a diverse professional focus, including the entrepreneurial life of a sole proprietor, the evaluative process of certifying foster/adoptive homes, the insightful and mindful one-on-one one work with enthusiastic clients, and serving as an advocate for underserved populations. Liv is a Licensed Professional Counselor and holds a BA in Pre-Law and Economics from American University, an MA in Counseling from Adams University and a certificate in Human Resource Management from Villanova University. Away from work you will find Liv spending time in nature, biking to the farmer’s market and adventuring with her family.
Catherine A. Madsen, joined the Adoption Choices family as legal counsel in 2013. Catherine is responsible for providing legal guidance to the Agency, training and updating staff on developments in adoption law and legislation, and program development. Catherine
Virginia Frank is an adoption attorney accredited since 1991 with the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys. Ms. Frank is a leader in the field of private adoption and has completed over 4,000 adoptions in her career. Ms. Frank has a law degree from Oklahoma City University and a BA in both Political Science and Communications from the University of Oklahoma.
Cassidie has been with Adoption Choices since 2015, she has her bachelors in Interdisciplinary Affairs with concentrations in both Sociology and Business Management. Cassidie has additional training in Victim Advocacy, foster care and has been working in women’s services for over 10 years. Cassidie has always had a heart for adoption and it was her career dream to work in adoption. She started off doing volunteer work for advocacy programs, adoption organizations and worked in High Risk Maternal Fetal Medicine through the University of Colorado Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Colorado. Cassidie is also blessed to have personally experienced an adoption of her own in 2012, completing her family of five! Cassidie loves what she does as a case worker from initial phone calls, meetings, doctor appointments, interaction with the adoptive families to delivery and counseling. Cassidie has a passion for those in need and strives to help make a difference in the lives of the people she meets. She is a firm believer in being kind, compassionate and open minded in all situations. “Unless you’ve walked in their shoes, there’s no place for judgment. A kind word or compliment can go a long way!” The bittersweet moments in adoption reminds Cassidie each and every time, why she loves what she does!