Ideally, a pregnancy is planned but often, that’s not the case. Data from the United Nations Population Fund reveals that 45% – 50% of all pregnancies are unintended. That’s a total of around 121 million ‘oopsies’ every year. For some, it comes as welcome surprise. Others see it as a huge shock.
One woman says when she started feeling dizzy and nauseous at work, she assumed her new medication was to blame. She wasn’t expecting a trip to the doctor to end with a positive pregnancy test. But it did. The woman’s husband had recently left her, and she’d ended up seeking a little too much comfort in the arms of a platonic friend. Now, she’s not sure how to tell him.
When her husband suddenly left her, it came as a huge shock… as did her positive pregnancy test a short while later
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Especially since the pregnancy was a result of a one-night stand with a “platonic” friend
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Netizens offered their advice, and many felt she should tell Larry about the pregnancy
The woman revealed that she’d told Larry about the pregnancy, and his reaction was a bit unexpected
A few people felt the woman’s story was fit for a romance movie
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“We’re not in love”: She later gave an update on her pregnancy and where things stood with Larry
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What are the chances of falling pregnant after a ONS? Here’s what the experts say…
“Pretty fast and furious” is how NCIS: New Orleans star Zoe McLellan describes her pregnancy. McLellan had told her then-boyfriend that she was looking to become a mom, and it happened right away. Quite unexpectedly. But not everyone falls pregnant that easily, or from a once-off encounter.
According to an ob/gyn Maureen Whelihan, out of the women who ‘try’ at least twice a week, 50% will be pregnant within three months, 75% will be pregnant in six months, 90% will be pregnant in one year, and 95% will be pregnant in two years.
Meanwhile, the BBC has previously reported that a single act of ‘fun between the sheets’ between a young couple has on average a one in 20 chance of pregnancy. “This assumes the opportunity presented itself on a random day, as these things tend do when you are young,” adds the site.
Profemina, a free counselling service for women who are facing an unintended pregnancy, reveals that pregnancy after a one-night stand (ONS) or a Tinder date, is not uncommon. “Of course, it is possible that one thing led to another, and contraception was the last thing on your mind. But this is not the norm,” the experts say.
They add that no form of contraception is completely foolproof, and that pregnancy, despite contraceptives, is quite common.
“There is no need to blame yourself or get reprimanded by others,” Profemina’s team advises. “Pregnancies can occur just as easily after a casual hook-up as in a relationship – Even if you never expected to get pregnant after a one-night stand.”
Pregnancy as a result of a one-night stand can come as a complete shock, and Profemina’s experts say it’s up to you how you choose to handle it, and whether or not you tell the baby’s father.
“Unless it was a Tinder-style arrangement, your one-night stand was probably not planned,” they explain. “You have the right to protect yourself, regardless of the situation. For now, it may be wise to keep the pregnancy to yourself until you are sure what you want.”
They add that many men want to know if they have fathered a child – because after all, it is their baby, too. “Our counseling experience has proven that co-parenting is possible outside of a relationship,” reveals the team. The experts say that even if the pregnancy was unintended, the father usually has certain obligations, such as paying child support.
“From a legal standpoint, there is no difference between a baby conceived within a steady relationship or [a one-night stand],” they add. “Lawmakers have the child’s best interest in mind – it should not be disadvantaged by the marital status of its parents.”
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Some expressed their surprise, while others preferred to give pregnancy advice
