Is 19 too young to get pregnant?

Question

i'm 19 and have been with my boyfriend for 3 years. we have recently bought a house together and had previously been living together for a year. Is it too soon to be thinking about having children? I have always wanted to be quite young when i have kids as my parent were young and we really get on. I would really like to hear everyone's views on this please.

I would like to add in response to some answers that i have a good job as a mortgage advisor and we are financially stable enough.
Also i would like to add that we have a date set in our minds to get married but it is not for a few years as ideally i would like to have my kids at the wedding with us to make it extra special.
Thanks for your comments so far you are all really helpful.

Answer 1

nope I think its the perfect age biologically. But it may be a strain financially

Answer 2

19 is very young. I just turned 29 and had my son at 27...not saying you should wait that long, but I was a much different person at 27 than I was at 19. The older you get, the more you've lived and experienced...it all molds and grooms you to be a mother. I say go ahead with your wedding, be married for a year or two THEN have kids. Enjoy each other as husband and wife for a while. See movies, travel, save some money, sleep in....be a young, duel income married couple for a while and enjoy b/c you'll never have the same kind of intimacy again. Even though you've been living together, being married is TOTALLY different!!! I was with my husband for 6 years(living together for 2 of those 6) and I didn't think it would be any different....why would it right? Wrong! I can't articulate exactly why it's different, you'll see for yourself. At least, that's what I'd suggest to my little sister who's about your age. Good luck!

Answer 3

sounds like you are financially stable enough. Will you become a full time mum or will you return to work? it would obviously be nice for you to be able to stay at home for as long as poss. But generaly if thats what both of you want then go for it. But be prepared that having children can change the way your relationship works and put pressure on you both. You could spend the first year or so just as a couple together then start a family. I became a mum at 18 and although i would NOT change her for the wrld i wish me and my partner had had some time on our own for nice holidays etc. (it just isnt the same with kids in tow) But i too now want all my kids at my wedding if i get married.
Up to you in the end. Good luck whatever you choose to do. A child is the greatest gift so make sure you do whats right for you all.
Oh and to all those who told you to get married first, its time they got with the modern way of living. Marraige is just a piece of paper and yes its a lovely commitment but NOT essential straight away. All this maraige before kids stuff is ok if thats how you want to do things but not everyone wants to do it like that and shouldnt be made to feel like thats what they should do.

Answer 4

This depends. I was 21 with baby #1 (I wanted to be a young mom). I am now 26 with three. There are things to be sure of first.
Are you done partying?
Ready to put somone elses wants and needs before your own?
Financially stable enough to stay home at least part time to raise your baby(if not, full time)?
Do you think sleep is way over rated?
Ready to put spontaneous adventures on hold for a bit.
There are pluses to starting young. When Im 40, my youngest will be 18. Still young enough to have a life. In fact when Im 35, they will be doing sleepovers. I got all my parting and wildness out when I was young. I was ready to be a mom.
But, there is no rush, makes sure you really want this. You cant go back for a refund.
Having children makes everything funner. I can actually play at Chuckee Cheese.

Best wishes.

Answer 5

Don't become a statistic. When you are 19, being with a guy for 3 years seems like a long term thing. But 3 years isn't enough to make that kind of leap.

You still have time to be a young parent. Spend a couple more years establishing your relationship and building a SOLID foundataion for the kids. You will be glad you did.

Answer 6

if you want a kid and you are in a stable relationship with a good home then go for it. some women who have gone out and gotten their careeers then decided to stop and have children at 36 wonder why they are having trouble conceiving. 18-24 is prime health for having kids. its the best age.
young mums are great.
just know being a mum is a selfless thing so you have to be ready to give up a lot of the things you take for granted now, you won't be able to spend more than five minutes doing your make up. and also your relationship with your man will change also.. you two will be more focused on the baby than each other. it takes a strong relationship to survive this..
which brings me to say - Marriage is preetty important, even though you may think you are comitted now. what being married does to your bond and love is out of this world.
kids can be more expensive than a wedding.
I had a small wedding and got pregnant a week later.
the world is tellign everyone get that degree, have kids later.. there will be whole lot of people with degrees and no children. you don't need a degree to me a mum.. and its the best job in the world.

Answer 7

I think so. I'm 29 and had my first child last year. All of my other friends had children earlier. What I'm grateful for is that I had my young adult life (18-28) to do all the things I wanted. I travelled, clubbed, and got all that partying out of my system and now i'm settled. That's the best time to have children - when you're settled and have gotten that party mode our of your system.

If you're not the partying type, then maybe you might feel different. But how about having a couple years with just you and your boyfriend before you rush into having kids. My fiance and I miss the "us" time sometimes because now it's really all about our daughter. And if you're a good parent, you'll be the same way.

Wait a few years. You're only 19. Waiting until like 23 isn't going to be detrimental. I think you're be happy you did.

Answer 8

I think you know when it feels right to become a parent - age shouldn't have to be an issue (unless you're under the age when you're allowed to have sex or your body says your too old). You sound sensible enough with a stable environment for a baby to be brought up in and also in a long term relationship - more than some babies have that are already born into this uncertain world! Discuss this with your partner - and make sure you both feel ready for this responsibility, as although parenting is very rewarding - it is very tiring and can strain relationships.

I hope everything works out for you - take care!

Answer 9

First of you dont need to be married to have a kid, 19 isnt to young for some but for others 30 is to young. You have a long term relationship and have bought a house which a lot of people cant afford. Can you afford anther expense right now? Also truly think about your relationship, is it strong engouh to take on the stress and emtional and lets face it physical changes that it will bring. Make sure you guys talk about it and think about it besides always wanting to be a young mom. Make sure there are many reasons why.

Answer 10

Hon, I had my first baby at age 19. It worked really well for me. The next one came 7 yrs later. Both are girls. It's awesome in so many ways, because I had them fairly young, I have my "freedom" now. They're both grown adults now, and some of my other friends are just starting to have kids. I can't even fathom that. I'm a grammie, and my friends have babies the age of my Granddaughter. I can take trips, and only worry about my cat, not about little kids. It's different for everyone, and I can only tell you my girls and I shop together, we have so much fun. If I had to do it over again, I would. Good luck honey. ~~~~ PS, to the person that said, what NO education.........I became a Nurse/Midwife after my second child was born. I was lucky enough to be able to take my girls to births, and one of my daughter's is also a nurse, and the other works as a Keebler Rep. So, it's however one chooses to do it. !!~~~~~

Answer 11

I dunno. I think only you can really decide this for yourself. I had my first at 18. The father and I had our own home and he worked to support us. (I stayed at home with our son. Which was our decision. My mom was a sahm so I wanted to be there for my kids like she was for me) We had a lot of struggles, emotionally and financially. We also had our 2nd child when I was 20, and twins when I turned 22. (We got married when #2 was 8 months old. We only postponed the wedding a year from the original date we set. I wanted to be able to wear my dress and get married around our anniversary). Even though we had a lot of struggles, I don't regret a moment of it. That's life. Besides, going through all those struggles and still remaining together has only made us stronger and better parents to our kids. I was never the partying type and I never had ambitions to "see the world" and all that before having children. I always knew that I wanted my kids young and that I wanted them close in age. I also knew I wanted to stay home with them until they were in school. I don't regret those choices at all. I'm actually in my 2nd year of Culinary Arts school right now and when I graduate all of my kids will be in school. So the timing worked perfect for us. Plus when our twins are 18. I will only be 40 and still young enough to go out and travel the world if we decide to. My mom has even told me numerous times that she wishes she had me and my brother younger so she had as much energy as I do with my kids. I think she just wishes she had enough energy to keep up with the grandkids now though LOL.

I say if you are emotionally, physically and financially ready, then go for it. Only you and your bf know if that is true for you both though.