Crisis Intervention for the Pregnant Teen

The first stage in a crisis, called the initial phase, is characterized by anxiety and confusion. Thus, the first
step in crisis intervention in many teenaged pregnancies often happens when a significant adult in the
teenager’s life recognizes a change in behavior and questions the girl about it. However, mental health
professionals recommend gentle confrontation during this phase (Blau, 1996). For example, a pregnant
teenager might be reminded that it isn’t possible to keep a pregnancy secret for very long, but this is
clearly not the time to bombard them with questions such as “How are you going to support a baby?
What about school? Are you going to go to college?”

The second stage of a crisis, the escalation phase, happens as the teenager begins to try to confront the
crisis. In many cases, adolescents in this phase feel too overwhelmed to maintain daily functions such as
getting to school and keeping track of homework. Teens in this phase may be responsive to helpers who
simplify their decision making by directly telling them what to do. For example, a pregnant teen’s
mother may make a doctor’s appointment for her and see that she keeps it instead of nagging her to do
it herself.

The third stage of a crisis is called the redefinition phase. Those who are providing emotional support for
the pregnant teen in this stage can help by guiding her through the process of breaking the problem
down into small pieces. For a teen who wants to raise her baby, counselors or parents can divide the
decisions to be made into financial and educational categories.

They can help the teen identify short-term and long-term goals in each category and assist her in finding
the answers to important questions. For example, in the financial category, the girl must find out how
much financial support she can expect to receive from the baby’s father. With respect to continuing her
education, she must determine the available day-care options. Teens who leave the redefinition phase
with a realistic plan of action are typically no longer in a crisis mode. However, teens who fail to redefine
their problem appropriately enter the fourth crisis stage, the dysfunctional phase. In this stage, either
the pregnant adolescent gives up hope or she goes into denial. The goal of crisis intervention is to
prevent either of the stage-four outcomes. Yet the entire process probably depends on whether a
pregnant teen has a sensitive adult in her life who will recognize the signs of the initial phase—just one
more reason why teenagers, who may seem very grown up, still need warm, authoritative parenting.