Supporting Teens Through Unplanned Pregnancy: Top Tips and Resources

For teens still in the process of forming their identity, an unplanned pregnancy can feel disorienting and overwhelming, and many struggle with knowing how to cope. Mental health support helps bring that weight into the open, offering a way to process it without pressure or judgment.

When helping teens with unplanned pregnancy, emotional care is just as important as medical care. Whether through therapy, group support, or steady encouragement at home, the right kind of help can make the path ahead feel less overwhelming – and more possible. 

Here’s what can help with a pregnant teen’s emotional and mental health during an unplanned pregnancy:

One-on-One Therapy

For many teens, one-on-one therapy is a lifeline. It gives them a space that isn’t loaded with judgment, pressure, or expectation. Whether they feel scared, ashamed, conflicted, or numb, effective therapy offers a place to start working through it all with someone who isn’t a parent, partner, or peer.

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach. The kind of therapy a teen connects with often depends on what they’re struggling with most, and what kind of support they’re ready for.

Here are a few approaches that may be beneficial when helping teens with unplanned pregnancy:

Teen Pregnancy Counseling with Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT)

CBT helps teens unravel the negative thought loops that often accompany an unexpected pregnancy – like believing they’ve ruined everything or that no one will understand. It focuses on identifying those beliefs, looking at where they come from, and learning how to shift them. 

CBT also teaches coping strategies for anxiety, panic, sleep issues, and decision paralysis. This makes it a practical choice when a teen feels emotionally stuck. Interestingly, research indicates that CBT given to new mothers by people who have previously recovered from postpartum depression may prevent future psychiatric illness in their children.⁸

Interpersonal Therapy (IPT)

Relationships often become complicated after a pregnancy, especially for teens. A systematic review found IPT helpful in treating teens with depression, which is something many pregnant teens suffer with.⁹ 

IPT helps them navigate shifting dynamics with partners, friends, and family. It’s useful when a teen feels isolated, misunderstood, or caught between people’s expectations. This therapy can also help teens talk about loss, change, or grief around the pregnancy, whether they’re parenting or considering other options.

Trauma-Informed Therapy

Research indicates that pregnancy can lead to retraumatization of teens who’ve had a difficult past.¹⁰ Not every teen arrives at pregnancy through consensual or safe experiences. Trauma-informed therapy offers a gentle, non-invasive approach for teens who’ve experienced abuse, coercion, or past trauma. It focuses on building safety, restoring a sense of control, and helping the teen reconnect with their body and emotions at their own pace. This is especially important for teens who shut down emotionally or feel dissociated.

Peer Group Support

Sometimes helping teens with unplanned pregnancy is about helping them connect with other teens going through similar things. It’s less lonely when you don’t feel like the only one facing a big life change, and research backs this up. 

One study found that pregnant teens found value in connecting with their peers who were in similar situations via online message boards. In these instances, communication was more community-centered than focused on gathering pregnancy-related information.¹¹

We offer guided peer groups that keep things safe and focused, so teens can talk openly, ask questions, and get encouragement without pressure.

School Counselors and Virtual Options

Not every teen can make it to weekly in-person sessions. That’s where school-based counselors or teletherapy can help. Some just need someone to check in with regularly, on their terms, in their space. Mission Prep offers flexible, virtual therapy sessions built around teen schedules, so support is there, whether they’re at home, at school, or on the move.

Each of these approaches can help in different ways, and teens don’t have to understand them fully to benefit. At Mission Prep, therapists draw from these methods based on what the teen needs most, not a rigid formula. The point isn’t to push teens toward a decision. It’s to give them space to feel, reflect, and take back a sense of agency, one session at a time.