INTRODUCTION

Dear Woman in Crisis,

I feel your pain, despair, confusion, and anger. It's okay to cry, to curse, and to shriek what you are feeling.

You feel frightened. Trapped. Hopeless. Unable to cope. You feel that your future is being destroyed by the child within you. Your baby's future or your own? How can you decide?

You need not choose between your future and your child's. You can both have a good future. You can both live well.

You will learn, like so many other women, that the enemy is not your baby. Instead, the enemy is fear, self-doubt, anger, pride, envy, and perfectionism.

Fear of rejection and self-doubt about making decisions, following through, and persisting when life gets hard. Anger about this unforeseen crisis and pride that makes you resist help and change. Envy of others' talents, time, and resources. Perfectionism, which believes that life should always be easy and always planned.

Maybe you're used to being a superwoman, handling things alone and helping others. Now is the time for others to help you and your baby. Many people are willing to help you. This book will tell you where to find those people and how to help yourself. Reach out to them!

Reach up! Expand yourself and your abilities. Almost two thousand years ago Paul of Tarsus wrote, "There are three things that last--faith, hope, and love." Not perfection. Not planning. In faith, hope, and love, reach for a brighter tomorrow. You will have it.

Reach deep! You have a hidden strength and this book will help you find it. Things you never dreamed of are within your power. Believe in yourself.

Love yourself. You have the ability to handle this pregnancy, to make good decisions, and to give birth, even if others are telling you "no."

Believe that you will emerge from this crisis a stronger, better woman. Because you will.

Madeline Pecora Nugent