Students balance class, parenthood
Lacey Haggan was a freshman at College of Southern Idaho three years ago when found out she was pregnant. One of the first things that came to her mind how she could continue her college career.
“(I said) there’s no way I can stay in school,” Haggan said.
Haggan, a senior majoring in communications studies, said although being pregnant in college was challenging, because she had to give up a lot of things, it was also a motivating experience.
“When I got pregnant I decided that college wasn’t just an option for me, it was a priority,” Haggan said. “I wasn’t going to skip class. But the things that made college fun, I had to forfeit a lot of those to make sure I was taking care of myself and my body.”
She said her friends and family were supportive when she got pregnant. Both she and her sister, Sheree Haggan, took the same classes to help Lacey with homework, and her mother quit her job to take care of the baby while Haggan went to classes, she said.
“I gave birth to my son on Sunday and I was like, ‘Oh, crap, I have school tomorrow, guess I can’t go,'” she said.
Haggan went back to school the next Monday, she said.
She said although she did not receive any help from her son’s father when she was pregnant, she recognized she was not alone. As a single mother, she said she takes her son to volleyball games, basketball games and other school activities because they are usually free. This allows her to still experience college life and spend quality time with her son, she said.
She said some people were judgmental when she became pregnant in college, while others asked her how she could juggle work, school and pregnancy.
“Know that you can’t do it alone,” she said. “Whether you have a mother, father, best friend, cousin or sister, someone is willing to step alongside you and say, ‘Let me help you.’ When you’re in that kind of situation, you just learn to humble yourself and let people know, ‘I need help.'”
Christena Law, a sophomore majoring in family, consumer and human development, is currently six and a half months pregnant. She said her motivation for school has decreased because when she feels sick it is difficult for her to get to class.
“Sometimes you never know when you’re going to throw up,” she said. “Lately, when I get in a classroom with a lot of people, I get these hot flashes.”
However, she said her situation is not as bad as other pregnant women who she has talked to. Though at most times she feels tired, she keeps herself energized by making sure she is constantly hydrated and bringing snacks to school to eat during classes, she said.
She said she tried to attend supplemental instruction sessions, since she has to skip some classes, but she found that to be difficult as well. In order to catch up with schoolwork, she gets help from her classmates and reads through her textbooks, she added.
“I sit at the back of the room, which is hard for me because I like to sit in front to pay attention, but I have to sit at the back just in case I needed to get up, walk out and not be disruptive,” she said.
Law said she plans to take online classes after her baby is born.
Beth Booton, the Family and Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner at USU Student Health and Wellness Center, said a healthy diet consisting of fresh fruits and vegetables, protein and dairy products may reduce nausea during pregnancy. If nausea is severe a mother can take vitamin B6 to hopefully feel better, she said.
Booton said adequate sleep at night is important. Though women who work out more often have easier pregnancies, they should not begin an exercise program when they get pregnant, she said.
Utah is one of the few states in the US where women try to be both pregnant and be a student, she said.
“I encourage women to really think strongly about being pregnant and being a student, because I think it slows them down,” Booton said. “Everybody has to make that decision for themselves.”
The Student Health and Wellness Center provides preconception counseling, pap smear tests, prenatal vitamin prescriptions, Rubella screening, nutritional counseling and psychological support for pregnant students. However, it does not offer prenatal care.
Kyle Ivins, a senior majoring in entrepreneurship, said he is a bit nervous about becoming a father while still in college. He said his wife, Danielle, is seven-months pregnant and has missed several classes because of sickness. He said her college department was not understanding and would not consider giving her an incomplete grade.
“That was frustrating for me,” Ivins said. “I think (professors) should make (pregnant students) make up work late if they are willing to do the work.”
He said his wife will take two semesters off before transferring to the University of Utah to complete her education. Once the baby is born, he’s willing to wake up at night whenever the baby cries, he said.
“Some husbands don’t get up, but I want to because your baby is only that small for so long,” he said. “We’re only going to be pregnant students once. We’re just going to love it … it’s all going to be way worth it.”
– nadiah.johari@aggiemail.usu.edu