Making an adoption plan for your child is an option. It takes courage to choose adoption, but sometimes the hardest decisions we have to make are the best ones we’ve ever made. Look closer at adoption and see if this is the right option for you.
Why Would You Consider Adoption?
Think about where you are in your life at this moment. Are you settled, established, and prepared to raise a child? Most women who find themselves in an unexpected pregnancy aren’t, but many don’t want to have an abortion either.
Adoption is the middle ground. You don’t have the day-to-day responsibilities of parenthood, but you will always be a part of your child’s life story.
What Is Adoption?
Adoption is the legal and voluntary process that fully transfers parental responsibility from a child’s birth parents to their adoptive parents. It isn’t co-parenting.
Women primarily choose adoption because they recognize they aren’t capable of properly taking care of their child at that time. Out of immense love, they make a plan for their child to have a better and safer upbringing.
Types of Adoption Plans
There are three main types of adoption plans: open, closed, and semi-open. No plan is better than another. It needs to be the right plan for you, your child, and your future.
Open
Today, many adoptions in the U.S. are open. An open adoption plan means you and the adoptive couple exchange identifying information such as full names, addresses, and phone numbers. You are free to contact one another through letters, online chats, photos, and potential meetings. As the expectant mother or birth mother, you choose the adoptive family that you want to raise your child.
Closed
You remain completely anonymous when you choose a closed adoption plan. The original birth certificate is sealed so that no one has access to your identifying information. Some women feel this type of adoption is the best way to move on with their lives.
Semi-open
A semi-open adoption is somewhere in between a closed and open adoption. You’ll have contact with the adoptive family but it will be through a third party, such as the adoption agency you work with. You may know each other’s first names, but usually, no other identifying information is given.
Is Adoption Right For You?
The only way to figure out if making an adoption plan is the best for you and your child is to learn more. If you don’t know about something, how can you decide if it’s right for you? Contact us and one of our client advocates will sit down with you to discuss adoption, plus we’ll give you referrals to reputable agencies and adoption specialists. Our goal is to help you make the best decision for your unexpected pregnancy. How can we help you today?