A Panel of Birth Moms Talk About Adoption

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April 27, 2022 • 54 mins

We talk with a panel of birth moms about their adoption experience. What is the adoption experience for birth mothers and what do they think of some of the controversies in adoption, such as pre-birth matching, adoptive parents at the hospital, adoptive mother breastfeeding, etc.

In this episode, we cover:

Tell us what your child’s adoption looks like.
What are your ideas on:
- Options counseling being provided by adoption agencies—is there a conflict of interest.
- Pre-birth matching
- Some have stated that an infant should go into temporary or foster care for a time (usually 1-2 months) between birth and placement as a revocation period.
- Fundraising for adoption
- Adoptive parent breastfeeding.
What did you look for in adoptive parents?
There is a lot of talk in adoption world about subtle and not so subtle forms of coercion that could influence a mom’s decision to place.
- Hopeful adoptive parents attend doctor appointments.
- Adoptive parents being present at the birth and at the hospital?
How involved do you think adoptive parents should be at the hospital?
Openness:
- How was openness described to you before the adoption.Does the reality of open adoption match what was promised.
- Benefit and limitations of post adoption contracts. (Did you understand open adoption wasn’t enforceable (may depend upon the state)?)
- Ethical adoption practices that expectant parents considering adoption should know about.
Tips for birth parents and adoptive parents to look for in adoption agencies to make sure they are choosing an ethical agency as to how they treat expectant and birth parents.
Importance of separate legal counsel for birth parents.

This podcast is produced by www.CreatingaFamily.org. We are a national non-profit with the mission to strengthen and inspire adoptive, foster & kinship parents and the professionals who support them. Creating a Family brings you the following trauma-informed, expert-based content: