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The Nature of Adoption

Just what is Adoption?

If you are considering adoption as a solution to your situation, it is probably because you are concerned about the well-being of your baby. This is as it should be, because the child is truly the centerpiece of any adoption plan.

Adoption is seen by most birth mothers as the most loving gift they can ever give the child, and most people see adoption as a responsible and courageous choice. Creating an adoption plan requires the birth mother to permanently transfer her parental rights to her child’s adoptive parents. This forms a new relationship between the birth mother and the adoptive couple, according to the commitments that each makes regarding the adoption plan. Adoption is the only solution to an unplanned pregnancy that creates this type of new relationship.

Beyond the Definition...
While it is true that others can equally love, nurture and care for her child, no one else will ever contribute as much to her child’s life as the birth mother inherently does by conceiving and giving birth. Her biological contribution—as well as the prenatal care she receives throughout her pregnancy—ensures her impact on her child’s life. Her role has already determined her child’s intelligence, ethnicity, and physical appearance. A birth mother gives her child its biological and ethnic heritage, while the adoptive couple provides the nurturing love and supportive environment that every child needs. When combined, the contributions of both sets of parents are equally important in determining who this new person will become.

Adoption Today
Adoption has evolved into a process from which a birth mother can expect to benefit both physically and emotionally:

1. She can complete her pregnancy and have her prenatal care and childbirth costs paid for (affording her the opportunity to resolve the deep personal concerns she has about the life developing within her).

2. Most adoptions today are structured to include some level of openness, such as the opportunity for the birth mother to meet with and participate in the selection of the adoptive parents for her child and to receive pictures and letters after the adoption.

3. Adoption allows a birth mother who is opposed to abortion to give birth without having to provide for the child.

4. By creating an adoption plan, a birth mother can know that her child will enjoy a life filled with opportunity.

Today’s open and semi-open adoptions provide more options than have existed in the past, including the option of ongoing communication between the adoptive couple and the birth mother regarding the well-being of the child. Some adoption plans have even included occasional visits after the adoption has been finalized. Most birth mothers who have created adoption plans find comfort in knowing that they played a part in the creation of their children’s future and will be able to raise a family later when they are more ready to do so.

Most studies indicate that, over the course of their lifetime, adopted children generally understand and appreciate the loving, selfless and courageous decision that their birth mothers made by choosing to give birth and appreciate them for it.

“A birth mother gives her child its biological and ethnic heritage, while the adoptive couple provides the child with the nurturing love and supportive environment.”