A birth mother’s decision to create an adoption plan is never an easy one. However, “many birth parents are able to reconcile the loss and make peace with the decision,” according to the Child Welfare Information Gateway. But it can take time and effort. This is where adoption counseling comes into play.
“Good counseling provides a crucial foundation for birthmothers in dealing with their emotions and moving forward,” write Chuck Johnson, president and CEO of the National Council For Adoption, and Kris Faasse, LMSW, ACSW, Director of Adoption Services for Bethany Christian Services, “throughout the process until relinquishment, and after placement as they undertake the necessary work to grieve and to heal.”
Adoption Counseling in Maryland
Adoption Makes Family, a non-profit (501-C3) licensed adoption agency based in Maryland, serves as more than just a mediator between you and an adoptive family. We aim to foster a genuine connection with you so you feel like you are part of our family. One of the ways we do this is through adoption counseling.
“Counseling is a necessary component of infant adoption, not just prior to placement but, in many cases, after placement as well,” write Johnson and Faasse. Adoption Makes Family will provide you with counseling throughout the adoption process.
Pre-Placement Counseling
If you are considering adoption, talking to an experienced adoption counselor is a great way to explore your options, as well as your emotions.
“Adoption is not just scary, counseling is provided because birth mothers can feel overwhelmed with the choices and decisions associated with adoption,” says Dean Kirschner, Ph.D., LCSW-C. “Counseling may help a birth mother/birth father understand the various options associated with choices of parenting or creating an adoption plan.”
If you are considering adoption but have not talked with a professional counselor, please contact us to speak with one of our staff members. Adoption counseling begins the moment you reach out to our office for an initial consultation.
Call Us Now at (410) 683-2100
Adoption Makes Family is here to listen, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Our experienced professionals can help and counsel you so that you make the best decisions for your future. We simply want what is best for you and your baby, whatever outcome that may be.
“As with any difficult decision, feelings of anxiety, sorrow, and grief are common throughout the adoption process,” especially in the beginning, explain Johnson and Faasse. “Counseling provides an opportunity for the [birth mother] who is wrestling with her decision to make an adoption plan, parent the child, or terminate her pregnancy to objectively evaluate all her options.”
In fact, according to Johnson and Faasse, birth mothers tend to report a “high level of satisfaction with their choice to make an adoption plan” after receiving the “professional counseling and support needed in order to reach a fully informed decision.”
Post-Placement Counseling
“It is not uncommon for women to feel that, once they leave the hospital, they are left to fend for themselves,” write Susan Dusza Guerra Leksander, Susan Romer and Diane Landino. In fact, “75 percent of the women surveyed reported that their emotional health was very poor, poor, or neutral in the first year after placement,” according to a national survey conducted by the On Your Feet Foundation. This is why post-placement adoption counseling is so important.
Your relationship with Adoption Makes Family does not end the day you are discharged from the hospital. There is also post-placement adoption counseling available to you if you would like. You are welcome to meet with your adoption counselor or we will help you to find a counselor in an area close to you.
“Only support and the respectful acknowledgement of their choices and their emotions can help birth parents grieve in a healthy manner and, with time, allow for their healing and reconciliation of the adoption as a part of their life story,” explain Johnson and Faasse.
The Cost of Adoption Counseling is Covered
In 2013 in the state of Maryland, Governor O’Malley signed into law House Bill 563, which has helped numerous pregnant women in Maryland by allowing adoptive families to help cover certain expenses, including reasonable charge or fee for adoption counseling.
“Often, legal and medical expenses are paid AFTER the revocation period expires to prevent families paying for expenses and losing the opportunity to adopt the baby,” says Dean Kirschner, Ph.D., LCSW-C.
If you have any questions, or just need someone to talk to, you can contact us by phone at 410-683-2100, by e-mail at dr.kirschner@adoptionmakesfamily.org or use our online contact form.
Sources
- “Do Mothers Get Paid for Adoption in MD?” American Adoptions — America’s Adoption Agency, www.americanadoptions.com/state_adoption/get-paid-for-adoption-maryland?article_id=4972&sitemedia=full.
- Dusza Guerra Leksander, Susan, et al. “Supporting Birth Mothers: Before, During, and After Adoption.” Adoptive Families, 15 July 2016, www.adoptivefamilies.com/openness/birth-mother-support-on-your-feet-foundation-study/.
- “Effects of Adoption on Birth Mother.” Adoption Network, adoptionnetwork.com/emotional-and-psychological-effects-of-adoption-on-birth-mother.
- Johnson, Chuck , and Kris Faasse. “Adoption Advocate.” Mar. 2012.
- PATRICELLI, KATHRYN . “Long-Term Issues For Birthmothers After Adoption.” Mental Help LongTerm Issues for Birthmothers After Adoption Comments, www.mentalhelp.net/articles/long-term-issues-for-birthmothers-after-adoption/.