As an expectant mother or birth mother, you can determine how much contact you wish to have with your child after placement. By choosing the adoption plan that works best for you, you’ll have the opportunity to have a relationship with your child and their adoptive family.
At New Life Adoptions, an adoption specialist works closely with you to create a specific plan that gives you the type of contact you desire. Let’s review those plans and see how each one can impact a future relationship.
Three Types of Adoption Plans
Your first step is to create an adoption plan that reflects your comfort level and your wishes. We work with families who are committed to ongoing connection, if that’s what you want.
There are three adoption plans to choose from. Learn about each and select the best one for you and your child.
Open Adoption
If you wish to have immediate contact with the adoptive family and you’re willing to share identifying information, select an open adoption. You’ll stay directly connected.
Openness can take the form of phone calls, letters, emails, or even personal visits. You select an adoptive family that wants the same type of communication and exchange the amount of information you wish to share. It is important to note that while option adoption can be agreed upon continued contact it is not legally enforceable in the state of Texas. However, New Life will always advocate for your adoption plan. Adoptive Families sign a covenant with us to stay in contact with you.
Closed (or Confidential) Adoption
A closed adoption means that you have no plan to continue contact after placing your child. If you are looking for a closed adoption, New Life Adoptions and the adoptive family will respect your wishes. You also may wish to initiate contact at some point after placement, and that is up to you as well.
However, statistics show that 90-95% of adoptions today include some form of openness. A completely closed adoption is rare.
Semi-Open (Mediated) Adoption
A semi-open adoption plan is a bridge between open and closed adoption, with communication facilitated through New Life Adoptions. You and the adoptive family communicate with one another, but you do not have direct contact with them.
A semi-open plan provides a level of privacy that many birth mothers and adoptive families find comforting in the beginning. At New Life, all adoptions begin with this plan and move to an open adoption after six months.
Whether you select an open or semi-open adoption plan, we ask adoptive parents to maintain contact through ongoing exchanges of letters and photos for 18 years and to arrange 2 to 3 visits per year.
Building Relationships Through Contact
Both adoptive parents and birth families have doubts and fears about the benefits of openness in their adoption. Adoptive parents fear their child won’t bond correctly and that the birth mother will fight to get her child back. Birth mothers fear that seeing their child will make it harder and confuse their child.
The truth is that some measure of openness benefits everyone. For a birth mother, she can find peace knowing her child is safe and loved. An adoptee can hear directly from their birth mother why they were placed for adoption. They learn about their heritage and build a healthy identity.
Adoptive parents benefit from knowing what traits are directly related to their child’s first family and potential medical issues that might pop up.
New Life Adoptions has over 40 years of professional, child-placing experience. We’re women and mothers, committed to building strong families by helping you make an empowered choice for yourself and your child.
If you are interested in learning more about placing your child for adoption, please contact us. You can fill out our confidential contact form, call or text us at (281) 955-1001, or chat with us online. How can we help you today?