11 Adoption Terms You Must Know
By Jessica Hall
The words we choose to use matter. This is especially true when it comes to finding pregnant adoption help. In the beginning, you may feel like you don’t have the words to express how you feel or how to even talk about starting the adoption process. Adoption Choices of Kansas gives you the tools and verbiage needed to help you understand how you feel, express those feelings, and how create your perfect adoption plan. Below are a few essential terms to know as you start your journey.
If you need adoption help now, please call us at 877-903-4488, text us at 316-209-2071, or visit us at Adoption Choices of Kansas.
1. Unexpected Pregnancy
This is when a person becomes pregnant without planning it. We never want to say that this pregnancy is “unwanted”. Most birth mothers did not get pregnant on purpose. So they need to look for the best option for themselves and for the baby. Choosing to adopt out my baby is a common choice that leads to incredibly happy lives.
2. Birth Parents
In American adoptions, there are two sets of parents. On one side, there are parents who want to adopt a child. On the other are the birth parents. A birth mother and a birth father are the child’s biological parents. However, the adoptive parents are just as important to the child. Adoptive parents are the primary caregivers and fulfill the role of “parent.”
Putting a child up for adoption never means that birth mothers and birth fathers don’t love or care for their child. This simply means that they’re the biological parents of a child who’s going to another family through the adoption process.
3. Adoptee
The birth child is the child of the birth mother and birth father. This is the child that will be placed in another home through the adoption process.
4. Placing a Child for Adoption
This is the phrase used to describe the decision to put my baby up for adoption. We never want you to feel like you’re abandoning your child or that your child is unwanted or unloved. There are many reasons to be considering adoption – I can’t take care of my baby being the most common. Always know that there are families who can provide a nurturing and loving home for your child. Wichita adoption agency is a responsive and trusting agency to work with. They conduct thorough reviews on hopeful families waiting to adopt a little one.
5. Adoption Matching Process
In adoption, you will need to choose the type of adoption you want. You’ll need to choose whether it’s open, semi-open, or closed. Then, you’ll need to provide additional details of what requirements you want. Not every family is going to fit this list.
Once you’ve made your list of requirements, you’ll give them to one of the adoption agencies near me. The agency will then take these requirements and look for compatible families. You are able to meet the potential family you’ve selected before finalizing anything. We encourage this so that you feel comfortable with where your baby will live, as well as the relationship you’ll have with the family.
6. Was Adopted
Just like we never want you to feel like your baby is unwanted, we never want the child to feel that way, either. Instead of saying the child “is” adopted, we prefer to say the child “was” adopted after the adoption is completed. This helps the child understand that adoption is something that happened in the past and not something that is an ongoing process. And helps them feel closer to their adoptive family. Children that have been adopted by a family are seen as their own children. The fact that the child was adopted doesn’t impact the level of love and care they have for him or her. Knowing that the adoption was a past event lets everyone move forward.
7. Relinquishment
This is when a parent decides to terminate his or her rights to a child. After relinquishing rights over a child, the parent no longer has any say in the legal decisions about the child’s safety or welfare. Giving my baby up for adoption does not mean that your rights to the child are terminated. Open adoptions allow for the birth mother and birth father to still be involved in the child’s life to a certain agreed-upon level.
8. Placement
This is the point where the child goes to live in the home of the adoptive parents. Children are “placed” in homes, never “given up” on or “abandoned”. Adopted children are going to a loving homes with a family that can provide them with a stable future.
9. Court Termination
Sometimes, it’s necessary to remove children from a situation so that they’re able to live in a safe environment. A court termination of the parent’s rights is necessary to move forward with a legal adoption.
10. ICPC
Interstate Compact on the Placement of Children (ICPC) is a U.S. law ensuring protection services for adopted children. Typically, adoptive parents will need to travel to the home state of the child to accept the placement. Once there, they’ll have to wait until both the child’s state and the family’s state approve of the adoption.
11. Post-Placement Services
Services provided to the birth mother after the child is placed in the adoptive family’s home are called post-placement services. This includes any counseling, social services, adoptive family outings and events, and in some cases, financial assistance.
Using Positive Adoption Language
Adding these terms to describe your adoption process will help you build an adoption plan with confidence. You can do this. If you haven’t already, the next step is to look for adoption agencies near me. Keep in mind the kind of adoption you want to have. The kind of family you want the birth child to match with. And the way you want to place the child in that new home.
If you are a birth mother in need of assistance, reach out today. We are here to help teach you how adoption works. Choosing adoption is not giving up. If you need unplanned pregnancy help now, Adoption Choices of Kansas serves birth parents statewide and beyond. We can help with teen pregnancy, financial assistance, difficult situations, and more. Please call us or text us to learn more! Call Us 877-903-4488 or Text Us 316-209-2071
