Many couples in Texas wonder if open adoption is the right choice for them. While they may have heard the term, they may wonder how an open adoption affects their parenting.
What is an open adoption?
The biological parents participate in choosing the adoptive parents in an open adoption, and they may also be part of the child’s life after birth. There is an incredible amount of space for the parties involved to create a situation that works for them, but it is not co-parenting.
Ways biological parents can be involved in open adoptions
If you picture regular visits with the biological family, that only happens in some open adoptions. In other cases, the adoptive parents only share photos of the child with the birth parents. Other times, the child may call the biological parents, or the couples may exchange emails about the child.
What is the typical open adoption process?
Perspective adoptive parents complete a background check and a home study. Once approved, the birth parents choose the adoptive parents and select the amount of contact they want with the family during the pregnancy and delivery. After the adoptive parents take the child home, then the adoptive family and the biological parents work together to determine a plan to keep the adoptive parents updated on the child’s progress until they turn 18.
What is the relationship between the two sets of parents like?
Each open adoption is unique. Often, the biological parents are still determining how much contact they want before the baby is born. Then, as the couples get to know each other, they develop a deep friendship. Some children see their biological parents as bonus parents.
Open adoption can take on many forms, but it involves both sets of parents working together for the child’s best interest.