According to the Harvard Kennedy School, adoption is vital for society as a whole to provide permanent loving homes to all children. All children deserve to be raised by a family that loves, supports and cares for them throughout their lives. It is a life-changing process that can benefit both birth parents and children for a chance at a successful future. There are two main types of adoptions called open adoptions, and closed adoptions. Both brave decisions have their own purposes and unique advantages and disadvantages.

Open Adoption

Open adoption is where birth parents are consistently involved in their child’s life. This provides the opportunity to develop and nurture a relationship even if your child lives with their adoptive parents. The adoptive parents will make an effort to share photos, letters, and regularly update you on any milestones your child achieves.

Pros

• The child has both birth and adoptive parents who provide them with plenty of love and support.
• They will also know more about their family lineage and where they come from, rather than having to track down this information when they are older.
• Their birth parents will also get to watch them grow and feel involved in their successes, hopes, and dreams.

Cons

• A child might not feel comfortable having a relationship with their birth parents and feel forced to stay in touch.
• The birth and adoptive parents may also have conflicts regarding how to raise the child, and this could be detrimental to a child’s psychology watching adults fight over them.
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Closed Adoption

If a birth parent chooses to undergo a closed adoption process, they forego the chance to be involved in their child’s life. You might decide not to have any interactions with your child for many reasons such as incarcerations, substance abuse, or being a teen parent who isn’t ready to raise children. Many closed adoptions occur if the child is adopted from overseas because birth parents cannot make trips to visit them and stay in touch all the time.

Pros

• If you have any shortcomings or are unable to provide the best care for your child, they will not feel let down and can focus on being loved by their adoptive parents.
• The child will not feel as though they need to split themselves between two sets of parents.
• As a birth parent, you will get complete closure from choosing a closed adoption and move on with your own life.

Cons

• A birth parent might change their minds and decide that they want to be involved in their child’s life at a later stage.
• Your child might also not know where they come from and what their medical history is.
• They might feel like an outsider in their adoptive family and continuously wonder who their real parents are.
• This could cause problems in the future when the child is old enough, where they might try to locate their birth parents to know more about their past.

Adoption is a process of love where a birth parent decides to give their child a new lease on life. However, the decision involves both happiness and sorrow and requires a lot of thought before moving forward. It is essential to make the right choice after doing plenty of research and speaking to counselors, who can assist with more information.