How to Choose the Right Adoptive Family

If you are facing an unplanned pregnancy and considering adoption, it can mean that you will have the opportunity to choose the right adoptive family.

While you may be worried you’ll make the wrong decision, this concern actually means that you care and want to select the best fit for your child.

Before choosing adoption, it’s important to understand what types of adoption are available. Read on to learn more about the most common types of adoption, as well as some tips to help you navigate choosing the right adoptive family for your child.

Types of Adoption

The three common types of adoption include:

Open adoption: You can choose the adoptive family and decide if you want to keep in contact with them. You can also choose how involved you want to be in the child’s life.
Semi-open adoption: You can still have contact with the family and child, but a professional adoption agency or attorney will help manage communication and keep your identifying information confidential.
Closed adoption: You won’t have contact with the baby, and the identities of all parties are kept confidential. The court keeps adoption records sealed.

If you choose a form of open adoption, here are some tips for selecting the best adoptive family.

1. Determining Your Criteria

When beginning the selection process, it can be helpful to create a list of negotiable and non-negotiable traits of the adoptive family. To create your list, you might want to begin by asking yourself the following questions:

Do I want my child to be raised in a family with a particular faith or religion?
Is it important that the family lives in the same city or state as me?
Do I want the parents to have a certain level of education?
Do I want the family to have other children?
Do I prefer that both of the parents work or that one stays home with the child?

2. Reviewing Families

Working with an adoption agency can be very helpful in finding the right family. Agencies will provide you with profiles to review, and as you sort through potential adoptive families, it can be beneficial to make a yes, no, and maybe category.

You may find many families that you would love to adopt your child, or you may need help finding the right fit. Remember, if you can’t find a family that meets your criteria, express your concerns to the adoption agency, and don’t feel you have to settle.

3. Meeting the Families

After selecting a few families, you might want to begin with a phone call or Zoom meeting. Then, after getting to know the family a little better, you can meet in person.

Meeting in person can help you learn more about their personalities and see how the family interacts with one another. Before making a phone call or meeting up with a family, you may want to create a list of questions to help guide the conversation.

4. Involving the Family in the Pregnancy

Once you match with a family, you can begin building a relationship with them. You might ask them to accompany you to doctor appointments, or you may just begin giving them routine updates about the pregnancy.

Remember, even after getting matched, you still have the right to change your mind.

Get Help Today

If you want to begin searching for an adoptive family, New Life Clinic is here to offer support.

We can connect you with adoption agencies and provide you with free pregnancy services like lab-quality pregnancy tests and ultrasound scans so you can learn more about your pregnancy.