March 26, 2014
Five Adoption Myths We’d Like to Dispel
Like with any world that is as emotional as adoption is, there are many myths floating around that may potentially skew impressions about what adoption is, how it functions, or what your role as an adoptive parent or birth parent would necessarily need to be. We believe so much in the power of adoption, and have seen it change the lives of countless families. That’s why we’d like to call out a few myths we’ve seen around
Myth #1: Birth parents can show up at any time to take the child back.
Truth: This is actually untrue. While there is a period of time in each state, before the birth mother has signed off her rights, that she may decide not to go through with the adoption, once those rights have been signed off and the adoption is finalized, no birth parent can come back to claim their child. The only exception to this is if the child was adopted illegally or under false pretenses — even then there is no true system or right to reclamation, but that would fall under a different legal jurisdiction.
Myth #2: Adoptions take forever to complete
Truth: While the general time span is 1-2 years, adoptions can happen in as quickly as one day or a couple months—it just depends on your situation.
Myth #3: Adopted children can’t be loved the same as biological children.
Truth: You ask any adoptive parent and see what they say about this. Incredibly, deeply, profoundly false.
Myth #4: Adopted children thrive best with heterosexual parents.
Truth: Now we challenge you to ask all the children of single and same-sex parents what they think about this. There is no study, no proof, no evidence to suggest that adopted children do not thrive beautifully among a diverse array of family situations. Just as biological children grow up in myriad different types of homes, and turn out in all sorts of different and wonderful ways, adopted children thrive and exist in the same manner.
Myth #5: You can only adopt a child who is the same ethnicity as you.
Truth: This couldn’t be further from the truth! If you are willing to bring a child into your home and love them, and take care of them and make them your child for life, then there is no limit on who that child can be, where they come from, or how different—physically, ethnically or otherwise—they seemingly are from you. That is the beauty of adoption…every one has the opportunity to become part of the family they deserve. And there is no discrimination in that.
