Open Adoption: A Caring Choice

The decision to release a child for adoption is one of the most difficult choices a person can ever make. Birth parents planning for adoption do not take this decision lightly. They are not simply avoiding responsibility. Rather, they choose this option following the painful realization that their child needs and deserves more than they are able to give at this point in their life.

Open adoption has become more common in recent years. In an open adoption, the birth and adoptive families know one another and have an ongoing relationship. In a closed adoption, the families do not have direct contact and children do not have access to information about their heritage. This basic human right of access to information about identity, biology, and ethnicity is prompting an increase in open adoptions.

An open adoption better serves the needs of both the birth and adoptive families. This happens through the development of a relationship that usually begins prior to the child's birth and continues following placement. This relationship allows easier access to information throughout the child's life. Every open adoption is different. The open relationship grows out of the love and respect that birth and adoptive families have for the other's feelings and needs.