Defining an Adoption Plan
An adoption plan is a way to plan or structure your adoption so that you, the adoption agency, and the adoptive family understand how you want your adoption to proceed. An adoption plan is made at the beginning stage of your adoption journey. Adoption is a blessing not just for the adoptee, birth parents, and adoptive parents, but also for future generations and extended family members.
What’s Next?
When you have chosen to proceed with adoption, the first step is to choose a local adoption agency. The adoption plan is a guide that ensures you have the adoption experience you feel is in the best interest of you and your baby. This plan can be changed or amended throughout your adoption journey before signing the final adoption consent.
There are Many Parts to Making an Adoption Plan
Some of what is included:
- Deciding if you want an open or closed adoption
- In the event you choose an open adoption, there are also additional choices, such as:
- How much contact you would like with the adoptive family before and after the delivery
- What type of contact would you like with the adoptive family (phone calls, emails, video chats, visits, etc…)
- Type of adoptive family you are interested in, there are lots of things to consider:
- An instate adoptive family vs. an out-of-state family
- Whether the adoptive family has other children
- Whether or not there will be a stay-at-home parent
- Whether or not the adoptive family has other adopted children
- What you would like your hospital stay to look like
- Who you would like in the room during labor and delivery
- If you would like the baby to be with you or the adoptive family, or both
- If you would like the baby (if possible) to be discharged with you, before you or after you
- How much counseling would you like to receive
- Any other special considerations or accommodations you would like included in your adoption journey
There can be more parts, but this is an overview of what goes into an adoption plan, so you have an idea of what to expect. Again, an adoption plan is a guide or an outline of your adoption journey. Every agency may do them differently, but there are many similarities. Making an adoption plan can be very helpful, especially if you are experiencing a lot of emotions at one time and don’t want to make any new decisions. Additionally, an adoption plan is an adoption framework of what happens next in your adoption journey.
We are here for you!
If you are pregnant and considering adoption, and are interested in learning more about making an adoption plan, we are here for you. We, here at Building Arizona Families/ AZ Pregnancy Help, are available by talking or texting 24/7 at (623) 695-4112.
