April 01, 2015

Adoption News Roundup

Here’s a look at some of the adoption news that caught our eye this week…

International adoptions made headlines this week following the release of a pretty striking figure: numbers are at their lowest since 1982. “The department’s report for the 2014 fiscal year shows 6,441 adoptions from abroad, down from 7,094 in 2013 and about 74 percent below the high of 22,884 in 2004. The number has fallen every year since then – a trend that has dismayed many adoption advocates in the U.S.” Why do you think this is?

This is a wonderful response from a birth mother who has faced many assumptions about the quality of her life based on the simple fact that she is a birth mother. Her astute, poignant essay about the public’s perception of birth mothers is spot on. She totally nails it. “Something that really bothers me is the public’s perception of birthmothers. We’re not poverty-stricken, uneducated morons. We’re smart, courageous women who made a selfless choice to give our children something we could not provide at the time.”

There’s been a lot of interesting research and articles published recently about the effects of childhood trauma on health. This is especially important for those of us adopting older children, who may come with a certain set of experiences and hardships that need, and require, attention, love, compassion and support. This brilliant Ted talk from pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris discusses childhood trauma and its legitimate impact on brain development. One to share and absorb, for sure.

What if your child has a sad adoption story — how do you tell them the truth about where they come from? Well, there are two sides to every story. And even if one of those sides isn’t super positive, our children deserve to know and understand their history. Thanks to Adoptive Families for helping us learn how to share that with them.

We absolutely agree with Dave Thomas. You are never too old for a family.

So these are apparently six of the best adoption-themed movies…have you seen any? We love both Elf and Juno..this is a great list!