March 25, 2013

The Dark Matter of Love

There’s an interesting new adoption documentary coming out shows a doctor who has studied the science of love help integrate three Russian children, Masha, Marcel and Vadim, into their new American family. Cami Diaz has, until now, been the only child of her parents, Claudio and Cheryl Diaz, and is struggling with having so many new siblings at once.

While the details may be different, this is a story that many adoptive families can relate to, especially those adopting older children from international countries. How do you integrate your adopted children into a new culture? How do you work through the trauma they’ve experienced in the past and get them to trust you and feel comfortable in your family? How do you give your biological child, who before was the sole receiver of you and your partner’s attention, the same love and attention she is used to? It’s no surprise that it felt like their family was collapsing.

Click below to watch a trailer of the film, and if you donate to their Kickstarter you could also receive a digital download of the entire documentary. Also, if you live in D.C., you have an opportunity to screen the documentary for free on April 22!

There is more and more information coming out about the difficulty of assimilating children into families belonging to cultures different than their own. This is not to say that it can’t or shouldn’t be done, but there is much to be said for paying attention to the research and ensuring that you learn as much as possible about what children go through when removed from one culture and adopted into another. It looks like this film will provide a wealth of extraordinary information, and we’re thrilled to see documentarians working so passionately to tell the Diaz’s story. We can’t wait to see the film in its entirety!