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I keep seeing people mix up 'open adoption' with 'co-parenting' and it drives me nuts
I was at a support group in Phoenix last week and a new mom there said she was 'co-parenting' with her son's adoptive family because they send pictures. That's not what that word means. In my own open adoption, set up through an agency in 2018, we have agreed-upon visits and letters, but his parents make the daily rules. Getting this wrong sets up really unfair hopes for new birth moms. Has anyone else had to explain this difference to friends or family?
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tessa8685d ago
A blog post by an adoption counselor really stuck with me. She said calling an open adoption co-parenting is like calling a friendly neighbor a roommate. One has clear, separate homes. The other shares a kitchen and makes rules together. Sending photos is being kind and open, but it doesn't mean you're deciding on bedtime or school choices. That mix-up can leave a birth mom feeling hurt when she realizes her role is different.
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