Considering the possibility of placing a child for adoption can bring up many complex emotions. All-Options can help you explore your questions and feelings about adoption, and find organizations that will support you in learning if adoption is a good path for you. If you have already had an experience with adoption – whether as a birth/first parent, an adopted person, an adoptive parent, or all of the above – we are here to listen and support you in whatever ways you need. Call our All-Options Talkline toll-free at 1-888-493-0092.
Adoption Referrals:
When someone is considering adoption, All-Options may refer to select nonprofit adoption agencies and placement organizations (download PDF here). To the best of our knowledge, these organizations all meet the following standards:
- They support pregnant people in all options including abortion and parenting.
- They are committed to arranging and supporting fully open adoptions (while level of contact and openness may vary by specific situation, the agency does not arrange closed adoptions where no future information or contact is possible); here is a good resource on open adoption (PDF).
- They do not discriminate against single parents or same sex couples as prospective adoptive families.
- They are nonprofit organizations that provide lifelong support for first/birth parents.
We refer to:
- Adoption Connection (office in CA; pregnant people in any state): http://www.adoptionconnection.org
- Adoptions Together (serving DC, MD & VA): http://www.adoptionstogether.org
- Open Adoption & Family Services (offices in OR & WA; pregnant people in any state): http://www.openadopt.org/
- Choice Network Adoptions (offices in OH and clinic partners in many states): https://choicenetworkadoptions.com
- Friends in Adoption (offices in NY & VT): http://www.friendsinadoption.org
- Pact: An Adoption Alliance (office in CA but will work with pregnant people in all states): http://www.pactadopt.org/
Support by and for Birth/First Parents:
- MPower Alliance is a nonprofit organization that provides supportive services including retreats, academic scholarships, and counseling for women who have placed, or lost a child to, adoption. They are based in California, but have clients throughout the country.
- Concerned United Birthparents provides support for all family members separated by adoption; resources to help prevent unnecessary family separations; education about the life-long impact on all who are affected by adoption; and advocates for fair and ethical adoption laws, policies, and practices.
- Birthmom Buds is a faith-based online organization that offers peer support, encouragement, and friendship to pregnant women considering adoption as well as women who have already placed children for adoption.
Adoption Blogs:
- The Declassified Adoptee (http://www.declassifiedadoptee.com)
- A Birth Project/Ungrateful Daughter (https://birthproject.wordpress.com/)
- Birth Mother, First Mother Forum (http://www.firstmotherforum.com)
- Production, Not Reproduction (http://www.productionnotreproduction.com)
Support for Adult Adoptees:
- American Adoption Congress: The American Adoption Congress (AAC) is an International organization devoted to family connections by providing the needed education for all members of the adoption constellation. Includes a list of national support groups.
- Adoptees Connect: At Adoptees Connect, we focus on putting adoptee voices first by creating a safe and valuable adoptee-centric space, created by and for adoptees, where their voices can meet and be heard.
Books on Adoption:
- The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe v. Wade by Ann Fessler
- All You Can Ever Know by Nicole Chung