Birth Parents
Open vs. Closed Adoptions: A Post Adoption Mental Health Perspective
The decision around maintaining an open or closed adoption is an important one. Over the years, Boston Post Adoption Resources has noticed a shift in the number of adoptions that include some type of contact with birth family members. Access to education, support and post adoption services are key to helping families navigate the unique issues around birth family contact.
Read MorePuzzle Pieces: Identity and My Birth Mother Search
As adoptees try to piece together the puzzle of their identities, they begin to ask questions. Why did my birth mother give me up? Does she ever think about me? Does my birthday carry any significance to her? Our guest writer shares her international journey to answer these questions and precious moments of reunion between her adoptive family and birth family.
Read MoreChandani: Imagining My Birth Mother
If we don’t know much about our birth mothers, sometimes it helps to imagine their stories as we grapple with our own identities. Clinician Maya Rogers-Bursen shares her own adoptee fantasy and explains how it may be comforting to fill the gaps in our own beginnings by making up stories.
Read MoreHow Forgiveness Promotes Healing
Many in the adoption constellation bear pain due to feelings of loss, abandonment and rejection. Forgiveness promotes healing, but how do we forgive? And for some, why? Here we examine the value of forgiveness, discuss the phases of forgiving, and share resources for putting forgiveness into practice.
Read MoreThe GOA’L Model: How to Support Birth Family Search Overseas
As more adoptees pursue birth family search overseas, there’s an increasing need for guidance and support when they reach their destination. GOA’L, a nonprofit that counsels and connects adoptees with their motherland in Korea, shares possible search outcomes, cultural challenges, and reunion scenarios.
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