On This Page: Can the Biological Parents Come Back to Take a Child? What Services Are Available Before Adoption? What Services Are Available After Adoption? How Can I Meet Other Adoptive Families

Can the Biological Parents Come Back to Take a Child?

In order for a child to be adopted, the birth parents have to relinquish legal parental rights. With most agency adoptions, a child is already legally free for adoption before a placement occurs. While cases where a parent changes his/her mind (usually before an adoption is finalized) are highly publicized, they occur infrequently. See Legal Events or Legal FAQs for more information.

What Services Are Available Before Adoption?

During the preparation for adoption, as you complete your homestudy, an agency social worker counsels you and provides information and support. Sometimes social workers will refer families to special interest groups for a particular child's needs. They may also provide information on adoptive parent support groups, a valuable resource. These may be general or specific to a certain type of child or family, for example the Committee for Single Adoptive Parents or the Latin American Parents Association. Some groups have newsletters and other written materials.

Family preparation classes are offered by some agencies and required by others. Another very helpful option is an online family preparation class, the Adoption Roadmap available through our Learning Center. The Learning Center also offers chats and online conferences.

What Services Are Available after Adoption?

After placement, many agencies offer post-adoption services for the family. These can include support groups, individual and family counseling, workshops on specific topics of parenting, or ongoing contact with the family's social worker. If a child was receiving therapy or special schooling before the adoption, it will usually be continued. An employee assistance program at your workplace may also offer referrals for needed services.

Online support, educational resources, and training for families are available through the Learning Center. Regularly scheduled chats give families a chance to interact with others who have adopted and discuss issues of common concern. National and state resource lists and current articles on adoption and special needs issues are available in the Resource Library.

How Can I Meet Other Adoptive Families?

Your social worker may be able to provide you with the names of other adoptive parents or information about an adoptive parent support group in your area. Some agencies will pair a waiting family with a "buddy" family who has already adopted a similar child, while other agencies sponsor their own parent groups. The North American Council on Adoptable Children provides a searchable database of parent support groups throughout the United States and Canada. Select Post-Adoption Services on their website at www.nacac.org.

You can also meet other families online. The Learning Center offers a full calendar of chats and a message board where you may ask questions and share information with other families.