Adoption is misunderstood. To most people, when they think about adoption, they think about an adoptee growing up with no information about their birth parents, and a birth mother without any contact with her child.

This is not the reality for most modern adoptions.

In fact, in most cases, birth mothers and adoptive parents in Mississippi choose an open adoption.

Open adoption can be a beautiful experience for both you and your baby. Open adoption allows you to:

• Choose the perfect family for your baby and develop a long-lasting relationship with them.
• Decide what kind of interaction you want to have with your baby’s adoptive family and how much you want to communicate with them.
• Maintain a loving relationship with your child throughout their childhood

With adoption, you will be put in the driver’s seat and get to make the decisions that are right for you and your baby. While most birth mothers want some contact with their child after placement, there is a lot to consider about those interactions. How much contact do you prefer? What type of contact is best for you? Your answers to these questions will guide the creation of your adoption agreement, and ultimately determine what your adoption relationship becomes.

If you are ready to talk to an adoption specialist about what you want your adoption to look like, you can contact a professional today.

What is Open Adoption in Mississippi?

The definition of an open adoption is when the relationship between the adoption triad – birth mother, adoptive parents, and adoptee – begins when adoptive parents are chose and continues throughout the child’s life. The level and frequency of contact varies, and you get to decide what works best for you.  

An open adoption relationship in Mississippi can include:

• Pictures and letters (mediated or not)
• Emails and text messages
• Phone calls and video calls
• In-person visits

After learning what an open adoption can look like, you might be wondering, “Where can I find an open adoption agency to work with in Mississippi?”

Fortunately, open adoption is incredibly common, so you will find that nearly every private domestic agency is willing and able to facilitate the adoption arrangement that is best for you and your baby. 

The following agencies can assist you:

• American Adoptions
• New Beginnings
• Catholic Charities
• Mississippi Children’s Home Services

What are the Benefits of Open Adoption in Mississippi?

The benefits of open adoption are widely accepted by most adoption professionals, and you may be surprised that your desire for an open adoption agreement will be supported by the specialists you work with and many hopeful adoptive parents across the nation.

Post-adoptive contact benefits everyone: birth parents, adoptive parents, and adopted children.

• Birth Parents: Open adoption gives birth parents the chance to continue a loving relationship with their baby, and it allows them to see their child grow and thrive. Having an adoption agreement in place can also help a birth mother through any feelings of grief and loss that she experiences after placement.
• Adoptive Families: Oftentimes hopeful adoptive families have a period of waiting for an adoption opportunity. By allowing some openness in adoption, they will match with more birth mothers who want the same thing.  Often, adoptive parents are surprised by the bond that can develop with the birth parent.
• Adopted Children: Open adoption is perhaps most beneficial to the adopted child. The open adoption relationship with a child’s birth parents allows them to ask questions about their history, their adoption, and their identity. This can ease some of the common challenges that an adopted child has in their adolescence.

Can I Choose a Closed Adoption in Mississippi?

Despite the many benefits of open adoption, there are reasons that a birth mother may choose a closed adoption. The definition of closed adoption is that there will be little to no identifying information shared between adoptive parents and birth parents and that there will not be a continued relationship after placement.

In the interest of answering any questions about open adoption vs. closed adoption, it is important to cover some reasons that birth mothers choose a closed adoption.

Common reasons are:

• They need emotional closure after placement.
• They have safety concerns that make an open adoption undesirable.
• They require a level of privacy that open adoption does not allow.

How Will I Find Adoptive Parents Who Want an Open Adoption in Mississippi?

Contrary to popular belief, it is actually not difficult to find adoptive parents who want an open adoption for their child in Mississippi.

Some hopeful adoptive families enter the adoption process with some hesitancy, but after learning about the many benefits of open adoption, it is very common for them to change their preferences. More and more, families are looking for birth mothers who want a continued relationship with them and the baby.

Open adoption agencies are easily found, and adoption specialists will help facilitate the adoption agreement that you want. Professionals will help match you with adoptive families who want an open adoption and give you access to the profiles of families who want the same sort of relationship.

Once you choose the perfect family for your child, you will then develop a postadoption contact agreement (PACA). Often called open adoption agreements, this outlines your post-adoption relationship preferences. It can be as informal or formal as you want and as detailed as you want.

The right agency will counsel both birth mothers and adoptive families to stay true to one’s word when entering into an Mississippi open adoption agreement, and inform you that you can mutually agree on changes as time goes on.

What are the Cons of Open Adoption in Mississippi?

Closed adoption is an arrangement where you have no contact with the adoptive parents and your child, and any other agreement is either a semi-open adoption  — which involves mediated communication or an agreed-upon period where you will receive updates – or open adoption. You have a lot of choice in the matter, and your preferences can be completely unique to you and your needs.

Of course, there are cons to open adoption you will want to consider. No relationship is perfect, and continuing a relationship with the family that is raising your child can come with its difficulties.

Some of the cons of open adoption can include:

• Dissatisfaction with loyalty to the agreement: While the great majority of parents follow through on their commitments outlined in the open adoption agreement, there are some cases where adoptive parents have limited communication. This is rare because most are eager to maintain the relationship, but it can happen. To avoid this, it is recommended that you choose a family that is open and honest from the beginning and work with an adoption agency that encourages open adoption.
• Disappointment with the adoptive family: It happens sometimes that even the people you love the most do not always live up to your expectations of them. While you will have a good amount of time to familiarize yourself with the adoptive family before placement, you may be disappointed with certain aspects of their personalities, lifestyles, or behavior as you get to know them better.
• Emotional challenges. For some birth mothers, ongoing connection with their baby’s adoptive family can be difficult to manage emotionally. This is not a situation that you can anticipate, so it is recommended that you stay open and honest with each other. You can approach any changes you need to make to the details of the open adoption together.

This is your adoption, and you get to decide what kind of relationship is best for you. Professionals will support you with expert counsel and empathetic advice throughout your journey.

If you are ready to speak with a Mississippi adoption specialist about the type of adoption that is right for you, contact an agency today.