Creating Your Adoption Plan as a Birth Mother in Colorado
Placing your child for adoption is a labor of love. It is undeniably tough to reconcile and admit that your child will have a better life with an adoptive family. However, if you play a role in getting them to that healthy and loving home, then you have right by your child.
For birth mothers who work with Adoption Choices of Colorado, you start by getting assigned a caseworker. They will help you curate your adoption plan, and guide you towards any resources that you need.
Do Your Research
When you are searching for a potential adoption center in Colorado, it’s important to do your research and to become familiar with your rights as a birth mother. Adoption is a wonderful alternative to an unplanned pregnancy, and you get to facilitate what that process looks like. It will bring certainty to your decision and alleviate some stresses or fears that you might have regarding you and your child. It’s also important for you to choose an agency that supports you as a birth mother.
Our agency has been a leader in the adoption community since 2002. Through us, you will have access to free counseling services, which extend to your child’s birth father and any other family members who would like to speak with us. In addition, depending on your personal circumstances, you may qualify for financial assistance. We understand this is a scary and uncertain time for you, but we will be there to support you throughout your adoption journey.
Select Your Child’s Adoptive Family
Choosing who will raise your child is one of the biggest decisions you’ll make when creating your adoption plan as a birth mother. It’s ok to take your time and address any concerns or questions you have with your adoption caseworker. For instance, what kind of family do you want your child to grow up in? What future opportunities would you like him or her to have? Deciding these factors, we understand, can feel overwhelming. That’s why your adoption caseworker is there to help guide you and will provide profile photo books for you to review once you have narrowed down what you are looking for.
These profiles are a standard at our agency that provides details of their lives. It also includes
photos and descriptions of their home, information about each family member and a letter addressed to you, saying what kind of life they could offer your child. Through these, you can get an understanding of their character and personalities.
Thinking about what qualities and morals you want in an adoptive family is important. There are many different types of adoptive couples and individuals who are willing and eager to grow their family and build a relationship with you.
Determine the Type of Adoption
Adoption Choices of Colorado strongly encourages open adoptions, as we believe that this type of adoption agreement keeps everyone’s best interests in mind. At the same time, we also understand that sharing personal information, maintaining contact and having a relationship with both your child and your child’s adoptive parent(s) post adoption isn’t for every birth mother. This is why your adoption plan is able to be customized, and you are able to choose from two other types of adoption – semi-open and closed.
To learn more about the three types of adoption, be sure to consult with your adoption caseworker.
Attend Counseling or a Support Group
Navigating an unplanned pregnancy can be tricky. All the emotional and taxing decisions can take its toll on you. This is why we offer counseling services for birth mothers at any stage in the adoption process. Sometimes, this process can feel incredibly personal, and that may indicate a need for private counseling. All our counselors are highly-trained and compassionate. They will provide a safe, confidential and nonjudgmental environment for you to process and discuss anything you need.
Be sure to also check out Lifetime Healing, a support group for birth mothers our agency is partnered with. It doesn’t matter if you are currently placing your baby for adoption, have placed in the past or are thinking about entering into the adoption process. All birth mothers are welcome, making this a wonderful resource.
We are Here to Help
It can definitely seem daunting, stepping into the world of adoption. But you are doing a good thing for both you and your baby. There are caseworkers, legal teams, counselors, doctors, other birth moms, and even the adoptive family here to support you every step of the way. We are all here to provide the support that you need to make these heart-wrenchingly difficult decisions. You’re not alone in this, and you have a team behind you for every challenge that may come your way.
If you are facing an unplanned pregnancy and want to learn more about your adoption options, contact Adoption Choices of Colorado by email, phone, or text: Email Us, Text us: 720-371-1099, Call us: 303-670-4673 (HOPE). If you are hoping to adopt, please contact us here.
Meet the Author: Katherine Burns is a journalism student at Loyola University Maryland with plans to pursue a career in the news and magazine industries. With over three years of experience writing for the Greyhound Newspaper at Loyola, Katherine specializes in Op-eds. However, she has recently branched out to cover a variety of topics, including education and sports journalism. She also has ample experience with travel blogging.
Katherine has conducted a variety of interviews in her time at Loyola and has displayed her stories through differing forms of media. In addition to her studies at Loyola, Katherine spent the fall of 2019 studying communications at the American University of Paris.To learn more about Katherine, be sure to check her out on social media.
Stephanie joined the Adoption Choices family in 2014 as the Child Placement Supervisor. Her love for adoption began in first grade when she made friends with twins adopted from Vietnam. Her heart grew strong over the years for adopted children and ultimately led her to graduate school where she continued her focus to her dream of working in the adoption field. Stephanie earned a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Denver in 2001. Over the past 15 years, Stephanie has worked as a pregnancy counselor and as an adoptive parent counselor for foster care, international adoption and domestic adoption, writing hundreds of home studies for families, and helping build their forever families. Stephanie is married and has three boys ages 12, 9, and 5. Together with her family she enjoys riding bike, playing games, watching her three sons compete in their various sporting and musical activities and go on vacations.
Christy Ikeler, is our Executive Director and Birth Parent Director. Christy has been with Adoption Choices Team for 18 years, since opening the doors in 2002! Christy has a true passion for what she does and her true love is working with and helping each birth parent. Whether she is up all night on the phone talking with them, taking them to doctors appointments, out for their favorite treat, providing counseling or at the hospital during labor and delivery, Christy is very involved every step of the way. She has a contagious laugh and a spunky personality that our birth moms all can bond with and relate to. As an adoptive parent herself, adoption holds a very special place in her heart and she can relate on every level with both birth parents and adoptive parents. In her free time Christy loves spending time with her daughter, gardening, baking and taking vacations with her family. Christy is an excellent leader for our team at Adoption Choices and is truly one of a kind!! As Executive Director, Christy spends time with the staff, birth parents and adoptive families in order to ensure that the agency is running smoothly. She has placed a huge emphasis on community outreach and programs for birth parents. Christy loves the opportunity to lead the agency into a brighter future.
Ms. Mackenzie has built a successful counseling career over the past 20 years, supporting mothers and families, people of all ages and genders, students, community professionals and fellow clinicians. Liv values a diverse professional focus, including the entrepreneurial life of a sole proprietor, the evaluative process of certifying foster/adoptive homes, the insightful and mindful one-on-one one work with enthusiastic clients, and serving as an advocate for underserved populations. Liv is a Licensed Professional Counselor and holds a BA in Pre-Law and Economics from American University, an MA in Counseling from Adams University and a certificate in Human Resource Management from Villanova University. Away from work you will find Liv spending time in nature, biking to the farmer’s market and adventuring with her family.
Catherine A. Madsen, joined the Adoption Choices family as legal counsel in 2013. Catherine is responsible for providing legal guidance to the Agency, training and updating staff on developments in adoption law and legislation, and program development. Catherine
Virginia Frank is an adoption attorney accredited since 1991 with the American Academy of Adoption Attorneys. Ms. Frank is a leader in the field of private adoption and has completed over 4,000 adoptions in her career. Ms. Frank has a law degree from Oklahoma City University and a BA in both Political Science and Communications from the University of Oklahoma.
Cassidie has been with Adoption Choices since 2015, she has her bachelors in Interdisciplinary Affairs with concentrations in both Sociology and Business Management. Cassidie has additional training in Victim Advocacy, foster care and has been working in women’s services for over 10 years. Cassidie has always had a heart for adoption and it was her career dream to work in adoption. She started off doing volunteer work for advocacy programs, adoption organizations and worked in High Risk Maternal Fetal Medicine through the University of Colorado Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Colorado. Cassidie is also blessed to have personally experienced an adoption of her own in 2012, completing her family of five! Cassidie loves what she does as a case worker from initial phone calls, meetings, doctor appointments, interaction with the adoptive families to delivery and counseling. Cassidie has a passion for those in need and strives to help make a difference in the lives of the people she meets. She is a firm believer in being kind, compassionate and open minded in all situations. “Unless you’ve walked in their shoes, there’s no place for judgment. A kind word or compliment can go a long way!” The bittersweet moments in adoption reminds Cassidie each and every time, why she loves what she does!