Semi-Open Adoption Pros and Cons in Colorado
You’ve probably had many times in your life where you’ve felt stuck between two choices. It might have been as simple as deciding between fruit or fries to go with your meal at a restaurant, or it may have been considerably more complex. When it comes to the different types of adoption that you can settle on during the adoption process, Adoption Choices of Colorado is happy to inform you that there is a clear middle-ground option that may just be right for you. Sandwiched quite comfortably between closed adoption and open adoption is the very interesting choice of semi-open adoption.
If you are experiencing an unplanned pregnancy and need adoption help, we are here for you. Here are some important semi-open adoption pros and cons to keep in mind as you’re considering what type of adoption would be right for you and your child.
How Should I Take My First Steps Toward Understanding Semi-Open Adoption?
In case you aren’t as familiar with this type of adoption, semi-open adoption is structured around communication between you and your child’s adoptive family through the help of a mediator. In this way, it is not as walled off as closed adoption or as direct in contact as open adoption. The adoption agency is usually the third party that helps to facilitate discussions. Through Adoption Choices of Colorado, we use a digital communication platform called ChildConnect that is designed specifically for semi-open adoption. Both you and your child’s adoptive parents can contribute to beneficial engagements on the service.
What are Some Pros of Semi-Open Adoption That I Should be Aware of?
First of all, there’s no shame in getting an outside look at things, especially since it can be stressful for a birth mother to connect with a new adoptive family or for a new adoptive family to connect with a birth mother. Not having to navigate those colliding worlds can be incredibly helpful. In this way, you could consider having a mediator a pro.
Another benefit is that you still get to be in contact with your child, which may be really important to you. You can see them grow up and check in on them pretty regularly. While there are numerous good things that come from a semi-open adoption, one final pro is that you would really be picking a choice that shares all of the best aspects of both open and closed adoptions — essentially, it is the happy middle ground or a great compromise.
Just to recap, some great pros of semi-open adoption, among others, include:
- having a mediator to help navigate new connections
- being able to see your child’s progress and get to know them pretty regularly
- having both privacy and openness from an adoption type that tries to compromise
What are Some Cons of Semi-Open Adoption That I Should be Aware of?
Strangely, depending on where you are in your life and what you wish to achieve by the end of the adoption process, the pros listed above might actually be cons for you. If you wish to see your child more freely, having a mediator can potentially feel like a bit of a road block. You might wish that you had just chosen open adoption instead. If you really feel like both you and your child should move on, however, then full openness or even semi-openness might not be your best choice. It might not be good for your mental health to see your child on a regular basis or at all. Having a semi-open adoption that is based on compromises might frustrate you if you are the type who wants to make a solid decision one way or the other.
Though there could be other potential cons, here is a summary of the ones listed:
- having a mediator might make engaging with your child feel like a difficult firewall
- If you really want to move on from your child’s life, semi-open adoption leaves a door ajar to seem them that you might not want to have
- you might regret compromising instead of picking a solid either/or adoption type
What Type of Adoption Should I Choose?
Unfortunately, we cannot decide for you. However, we can take notes from you and help you organize your thoughts after you have considered a bunch of important semi-open adoption pros and cons. Ultimately, although you may come to Adoption Choices of Colorado for our expertise and assistance, we work for you during the adoption process. It is all about your choices. So, don’t be afraid to take the time to weigh your options and run your ideas by us. We are here to help.
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: Nathan Dyer is a university student majoring in Communication Arts with a radio/TV/film focus. He enjoys writing professionally and dealing with hands-on problems in real-world scenarios. Among his hobbies is hiking, which always encourages him to explore new places. He looks forward to crafting written materials in the future that serve to help people from all walks of life.
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!