Learning of an unplanned pregnancy will always bring about a wave of emotions and questions of what to do next.

If you are considering adoption, you are likely asking yourself some or all of the following questions about adoption:

• Do I have to have my mind made up before calling American Adoptions?
• Why do some women choose adoption?
• How will I know that there is the perfect family willing to adopt my baby?
• How does American Adoptions screen adoptive families?
• Can I have a relationship with my child and the adoptive family?
• If I choose adoption, will I some day regret my decision? 
• What should I do next?

Do I have to have my mind made up before calling American Adoptions?

No. It is rare for a woman to be committed to adoption during her first phone call. In fact, you don’t even make your final decision until after the baby is born.

When you contact American Adoptions, our Adoption Specialists will help you objectively explore adoption to determine if it is the best choice for you and your baby, and they will help answer any of your other adoption questions.

Why do some women choose adoption?

Every woman chooses adoption for different reasons because of their own unique situations:

- Father of the Baby – It is common for women to explore adoption because the father of the baby is not in the picture, making parenting twice as challenging for her. 

- Finances – Parenting is expensive, and many women dealing with an unplanned pregnancy have not reached a stage in their life where they are able to provide all of the necessities they want for their child.

- Not Ready to Parent – Some women choose adoption because they simply are not ready to raise a child at this juncture in their lives. They may not be emotionally ready, they may have aspirations to complete school or focus on a career, or they simply may not be ready for the huge responsibility of parenting.

There are hundreds of reasons why women choose adoption. It is important to make sure that the decision is well thought out and any questions you have about adoption are discussed in full with an Adoption Specialist. 


How will I know there is the perfect family willing to adopt my baby?

American Adoptions works with hundreds of adoptive families at all times, meaning prospective birth mothers will always find a family that matches the characteristics of their adoption plan.

Whether you envision your child growing up in the city or in the country, in the Midwest or on the West Coast, you choose the adoptive family and thus the life your child will have. American Adoptions’ families are all unique, and we believe there is a perfect family for every prospective birth mother.

How does American Adoptions screen adoptive families?

American Adoptions is different from most adoption agencies in that we accept only the best adoptive family candidates in the United States.

Only a selection of our adoptive family applications are accepted, to ensure that our adoptive families…

- Have completed an extensive home study, ensuring the family has completed criminal, medical and financial checks, and that their home is a safe environment for a child.

- Are fully committed to adoption.

- Are accepting of at least a semi-open adoption, based on your desire of contact.

Finally, American Adoptions provides prospective birth parents with a wealth of knowledge about any family that matches her preferences, so she can perform her own “screening process.”


Can I have a relationship with my child and the adoptive family?

Over the past few decades, adoption has become increasingly “open,” in that birth parents have more opportunities than ever to continue a relationship with their child and the adoptive family.

If future contact and even visitations with your child are important to you, there are dozens of waiting families who are seeking this same relationship. Indeed, there are many adoptive families with American Adoptions who desire to have a relationship with the birth mother, and want their adopted child to know his or her biological mother.

In addition, all of American Adoptions' families are accepting of at least a semi-open adoption. A semi-open adoption includes any or all of the following that you are interested participating in with the adoptive family:

- Conference Calls – An Adoption Specialist-mediated conversation between you and the adoptive family.

- Email Exchange – Ongoing email communication before and after the adoption is becoming increasingly popular.

- Pictures and Letters – The adoptive family provides updates of your child via pictures and letters for 18 years.

- Meet Prior and During Placement – The adoptive family travels to your location prior to placement, intended to help build a relationship and make you feel secure about your decision of adoptive family. The family will also travel to your location during placement.

Remember, there is always an adoptive family at American Adoptions who is interested in the same amount of contact that you are, whether it is a more open adoption or closed adoption. The choice is ultimately yours.

If I choose adoption, will I some day regret my decision?

There are many emotions that correspond with adoption. Regret is one of those emotions that is unpredictable.

You may, for example, regret that you weren’t able to offer everything you wanted for your child. However, you will never regret the fact that you gave your child a better life through adoption, and that your child is happy.

Knowing that you made a positive decision out of love and in the best interest of your child will help you cope with any feelings or thoughts of regret, should you experience this.

Autumn, a birth mother, discussed these feelings:

"I was scared that I might regret my decision later on when my daughter became older and when I was more financially stable and could have been able to raise her.

However, seeing how happy she is with her adoptive family makes me feel good about my decision and I would never want to take all the wonderful experiences that she has had away from her.

I could not give her everything that she deserved and everything that I had always dreamed for my children to have. I know that it is because of my brave decision that those opportunities are possible for her." 


What should I do next?

These are just a few common adoption questions that many women in your situation have, but you likely have many others.

For more information about these unanswered adoption questions, please research our web site further or contact an Adoption Specialist 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-ADOPTION.

You may also complete the following form by clicking here, which will help us get to know you, let us answer any additional adoption questions you have, and allow us to provide you our free Guide for Pregnant Women Considering Adoption.