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Can You Give up a Baby at the Hospital?

5 Steps of the Hospital Adoption Process

If you’ve just given birth and don’t want to parent, then last-minute hospital adoptions are always an option. Call 1-800-ADOPTION for immediate help.

You can also contact us online to get free adoption information now and begin your adoption journey today. Our agency will provide you with all the resources and services you need, and it will all be completely free.

Can You Give up a Baby at the Hospital?

Yes, last-minute hospital adoptions are always possible. Many people don’t consider adoption until right before or after delivery. An adoption agency, such as American Adoptions, will help you make an adoption plan, choose the right family for your baby and receive adoption financial assistance. 

Whether it has been weeks or even months after you’ve brought your baby home, adoption is still an option. To get more free information now about giving your baby up for adoption at the hospital, fill out our online contact form.

How Do I Put My Baby Up for Adoption at the Hospital?

Giving your baby up for adoption at the hospital is a lot like choosing adoption earlier in your pregnancy. The only difference is the speed of the process itself. Generally speaking, you’ll follow five steps of the adoption process once you realize this path is right for you.

Although every adoption process is unique, last-minute hospital adoptions usually look like this:

Step 1: Choose Adoption

Make sure that you are fully confident in your adoption decision before you commit to this path. There are plenty of emotions you may go through just during the hospital visit alone.

Still, you’re in full control of your adoption journey from start to finish. Only you can know what’s right for you and your baby, so don’t let anyone try to tell you otherwise.

If you’re ready to start the process of giving your baby up for adoption at the hospital, then fill out our online contact form to get more adoption information now. We’d be happy to help you at any time.

Step 2: Contact Our Adoption Agency

Having professional help alongside you is crucial, especially when you’re giving your baby up for adoption at the hospital.

For this step, we recommend working with a national adoption agency like American Adoptions. With our decades of experience with last-minute hospital adoptions, you’ll have access to our wide range of comprehensive adoption services.

Also, we have thousands of hopeful adoptive families in our system, which will make the process as smooth as possible for you. Many of these families are willing to travel to you right now to complete adoption at the hospital.

Step 3: Choose Your Baby’s Adoptive Parents

As the prospective birth mother, you are in full control of your adoption journey from the beginning to the end. That includes choosing the right adoptive family for your baby.

You can start viewing waiting family profiles right now and find the perfect adoptive parents for your child, all from your hospital room.

If you want, then we can also set up a call between you and the hopeful family so you can get to know them a bit better. Whenever you’re ready to move forward with the process, the family will immediately travel to you so that you can all complete the process of giving your baby up for adoption at the hospital.

Step 4: Finalize the Adoption at the Hospital

Like everything in your adoption journey, how the hospital adoption goes is 100% up to you. Before the hopeful adoptive parents arrive, speak with your birth parent specialist and create your adoption hospital plan. This plan is where you’ll decide whether you want to meet the family in person or not.

If you need space and would rather not meet the adoptive family, then this is an option for you.

When the adoptive family makes it to the hospital and your state’s minimum waiting period is over, you can grant your official consent to the adoption.

Depending on what state you live in, this process could vary, but you’ll generally be signing away your parental rights and responsibilities to the adoptive family. Although this can be a hard time, you’re making a brave, selfless decision to give your child a chance at the best life possible.

Step 5: Adjust to Your New Life as a Birth Parent

After last-minute hospital adoptions, many birth parents stay in touch with their child and the adoptive family for years to come. In an open adoption, finalization is never “goodbye.” Rather, it is simply “see you later.”

You can keep in touch through forms of communication like:

  • Phone calls
  • Texts
  • Emails
  • In-person visits
  • Photos
  • Handwritten letters
  • Or whatever you feel comfortable with

Here at American Adoptions, you’ll work with a trustworthy, experienced birth parent specialist. They’ll help you:

  • Create your personalized adoption plan
  • Provide all the financial assistance you need
  • Find a wonderful, loving family for your baby

Can You Give up a Child at Any Age?

Giving your baby up for adoption at the hospital and even months afterward is an option. But, the adoption process will get harder, and services will be more limited as the child grows older. To start making your adoption plan today, contact our agency at any time.

It is never too late to choose adoption for your baby. You can always create a brighter future for you and your child even if you’re at the hospital.

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If you would like to learn more about last-minute hospital adoptions, then you can fill out our online contact form to get more adoption information now. We are ready to help you even at a moment’s notice.

Disclaimer
Information available through these links is the sole property of the companies and organizations listed therein. American Adoptions provides this information as a courtesy and is in no way responsible for its content or accuracy.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why is American Adoptions the right adoption agency choice for many birth mothers?

American Adoptions is one of the largest licensed adoption agencies in the United States. Each year, we work with thousands of women who are facing an unplanned pregnancy and offer assistance to these women. Our large, caring staff is able to assist you seven days a week and provide you with one-on-one counseling about your pregnancy and available options.

You should choose an adoption agency where you feel completely comfortable with their services and staff. With American Adoptions, you will work with an Adoption Specialist who is on-call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The Adoption Specialist will be your advocate and will provide support and guidance as you create an adoption plan that is right for you.

How will the family tell my child about me and the adoption when my child is older?

Each family has their own style of introducing adoption to the child. When you are matched with an adoptive family, you can ask them this question. If you would like your Adoption Specialist to discuss it for you, just let her know. He or she can share your wishes or provide good ideas from other adoptive families.

You will also be able to share what you want your baby to know about you. You can complete a keepsake booklet to share hobbies, stories, photos of you and your family and a letter to your baby. The adoptive family can provide this to your child as he or she grows older. Be as creative as you like! Some birth mothers have even knitted a special blanket as a gift to their baby or given a similar symbol of their love.

The father of your baby can fill out the birth father's keepsake booklet or write a letter too. You may have other family members who would also like to share photos or a letter to the baby. This is your opportunity to pass on your and your family's love and to share your personality, history and reasons for choosing adoption. The adoptive family will treasure whatever information you provide and will share it with the baby at an appropriate age. In most adoptive homes, the word adoption is in the child's vocabulary early on, and adoption is celebrated in their lives.

Additional Resources

Teen Pregnancy - Information for Young Women

While not every woman who chooses adoption is a young mother, many are. Through adoption, many young women have found an ability to give their babies the best life possible, while finding the opportunity to realize their own dreams, as well. Call American Adoptions today at 1-800-ADOPTION.

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Do adoption terms and phrases leave you feeling confused? Learn the meaning to key adoption words and phrases with our comprehensive adoption glossary.

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