Adoption

Families who are considering adoption as a means of having children should first decide whether to adopt domestically or internationally. There is no fast track way of adopting a child from either means of adoption since each has its own adoption pros and cons.

It is difficult to say which adoption is better because it depends on the adopting family. Some adopting families prefer domestic adoption, some prefer international adoption for certain reasons.

Generally, domestic adoption is much more affordable than international adoption, simply because of the reduced cost on travel and additional paperwork. Compared to international adoption, domestic adoption seldom requires the adopting family to spend too much time on the adoption process since most of the leg work will be done by case workers and adoption agency representatives.

Another pro that adopting families get from domestic adoption is the possibility of getting a newborn baby. Compared to international adoption, it will take a while for an infant to unite with his/her adopting family and the child will normally be a few months old.

Requirements for domestic adoption are quite strict and qualifications for adopting families are also high. This is one of the cons of domestic adoption that somehow lead adopting families to adopt internationally.

Another con of domestic adoption is the possibility that the biological mother may change her mind or refuse to give up her child for adoption. This may cause the adoption process to delay or even be terminated if the biological mother changes her final decision. This happens more often during the final stage of the adoption process where the adopting family is expecting a child.

It is also possible that there are fewer children available for domestic adoption especially if an adopting family prefers to adopt a child from a minority group. This is one of the major pros of international adoption, where children of different races are plenty.

There’s another way to adopt domestically and that is through closed or confidential adoption. This type of domestic adoption doesn't allow any contact between the adopting and the biological families.

Closed or confidential adoption poses many cons especially to the child and the adopting parents. There is always a possibility that the child may feel the need to look for his/her biological parents and this could cause problems.

Adoption pros and cons have the potential to discourage the adopting family in many ways. But with an open mind and heart, overcoming the dilemma of adoption will prove to be worthwhile.