You can choose to place your baby for adoption at any point during and after your pregnancy. Putting your baby up for adoption after birth is an option available to you.
If you’re considering after-delivery adoption, you can consult these four steps to understand how choosing after-birth adoption works:
- Step 1: Contact an adoption agency
- Step 2: Choose an adoptive family
- Step 3: Talk to the adoptive family
- Step 4: Consider your life post-placement
If you’re ready to talk to an adoption specialist about giving your baby up for adoption at birth, you can contact an adoption professional for free right now. If you’re not certain you’re ready to call an adoption professional, consider these four steps that detail how to give a baby up for adoption at birth.
“Can You Give Your Baby Up for Adoption After Birth?”
Yes, you can find someone to adopt at birth. Adoption is always an option.
It’s not uncommon for a new mother to decide that adoption is right for her and her baby after giving birth. If this describes your experience, you aren’t alone. You may be able to place your newborn for adoption faster than you think.
Consider the following four steps to help your adoption process move quickly and smoothly.
Step 1: Contact an Adoption Agency
Once you decide that adoption after pregnancy is right for you, you can call an adoption agency. The adoption agency will quickly connect you with an adoption specialist. Adoption specialists work with birth mothers in many situations.
Adoption professionals are prepared to help you and your child get the help you need. These specialists will help you immediately find an adoptive family for your baby.
If you need to get in touch with an adoption agency now, you can call an adoption hotline like 1-800-ADOPTION, which is run by a national agency called American Adoptions.
Step 2: Choose an Adoptive Family
Once you’re in contact with an adoption specialist, their priorities are to:
- Assess your needs
- Help you find the perfect adoptive family quickly
An adoption specialist’s first priority is to make sure they hear your emotional needs. Your adoption professional will ask you why you’ve decided on adoption. The information you give your adoption specialist will help them assess the adoption services you need. Every birth mother who chooses adoption has access to licensed therapists who can provide emotional support.
An adoption specialist’s second priority is to ensure you can quickly find the perfect adoptive family.
One of the benefits of working with an adoption agency is that the agency already works with many hopeful adoptive families. These prospective adoptive families have already been through the adoption home study and are cleared to adopt.
If you decide to work with a local or regional adoption agency, you will connect with an adoptive family in your state. If you choose to work with a national adoption agency, you’ll see profiles of adoptive families who live throughout the United States.
One significant benefit of working with a national adoption agency is that you have access to more adoptive families who live throughout the U.S. All of these families are willing to travel to meet birth mothers and their children quickly.
Step 3: Consider Your After-Delivery Adoption Type, and Meet the Adoptive Family
When choosing an adoptive family, you’ll consider the type of adoption you will have. You can choose to have an open adoption, a semi-open adoption, or closed adoption.
Open Adoption
When you choose to have an open adoption, you will exchange contact information with the adoptive family. You and the adoptive family will stay in contact, and you’ll have the opportunity to build a relationship with your child.
Semi-Open Adoption
When you choose a semi-open adoption, you will have mediated contact with your child and your child’s adoptive family.
Closed Adoption
When you choose a closed adoption, you will have no contact with your child or the child’s adoptive family. You still get to choose your child’s adoptive family but will not have access to your child’s or the adoptive family’s identifying information.
Once you choose the adoptive family that’s right for your child, your adoption specialist will arrange a conference call (if you choose an open or semi-open adoption) between you and the adoptive family. You’ll get to know each other and plan when the adoptive family will meet your baby on this call.
Step 4: Life After Putting Your Baby Up for Adoption After Birth
Once the adoptive family has traveled to your location, you’ll finish the adoption paperwork.
Most states require birth mothers to wait several days (24-72 hours) after giving birth to consent to the adoption legally.
After signing the adoption consent forms, you legally consent to the adoption and transfer your parental rights to the adoptive family.
Once you’ve consented to the adoption, you can take time to consider what you want to do next. Many mothers take time to rest, grieve, and celebrate.
If you have an open adoption, you also can start to plan the next call, visit, or photo exchange with your child and the adoptive family.
Remember: Your selfless choice will allow your child to live a life full of possibilities.
You Have Time to Find Someone to Adopt at Birth
It’s never too late to place your child for adoption, but if you decide that putting your baby up for adoption after birth is right for you, the adoption process is sped up. When you choose adoption after birth, you will:
- Have less time to choose an adoptive family
- Have less time to get to know the adoptive family
- Have to fill out the adoption paperwork quickly
Even though the adoption process is sped up, you don’t have to pay to place your child for adoption, and you may be eligible for some financial assistance.
If you are still uncertain that adoption is right for you and are concerned that you have to decide right now, you don’t.
Take your time and talk to an adoption specialist. Adoption professionals are trained to help birth mothers determine if adoption is right for their life plan. It’s never too late to choose adoption.
If you’re ready to place your child for adoption after pregnancy or just want to find out more information about adoption, you can reach out to an adoption specialist today for free.
