Growing up Adopted - A Preschooler's Concerns
Adoptive parents and children have the same joys and problems as every other family. But they also face some unique issues that can be challenging for parent and child alike: “Why didn’t my other mother keep me?” Sooner or later, every adopted child asks that question—and there’s no “right” answer. You don't have to get too "heavy" with your anwswers. Simply build upon concepts. Young children usually can’t comprehend the many circumstances that would make a mother give up her child in hopes of a better life for him. When you adopted preschool child asks you need to do all you can to “Reassure him that his birth mother’s decision had nothing to do with him Help him understand that what matters is being in a loving family, and adoption is just another way of coming into a family.Make sure to give your child lots of time to talk and reflect on the facts he's given. Point out characters and heroes in this life who too were adopted. Make it feel like a normal thing - not an extraordinary thing. To you, it might be awesome and amazing to have this child in your life. To your child, it can be overwhelming to think that someone loved him very much, but still gave him away. As a young child I remember trying to be especially good so that my parents, whom I loved very much would want to keep me. Simple childhood thinking shaped my perception my family and their love for me.
What every Adopting Parent must know.
Growing UP Adopted. A Teen's Point of View.
Adoption Options: Your Choices.

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