Sunday, November 3, 2013
Disagreeance on Adoption
Many organizations are for great family bonds, yet they still pass such bills as Family Reunification Act in Minnesota in April of 2013. Our Child Welfare, and Adoption agencies, along with politicians agree with such acts as this. This bill proves how much social services does not support new family bond establishments. Biological parents who have had their parental rights taken away may regain guardianship of their children if they a have been in foster care for thirty-six months or more, or are over the age of fifteen (Brown).
Many of these kids, though they may not be adopted yet might have spent the last thirty-six months with a single foster family, built incredible family bonds and all may be looking forward to adoption when the parent may come back and be given the child again. This happens in every state in America, and no rights are given to the foster families to see these children or keep family bonds with them. This will give children attachment disorders, not to mention the likeliness that these children's biological parents will once again become delinquent and loose their child, sending them back into the foster care system. Bills such as these show how our country, government, agencies who are pro adoption and say they are fully behind new family bonds are not, and have no thought in the process of social services when children are stripped of the new loving family they are apart of.
Social services was created to help and represent people who need someone to support their well being in instances such as this. This must be addressed immediately, social services is not living up to the standards it has set for itself and should have to include the ideals of family bonding and attachment issues in every case established.
Monday, October 28, 2013
Ethical Perspectives of Adopting
Many people believe adoption is good for all over the world, Marilyn Monroe a huge American Icon was an orphan herself; President Ford was adopted and many presidents themselves adopted children. Even though people of great stature were at one time foster children, there are still people who disbelieve in adoption.
Adoption raises many ethical questions such as if the parents willingly gave up the children, should the parents be able to get their children back if they have had their parental rights taken, are the potential adopting parents safe for the child, and wrongful adoption effecting families and family bonds. Children are always suppose to be in the best interest, though the ethics of adoption sometimes focus on everything else.
Many judges have issues on deciding termination of a parents rights, as birthparents they believe to have the right to their child if they want; however, at times they could be more harmful to their children than anything. Some parents have their rights taken away due to incarceration, or potential incarceration or if they may be physically harmful to themselves or their children. "More adoptions take place each year than is commonly perceived or reported. The Institute estimates more than 135,000 annually, of which about 13,000 to 14,000 involve babies who are voluntarily relinquished domestically." (Smith) . Many of the adopted children's parents had their rights revoked causing them to lose their children, and separate children from their attached parents. Leaving the children feeling empty and alone. This is where foster families and adoptive families have to step in and rebuild strong ties for these children. Though many people believe that the biological parents should maintain the right to have their child returned to them.
"... one study of birthmothers in Britain, who ranged in age from 22 to 81, found that all but nine of the 262 respondents (about 3 percent) wanted basic information about their children." Many mother's who put their children up for adoption are comforted in receiving information about their child and have a shorter grieving process after making the difficult decision of having their child adopted. Though issues remain with the amount of time parents have to regain their parental rights either after putting their child up for adoption or loosing their parental rights. This is a serious ethical issue for the child, and it is hardly addressed from their view. Children who have their parents ripped away unexpectedly are scared, hurt, and traumatized. When they finally have the chance to build bonds, usually better bonds with an adoptive family biological parents may try to fight in court to become part of their child's life again. This tears children in half between the newly made bonds and their biological parents, this is traumatic for a child's state of mentality and the family dynamics of life, whether blood should be over caring and shapes how children review relationships later in life. They may start to cut relationships short and abruptly in life, they may do this with people, or their job, or their dreams.
Adoptive parents should always have background checks and screenings before they are allowed to adopt for the safety of the child physically, and mentally. Most people ready for adoption are safe as far as their own backgrounds such as criminal, but the most important background check is about what they have develop in their minds of the child they wish to adopt.
If a adoptive family wishes not to see children who are "unadoptable" then a flag should be made to the social worker to make sure only a small enclosed set of children may be chosen for the family to see. This is because some adoptive families do not wish to have children who have emotional or physical issues. It is important to have these issues clarified and the adoption agencies to know these parent's attentions if the child has an issue in their background. "..families be educated—through chances to talk with caseworkers, read materials, speak with experts who can interpret background information, and meet with families who have adopted children with similar challenges—so they understand the real life implications of past experiences and current needs" (Freundlich). Children need this to happen through the process to help keep from loosing family bonds after creating them. Many people whom find out a child they adopted has a drug withdrawal at birth or physical abuse with repercussions of deviance behavior give them back with their all. Not caring of the child's feelings and emotions when this happens and promotes children to have more attachment disorders than already. These ethics are now just being forced and these ethics are a necessity. Adopting parents will build bonds with these children even before the adoption process is over then all of a sudden break them.
Cited Works:
Smith, Susan "SAFEGUARDING THE RIGHTS AND WELL-BEING OF BIRTHPARENTS
IN THE ADOPTION PROCESS" Donaldson Adoption Institute. 2007. 2013
Freundlich, Madelyn; Gerstenzang, Sarah "Ethics and Adoptive Family Recruitment" Adoptalk. 2004.
Reason 2: Children who are not recieving these family bonds from their adoptive parents will not suceed
Children who are adopted, just like children in separated homes, need family bonds to succeed in life; if they are not receiving these bonds from their adoptive parents they will not thrive later in life. B.D. Perry, a senior fellow at ChildTrauma Academy and a former chief of psychiatry or children; he explains the importance of bonding and attachment for children in his work "Bonding and attachment in maltreated children: consequences of emotional neglect in childhood". He states that , "There are, however, many millions of children who have some degree of impaired bonding and attachment during early childhood. The problems that result from this can range from mild interpersonal discomfort to profound social and emotional problems."
This is important to understand because there are tens of thousands of un-adopted children, these children grow into adults and try to have families of their own, without knowing of family bonds their families may not fully develop or may fall apart. " It may take many years of hard work to help repair the damage from only a few months of neglect in infancy." This is critical for parents to understand when adopting children because the years may continue into their young adult years, making college, professions, and adult relationship bonds difficult to create and thrive in. Also, another great point Perry makes is " The infant's ability to participate in the maternal-infant interaction may be compromised due to a medical condition such as pre-maturity, birth defect, or illness." This alone shows how not even mothers who were adopted will bond with their own children, even though bonding with a child includes a chemical in the body called oxytocin, bonds are made from mainly mental abilities.
Also, Perry includes how it is the child's adoptive parent that must make sure these children receive the proper bonds for the future when he states "majority of attachment problems are likely due to parental ignorance about development rather than abuse. Many parents have not been educated about the critical nature of the experiences of the first three years of life. With more public education and policy support for these areas, this will improve. Currently, this ignorance is so widespread that it is estimated that 1 in 3 people has an avoidant, ambivalent, or resistant attachment with their caregiver." One in three is a very high percentage of people who a becoming adults to have attachment issues. If this continues in the next fifty years our society may have the entire family foundation pulled out from underneath it with people only caring about their own survival and never building good bonds and making their future achievement abilities deplete.
B.D. Perry
This is important to understand because there are tens of thousands of un-adopted children, these children grow into adults and try to have families of their own, without knowing of family bonds their families may not fully develop or may fall apart. " It may take many years of hard work to help repair the damage from only a few months of neglect in infancy." This is critical for parents to understand when adopting children because the years may continue into their young adult years, making college, professions, and adult relationship bonds difficult to create and thrive in. Also, another great point Perry makes is " The infant's ability to participate in the maternal-infant interaction may be compromised due to a medical condition such as pre-maturity, birth defect, or illness." This alone shows how not even mothers who were adopted will bond with their own children, even though bonding with a child includes a chemical in the body called oxytocin, bonds are made from mainly mental abilities.
Also, Perry includes how it is the child's adoptive parent that must make sure these children receive the proper bonds for the future when he states "majority of attachment problems are likely due to parental ignorance about development rather than abuse. Many parents have not been educated about the critical nature of the experiences of the first three years of life. With more public education and policy support for these areas, this will improve. Currently, this ignorance is so widespread that it is estimated that 1 in 3 people has an avoidant, ambivalent, or resistant attachment with their caregiver." One in three is a very high percentage of people who a becoming adults to have attachment issues. If this continues in the next fifty years our society may have the entire family foundation pulled out from underneath it with people only caring about their own survival and never building good bonds and making their future achievement abilities deplete.
Perry, B.D. "Bonding and attachment in maltreated children" Consequences of emotional neglect in children.2001.
Adapted in part from: “Maltreated Children: Experience, Brain Development and the Next Generation” (W.W. Norton & Company, New York, in preparation)
B.D. Perry
Sunday, October 27, 2013
Reason 1: Buiding family bonds helps build society in the future
Understanding Child Development- Child Welfare Information Gateway:
Children who did not spend enough time with emotionally healthy adults may
have difficulty identifying and controlling their emotions.
Children from orphanages or group care settings may not have had many
opportunities to see or practice healthy social interactions.
Children who were maltreated may not have learned how to empathize with
others, may have learned to relate to others in a violent way, or may reenact
trauma they have experienced
If the attachment process is disrupted, the child may not develop the secure base necessary to support future healthy development.
A child with insecure attachment might show traits of young child in the "oral stage," with abnormal speech patterns and eating patterns.
"Parenting your Adopted School-Aged Child"Factsheets for Families.Child Welfare Information Gateway. 2009
If the attachment process is disrupted, the child may not develop the secure base necessary to support future healthy development.
A child with insecure attachment might show traits of young child in the "oral stage," with abnormal speech patterns and eating patterns.
"Parenting your Adopted School-Aged Child"Factsheets for Families.Child Welfare Information Gateway. 2009
| Child Welfare
The U.S. Department of Health and Human
Services' Children's Bureau funds research projects on postadoption services.
The following is just one example:
The Colorado Coalition of Adoptive Families (CCAF) received an Adoption Opportunities and Healthy Marriage grant to provide training and support to families who adopted children from foster care in Colorado. The CCAF trained 641 adoptive parents in relationship strengthening skills and provided direct postadoptive services to 730 children and 945 adults over the 5-year grant period (2004-2009). Services included parent support groups, family advocacy, crisis intervention, therapy, respite care, case consultation, special events, a speaker series, and more. The project also was responsible for developing a network of adoption professionals, parents, community leaders, and others. Among the goals of the project was a reduction in adoption disruptions. Statistics comparing 616 participating adoptive families with 1,439 nonparticipating adoptive families showed that participating families had a rate of adoption disruption that was 16 percent lower than nonparticipating families (1.46 percent vs. 1.74 percent of finalized adoptions). www.cocaf.org  Reactive attachment disorder (found in children who do not bond with families even before age 5) Complications of reactive attachment disorder can continue into adulthood and can include:
|
Any factors that interfere with bonding experiences can
interfere with the development of attachment capabilities. When the interactive, reciprocal
"dance" between the caregiver and infant is disrupted or difficult,
bonding experiences are difficult to maintain. Disruptions can occur because of
primary problems with the infant, the caregiver, the environment or the
"fit" between the infant and caregiver.
Infant: The child’s
“personality” or temperament influences bonding. If an infant is difficult to sooth, irritable
or unresponsive compared to a calm, self-soothing child, he or she will have
more difficulty developing a secure attachment. The infant's ability to
participate in the maternal-infant interaction may be compromised due to a
medical condition such as pre-maturity, birth defect, or illness.
Caregiver: The
caregiver's behaviors can impair bonding.
Critical, rejecting, and interfering parents tend to have children that
avoid emotional intimacy. Abusive
parents tend to have children that become uncomfortable with intimacy and
withdraw. The child’s mother may be unresponsive to the child due to maternal
depression, substance abuse, overwhelming personal problems, or other factors
that interfere with her ability to be consistent and nurturing for the
child.
Perry, B.D. "Bonding and attachment in maltreated children" Consequences of emotional neglect in children.
Adapted in part from: “Maltreated
Children: Experience, Brain Development and the Next Generation” (W.W.
Norton & Company, New York, in preparation)
P.D. Perry Bonding and Attachment |
Reasons for my veiw on adoptinng parents really stepping up
Thesis: Adoptive parents need to step up after the adoption process by building family bonds with their new family and the idea of this needs to be extended to the social work side of it as well.
Reasons:
1. Building family bonds helps build our society in future generations.
2. Children who are not receiving these family bonds from their adoptive parents will not succeed
3. Social work not including these bonds is not keeping the best interest of the children in mind even if the parents can financially support the child.
Reasons:
1. Building family bonds helps build our society in future generations.
2. Children who are not receiving these family bonds from their adoptive parents will not succeed
3. Social work not including these bonds is not keeping the best interest of the children in mind even if the parents can financially support the child.
Thursday, October 24, 2013
Adopting and being a parent after adoption is most important for our children and society
Adopting parents and social workers of our society should be more focused on creating family bonds, dynamics, and differences in foster childrens' lives than just the process of adopting.
As a parent I have now grown to understand the difficulties of raising your own child, I may only imagine how difficult it is to raise a child you adopt. When I was a teenager I never thought of having biological children but wished to adopt children, older children that other people had most likely given up on, I believe I became this way from reading "Cider House Rules" by John Irving.
I always thought of this as unfair, though I have also seen children adopted at the perfect time in their lives to prevent separation anxiety and the parents who adopt wealthy and having the ability to give them anything they need or desire. These children became monsters, spoiled, still incomprehensive of family and family bonds but expect to do whatever they wish and only desiring attention and material goods from people. Children need to build these family bonds and the parents whom adopt need to put this priority first as well. Just because a person adopts does not make them a parent.
There are many programs that can be committed to newly formed families to help them build relationships and bonds. Parents need to feel the relationship just as the child, even if the child is unwilling to build a bond because they will probably just be ripped away from the family in the end or have been constantly moved from home to home, never having a chance to build a lasting bond. Parents who adopt may not feel as if the children are their own, or may want to teach the child the proper way to live life but forget that they are a family. This happens constantly and it pushes the child away more and more, making them feel almost alone and not teaching them anything at all.
Parents who adopt should have to have mandatory social work visits and assessments with the child present. This should be the biggest priority of a social worker. If a child is adopted and not taught the dynamics of a family, social life, and love then they cannot grow in society. Leaving thousands of adult inept to the ideas of whole families, changing our entire social status in our country and the repetition to the next generations grows and expands.
Children are the future of our country, if a child is not being taught the proper dynamics of society and how to grow both internally and externally then our entire society will eventually collapse. Adopting parents need to be more active in their new family and child's life, teaching them everything about life as much as possible and showing them they can be loved and they are just as important as blood family. In order to do this new policies should be made for adoption and new bounds of social work should be committed to these families and making sure or nation grows to the best of it's ability.
As a parent I have now grown to understand the difficulties of raising your own child, I may only imagine how difficult it is to raise a child you adopt. When I was a teenager I never thought of having biological children but wished to adopt children, older children that other people had most likely given up on, I believe I became this way from reading "Cider House Rules" by John Irving.
I always thought of this as unfair, though I have also seen children adopted at the perfect time in their lives to prevent separation anxiety and the parents who adopt wealthy and having the ability to give them anything they need or desire. These children became monsters, spoiled, still incomprehensive of family and family bonds but expect to do whatever they wish and only desiring attention and material goods from people. Children need to build these family bonds and the parents whom adopt need to put this priority first as well. Just because a person adopts does not make them a parent.
There are many programs that can be committed to newly formed families to help them build relationships and bonds. Parents need to feel the relationship just as the child, even if the child is unwilling to build a bond because they will probably just be ripped away from the family in the end or have been constantly moved from home to home, never having a chance to build a lasting bond. Parents who adopt may not feel as if the children are their own, or may want to teach the child the proper way to live life but forget that they are a family. This happens constantly and it pushes the child away more and more, making them feel almost alone and not teaching them anything at all.
Parents who adopt should have to have mandatory social work visits and assessments with the child present. This should be the biggest priority of a social worker. If a child is adopted and not taught the dynamics of a family, social life, and love then they cannot grow in society. Leaving thousands of adult inept to the ideas of whole families, changing our entire social status in our country and the repetition to the next generations grows and expands.
Children are the future of our country, if a child is not being taught the proper dynamics of society and how to grow both internally and externally then our entire society will eventually collapse. Adopting parents need to be more active in their new family and child's life, teaching them everything about life as much as possible and showing them they can be loved and they are just as important as blood family. In order to do this new policies should be made for adoption and new bounds of social work should be committed to these families and making sure or nation grows to the best of it's ability.
Do people Really Oppose Adoption?
"Most people have had no reason to question the ethics of adoption, and so they assume it to be a benevolent institution." Some people do not agree with adoption, this woman, whom also happens to be a mother is anti-adoption and has very valid points on her reasons why as far as discrimination in adoption and funding. I wish that people can fully understand all views of an adoption. Whether these views be from the biological parent, the child, the family members of the child, or the adoptive parents. I wish people realized the struggles are worth the risks which a far better than leaving these children to fend for themselves or to be given to abusive persons.
The Case Against Adoption for concerned citizens
Jessica DelBalzo, Yahoo Contributor Network
May 31, 2007
May 31, 2007
How are children and family affected by adoption?
This article helps to provide the base idea of why we should target these ideas of family bond importance. A wonderful part of the introduction in this article states, "... the process by which the caregivers of adoptees become parents to their children is not presented in the social work literature... Consequently, these families must contend with unique but unidentified transitional tasks." (Elbow) Our society does not understand the importance of adoption to family dynamics and how much parents as well as children struggle to make these bonds but have no idea how to reach their goals.
Citation:
Elbow M. From Caregiving to Parenting: Family Formation with Adopted Older Children. Social Work [serial online]. September 1986;31(5):366-370. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed October 18, 2013.
Get Involved in Your new Family!
Adoption parents sometimes have problems connecting with their new additions and vice versa for the children. The importance of building a proper family dynamic is placed upon the head of the newly found parent. There are classes and therapy tools for both the parents and children to help their new family grow. Many adopted children never bond properly with their new family for many factors occur through their childhoods. Parents who adopt need to realize this and take charge! Children are meant to thrive and grow and live and love the fact they have the opportunity to. Adopted parents need to feel and show the emotional and family bonds necessary for society and life, many children in divorced homes have issues with this let alone newly found homes and families instead of their usual foster homes for six months to six years before being ripped away unexpectedly sometimes from their new family and new family bonds creating a wall of turmoil and hate towards building a family and family dynamic. "The final step in the adoption process occurs after the child has been placed with his or her adoptive parents and after the adoption has been finalized by all necessary courts. This final step involves the new parents and the new child bonding with one another, the development of family routine, and deep and lasting family relationships. It can also involve dealing with numerous issues that can occur after adoption." (Patricelli)
Common Post-Adoption Issues
Kathryn Patricelli, MA "Common Post-Adoption Issues: Bonding" MHC. 2013
Information for families in adoptive situations
Child Welfare Information Gateway is a wonderful source that can describe so many important pieces of adoption for parents. The extension of knowledge that can be found here can only be summed up as the most important and most necessary to follow for parents and children in adoption. The ideas of children and parents needing help to cope with adoption and the traumatic events that lead to the adoptions is all located in here because these ideas are important on levels of the mentality of our society that cannot be described.
Parenting after adoption
"Parenting After Adoption" Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S.Department of Health and Human Services . 2013
Children need our Help!
"Children in foster care are removed from their families due to abusive or neglectful situations. This can include physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, or neglect such as not providing enough food or leaving children who are unable to care for themselves alone. It’s up to you to ensure all their needs are being met." As adoptive parents new goals must be set to help the children grow. Children are our future, adults need to understand this sooner than later. Adopt US Kids helps prove the points of issues at hand in the adoption world. As and organization and world wide perspective, adopted children need help to create the deep bonds by the newly adoptive parents becoming better parents than most people with biological children.
adoptUSkids.org
adoptUSkids.org
"being an Adoptive Parent". AdoptUSkids.
Childswelfarebeurae. 2013
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