Most pregnant women considering adoption first have questions about the adoption process. How does adoption work? What are the steps to adoption? Will I get in trouble for choosing adoption? Adoption Choices of Nevada has been working with expectant mothers considering adoption for over 20 years and we here to help you navigate the Reno adoption process, develop an adoption plan, and choose an adoptive family.

With modern adoptions, pregnant women are in control of making choices throughout the adoption process. From considering adoption to contacting our adoption agency, pursuing adoption, creating an adoption plan, how much or how little help you need, counseling support, choosing an adoptive family, and more – these choices are yours to make!

Always confidential and at no cost for birth mothers, here are a few things Adoption Choices of Nevada can help to make the adoption process easier:

• 24-hour birth mother hotline with adoption professionals
• Counseling with licensed professionals
• Caring, expert adoption assistant with personalized attention and support
• Screened and qualified adoptive families ready to adopt
• Support with adoption plans
• Helping birth mothers learn about our adoption program
• Resources to help learn about adoption rights of birth mothers and birth fathers
• The option to open, semi-open, or closed adoption
• Medical aid and legal assistance through the adoption process
• Help attaining safe housing or comfortable living environment
• Transportation assistance

If your child is already born, you can still choose adoption. The adoption process may look a little bit different, but the adoption decisions are still the same and all the adoption choices remain yours.

Let’s take a closer look at the simplified step-by-step process in choosing adoption in Reno:

There are five steps in the adoption process, and each one helps create the adoption plan you want. While no one can tell you what it is that you want, your agency can help you.

Step One: Choose an Agency 

Now that you have chosen to place your baby for adoption, it’s time to find an agency. To do this effectively, it’s important that you research all that you can. Not all adoption agencies will meet your needs. Here are a few things you need to look for when searching for an agency:

• Make sure your agency is licensed
• Look for professionals
• What services are they offering during and after your pregnancy?
• Do you trust them?
• How responsive are they to your questions?

All these questions and statements are important for your safety and well being. You are picking an adoption center that is going to be a large part of your life and foreseeable future. You deserve to be happy with your choice and not feel as if you are being hurt. The last thing you should feel is uncomfortable with your agency.

That being said, you have us now! We are licensed and have professionals that are always willing to answer your questions. We offer services for you during and after your pregnancy, and we try to be as responsive as possible. Even during uncertain times like these in the midst of the pandemic, we are still open and available. You will not be judged here. Rather, treated with the respect you deserve.

Step Two: Determine the Type of Adoption

The next step is determining what type of adoption you want. This comes down to three choices, each of which define how much involvement you’ll have with your child and the adoptive family post-adoption. There is no right or wrong way to do this. It is all up to what you feel is best for you and your child.

• • Open Adoption: There will be open communication between you and the adoptive family that can include, but is not limited to: visiting times, calls, emails, photo sharing and a bond with the child and adoptive family. A benefit to open adoption is that you get to stay connected and can answer important questions later on. It also may ease any sense of guilt and help you heal. If you are worried about your child and his or her new family, open adoption allows you to see your child happy, healthy and safe.
  • Semi-open Adoption: Communication is limited in this type of adoption to letters, which are mediated through your adoption agency. This can be a good option if you wish to keep your privacy from the family, but still want the option of your child getting to know you later on. An added benefit is that your child will have access to his or her medical and health history, which can greatly help the adoptive family provide the best care.
  • Closed Adoption: There is no communication between you and your child or the adoptive family. This may be the option you want to take if you want full closure on your end. There is also more privacy with this option.

Step Three: Review Adoptive Families

You have made it to next step – looking for an adoptive family. For now, you get to review the adoptive families your agency pulls together for you. You get to pick out which families you think would be a good fit based on what you want in a family. The point of reviewing these families is to narrow down your options. This way, you have only a select few families to pick from.

Step Four: Interview and Pick an Adoptive Family

This could be either the most exciting part of your adoption journey or the moment that makes you really nervous. Possibly both! Interviewing potential adoptive families can be anxiety-inducing, but we have a few tips! First off, have a list of questions. We have a list that has 30 questions you can ask if you need somewhere to start. Once you have interviewed the family and feel comfortable with them, you get to say you want them. You’ve then chosen the adoptive parents your child will grow up with.

Between step 4 and 5 there will be more choices to make such as outlining your hospital stay, counseling support, a budget for financial assistance, what you want from post-placement counseling, support, and communication, and so much more! We will work with your for the entirety of your pregnancy.

Step Five: Give Birth 

You’ve reached the final step! During the next few months, you may be thinking: Will this baby ever come out so I can see my toes again? This is a completely understandable and natural thought! The final months of pregnancy can cause some discomfort, but your doctor and healthcare team will take care of you. Once you give birth, depending on where you live, you have up to 48 hours to sign relinquishment papers, which terminate all parental rights.

If you are an adoptive parent, please click HERE.