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The extraordinarily wide range of issues that can be addressed with postadoption services means that the services themselves must be diverse. Here are the most common types of postadoption services, including those that families have identified as most helpful.

Adoptive Parent Support Groups. In an adoptive parent support group, adoptive and prospective adoptive parents come together to offer and receive information and support from their peers. Parent groups offer their members and other participants a support system, friendships, educational programming, social interactions with other adoptive families, and advice from experienced adoptive parents. Parent groups exist throughout the country and vary extensively, from small playgroups for toddlers adopted through intercountry adoptions to large regional groups offering a range of programs and services to their members (who can number in the hundreds). Most parent groups are organized and administered by adoptive parent volunteers.

Parent groups may restrict their focus to families with children who share certain characteristics (such as having been adopted from a specific country or having been adopted through a public agency), or they may include all adoptive families in their programming. A number of national parent groups are organized into local chapters. Local adoption agencies and State adoption offices also may have information on newly formed groups. Parent groups can be located through Information Gateway's National Adoption Directory.

Programs and services commonly offered by parent groups include:

• Telephone warm lines
• Buddy families
• Respite care
• Lending library
• Workshops/conferences
• Pre-adoption support
• Social activities
• Children's support groups
• Ethnic heritage activities
• Newsletter
• Legislative advocacy
• Information and referral

Online support groups. Available 24 hours a day, Internet support groups now number in the thousands. Through participating in these groups, parents will likely find families who have experienced exactly what they are going through and who will be able to provide helpful suggestions. Parents should remember, however, to use the same precautions with online support groups that are used for any Internet activity.

Psychological therapy/counseling. Members of adoptive families may at times want or need professional help as concerns or problems arise. Timely intervention by a professional skilled in adoption issues often can prevent concerns from becoming more serious problems. The type and duration of therapy will vary depending on the kinds of problems being addressed. Some families build a relationship with a therapist over years, "checking in" for help as needed. Others find they need a therapist's help only occasionally.

There are many types of therapeutic interventions and many kinds of clinicians offering adoption therapy. For information about adoption therapy, the kinds of issues that it can address, and how to find the right mental health professional.

Respite care. Sometimes parents just need to get away for a while, reframe their problems, and get some rest. Respite care is a service that offers parents a temporary break from their parenting responsibilities. It is meant for families with children who require more skilled care than babysitters can provide or for parents going through a crisis of their own. Respite care can be in-home, meaning the respite worker comes to the house and stays with the children while the parents go out. With out-of-home respite, the parents take the children to a designated site.

Respite care may be available on a regularly scheduled or crisis basis from a State postadoption unit or local adoption agencies, or through a local adoptive parent group.

Seminars/conferences. Many adoptive parent support groups, adoption agencies, and postadoption service organizations offer education in adoption issues through workshops and conferences that range in length from a few hours to a few days. At an adoption conference, parents can learn about the adoption topics that are most important to them, have questions answered by the experts, socialize with other adoptive family members, and have the opportunity to purchase adoption-related books and other informative materials. Topics covered at these trainings may include how to discuss adoption with children, strategies for building attachment, parenting challenging children, dealing with adoption at school, parenting children who have been adopted transracially, search and reunion issues, supporting cultural heritage in international adoption, and much more. Adoption agencies will often offer seminars on such topics as specific types of child behavior, child development, and talking to children about adoption. (Search the Information Gateway conference calendar.)

Scholarships are sometimes available to help with the cost of attending adoption education conferences and seminars. State postadoption funding may be available for families who adopted through public agencies. Parents can check with conference organizers regarding scholarship opportunities.

Books and magazines. There are many helpful books on adoption for children and adults. Many of the children's books explain the "whys" of adoption and describe the process by which children are adopted. Some may help as children begin to question and discuss their own adoption story. Some of the books help parents look at the unique aspects of adoptive parenting. Others are written specifically for those who have adopted children with particular needs or who are parenting children from other cultures.

There also are a number of magazines for adoptive families, available by subscription or online. Each provides parenting information and support specifically for families formed through adoption.

Camps/recreational opportunities/heritage camps. Overnight camps or retreats are a powerful way for members of adoptive families to connect not only with others like themselves, but also with their own family members. Such events, typically weeklong, often combine adoption and ethnic heritage education and support with traditional camping activities. Family camps offer activities for all members of the family.

Other camps serve children of certain ages and/or ethnicities. Often siblings of children who have been adopted internationally are also included in heritage camp and find it enlightening to be among the minority, as their siblings frequently are. Heritage camp counselors are frequently older adopted youth, who provide critical role models for their younger counterparts. Frequently, camp attendees form powerful friendships with other adopted children, and they provide each other ongoing support all year long. In recent years, highly specialized camping experiences have become available for siblings separated by adoption to establish, reestablish, or strengthen their relationships with each other.

Tags: Adoption

About the Author

www.childwelfare.gov
Formerly the National Clearinghouse on Child Abuse and Neglect Information and the National Adoption Information Clearinghouse, Child Welfare Information Gateway provides access to information and resources to help protect children and strengthen families. A service of the Children's Bureau, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.