There is more than one way to create a family. That’s borne by the fact that more than one-third of Americans say they’ve considered adoption. In fact, according to recent statistics, one of every 25 families, or 4% of families, includes at least one child who was adopted. About 7 million Americans were adopted, of whom about 1.5 million are under the age of 18. Sixty percent of Americans say they have some kind of personal experience with adoption. This is because they have a close friend or family member who was adopted, have placed a child for adoption, or have personally adopted.
If you’re in the process of adopting a child, you’re likely excited and maybe a little anxious as well. There are numerous things one can do to prepare to adopt a child, including talking to your health insurance company about what you need to do to add him or her to your policy, and if there’s a waiting period involved. Consider updating one’s will, if you have one, to name a guardian for your child. If you don’t yet have one, it’s smart to get one drawn up now.
Talk to your company’s human resources department about your parental leave options; some companies offer “adoption leave,” or paid time off, but others do not. Consider now whether you’ll take time off when your child comes home, and what kind of childcare will be needed. Will you hire a babysitter or use a child-care center? Taking care of these kinds of tasks now will take the pressure off once your little one is home with you.
Talk to local pediatricians and choose one for your child. If you’re adopting a child from a foreign country, you may want to ask the doctor about his or her experience with kids who have been adopted from other countries and whether they may be at higher risk for some conditions. It’s also a good idea to take a new parent or infant/child CPR and first aid class so you feel more prepared in the case of an emergency.
Once your youngster is home, consider banking their stem cells as biological insurance. Parents who have kids by birth have the opportunity to bank umbilical cord blood for stem cells, Adoptive parents have the same opportunity by recovering and banking the stem cells found in baby teeth and wisdom teeth; providing biological insurance in the event the cells are needed for future treatments to address disease, injury or genetic disorders. The attached resource, Adopting A Child? What To Do While You Wait, describes more about how prospective parents can prepare to bring their child home.
Courtesy Of StemSave
