Services For Pregnant Women And Their Partners
C2Adopt offers confidential and free Options Counseling to pregnant women (and their partners) who are considering all their parenting options. A counselor will meet with the expectant parent(s) and supportive family members to discuss ALL options and support the client in making whatever decision she/he feels is in her/his and their child’s best interest.
We begin each options counseling session from a “family preservation” perspective. We want to seek solutions that will allow the child to remain with their birth family, if possible. C2Adopt knows that even with the exploration of community resources and support systems, there will still be circumstances where an adoption plan may be needed. Once that decision is made, we take time to be sure that any placing parent is aware of the lifelong implications (emotional, psychological, legal) of making an adoption plan. We support our placing parents in being as prepared as possible for the range of emotions they are likely to experience. We want to continue to support, to the extent we are able, all our pregnant clients, even when they choose not to place for adoption. For any mother or father choosing adoption, we will review all options available, assist in connecting to waiting families and provide services to you throughout the process, always ensuring you are making a well-informed decision at each step of the process.
Our counselors are committed to providing counseling services, educational information, and support to expectant parents who are thinking about making an adoption plan, and to birth parents who have already placed their child for adoption. We are here to help and support parents in whatever decision is made for their child.
Understanding Your Choices
You are in the middle of making a very difficult and important decision. The decision you choose will affect you and your child for the rest of your lives. We believe that you can make the best choice when you have access to all the information about your options. We are available to help you explore, in detail, the choice that is best for you.
Parenting
This is often the first choice many women consider when they discover they are pregnant. Here are a few of the important factors you may want to evaluate as you consider this option: your financial resources; who and where the people are that will support you; your emotional maturity; your current living arrangement; your employment options; how the father will be involved; and what your child will need from you physically and emotionally. If you are interested in parenting and need assistance obtaining additional resources in the Commonwealth of Virginia like housing, insurance, food, financial and counseling services, and day care assistance, visit the United Way Services Information and Referral Center at www.yourunitedway.org or call (800) 230-6977. You may also call us and request our Resource Guide that is updated annually.
Extended Family
All parents-to-be need the help and support of extended family when a child is joining the family. If you did not plan for this pregnancy or are concerned about your ability to parent, consider who you have in your extended family and the father’s extended family who could help. Consider who might be able to temporarily parent for you or can assist with childcare or financial difficulties. If you think you will consider placing your child for adoption, consider whether a family member would, formally or informally, adopt your child. If you cannot parent, it is important to consider a way for your child to remain within the biological family.
Abortion
Although some of the expectant women reading this information may be too far into their pregnancy or opposed to this option, it is still a choice for women in Virginia. Here are some of the important factors you may want to think about as you consider this option: your moral, ethical or religious beliefs about abortion; which clinic or physician can offer counseling and a full explanation of the abortion procedure; the physical and emotional effects of abortions; the biological father’s opinion, and the financial resources needed for this procedure.
Foster Care
Finally, you could also choose to place your child in Temporary Foster Care with your local public department of social service or a private child-placing agency. This choice could provide you with time and resources to make a plan for parenting your child. You may want to be aware of the law regarding the termination of your parental rights (you could lose your parental rights after a certain period of time). Consider the following: whether you will need more time after the birth of your child to make a final decision; how comfortable you are with being involved with a public agency; whether you eventually want to parent this child; how willing you are to plan and set goals with the agency and to work to meet those goals in order to have your child returned to your custody; and how the biological father will be involved in those goals.
Each of the above is only a brief and general description about the choices available. C2Adopt offers a suggested reading list for parents considering adoption for their child. If you request a counseling session with one of our social workers, we will be happy to explore any of these choices in more detail.
No matter what option you choose, it is very important to your child that you share as much information as possible about yourself, your child’s genetic and medical history, and the circumstances of his/her birth.
If you are interested in talking with a counselor to explore your options, please call (804) 354-1881. For more general information about C2Adopt or to simply ask more questions, please e-mail us at info@c2adopt.org.