by Kathy Crissey, MS, LMHC Adoption STAR’s Director of Adoption Kathy Crissey suggests some important considerations for relationship development between prospective adoptive parents and birth parents prior to a potential placement. There may be an opportunity for a relationship to develop between a birth parent(s) and adoptive parent(s) prior to the birth of a child.
Continue reading »by Kathy Crissey Adoption STAR’s Director of Adoption Kathy Crissey relies on her years of adoption experience to write a letter from the perspective of a Birth Parent. I am going through a time in my life that is the probably the most difficult time I have ever gone through. I feel alone and I
Continue reading »To even begin to understand the reality of attachment and bonding we need to know what these terms mean. Attachment: Attachment is a tie between two people. Healthy attachment is a two-way street, this occurs when a caregiver (parent), provides stable and consistent responses to the child’s distress. Distress occurs when a baby or child
Continue reading »By Gail Steinberg and Beth Hall Transracial adoption means the joining of racially different parents and children together in adoptive families. Most transracial adoptive parents are white. Most transracially- adopted kids are of color. Transracial adoption includes children adopted from other countries as well as those born in the United States. This means that kids
Continue reading »by Gregory C. Keck and Regina M. Kupecky There is a common children’s verse that says, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” For the abused child, nothing could be further from the truth. While the effects of physical abuse usually heal over time, the psychological insults experienced by
Continue reading »by Dr. Jane Aronson Introduction The establishment of age for children adopted from abroad can be challenging for parents and adoption professionals. When children have been left in a public place without a note, adults are forced to guess the age. For infants, this age assignment is pretty easy especially if there is a remnant
Continue reading »by Christine Mitchell, author and illustrator Recently my daughter asked me, with a sad expression, “How come babies have to come out of their mom’s tummies?” I wondered if it was bothering her that she did not ‘come from my tummy’. I considered asking her if this was troubling her, but I didn’t want to
Continue reading »by Beth Hall Children deserve to experience belonging, no matter how many families they have, whether they join their family, by birth or by adoption, no matter their age, no matter their race or how weird or boring or amazing they are, they deserve to come to believe in an absolute way that they have
Continue reading »Emotional Vulnerabilities of an Adoptee: I need help in recognizing my adoption loss and help with grieving it. I need to be assured that my birth parent’s decision not to parent me had nothing to do with anything defective in me. I need help in learning how to deal with my fears of rejection—to learn
Continue reading »By Hollee McGinnis aka Lee Hwa Young As adult adoptees our adoptions did not end the day we were placed in the waiting arms of our adoptive parents. It was only the beginning of our lifelong journey of self-discovery and the very beginning of our adoption journey. Our adoption journeys have not always been clear,
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