Editor’s Note: This article was originally published on December 14, 2017, and has since been updated.
Birth mother support and education are our focus here at Lifetime Adoption. We provide many resources and support for you online, as well as access to adoption attorneys, a wide variety of adoptive parents to choose from, help via text and phone 24/7, maternity clothing, peer counseling, and so much more. Lifetime Adoption provides this support at no charge to you before, during, and after your child’s adoption.
The fact is, you’ll never be without emotional support when you go through the adoption process with Lifetime Adoption. Our caring adoption professionals are here to help from the moment you first contact us all the way through to completing the adoption itself. We are always here for you.
Adoption Counseling
We understand that choosing adoption for your baby is an emotional event. Every birth mother is going to experience the stages of grief differently. Know that it’s completely normal for you to wonder if this is the right decision, and to feel sad. Your emotions are normal and shouldn’t be discounted.
What can help is talking with someone. Lifetime is happy to connect you with a licensed third-party counselor at no charge to you. By “third-party,” we mean that the therapist does not work for Lifetime, so they can provide neutral adoption counseling. To help you process the intense emotions you’re feeling, it’s important to take advantage of this free counseling. The counselor will help you cope with the grief, stress, and other emotions that come up during your adoption planning.
Peer Support
When you make an adoption plan for your baby with Lifetime, you will also have access to our peer support network. Our network is made up of women who have placed their children for adoption who can help you make sense of your feelings. Since they’ve been in your shoes and placed their baby for adoption, they can also tell you what to expect.
These women are moms just like you who have already gone through the adoption process. One of the effects of adoption is that you will face complex emotions, such as uncertainty and sadness. These emotions are completely normal, and the women in our peer support network can help you understand these feelings and discuss them with you.
Alyssa, one of our birth mothers, said that talking with a peer normalized the situation.
“She was upfront with me and shared, ‘Oh yeah, I felt like that too. You aren’t crazy. You’ll get through this,’” Alyssa says. “She didn’t judge. Instead, she offered me a shoulder to cry on.”
Peer support is available for free to any woman considering adoption for her child. There is no commitment to continue with adoption, even if you’ve used our services.
How to Get the Adoption Counseling You Need
Working through your emotions now is the best way to get through this time in a healthy way. If you ignore how you’re feeling, it’ll just keep you from living a full, productive life.
You’re not alone with what you’re going through. There are millions of other women thinking about adoption and trying to process similar emotions. You’re able to talk to a licensed counselor AND a peer counselor right now and after your baby’s born.
With Lifetime, you’re able to speak honestly about the issues you’re facing as you get the help you need. Lifetime has a 24/7 adoption support phone number, so give us a call or text us whenever you are ready. Our 24-hour talk/text number is 1-800-923-6784.
Lifetime Adoption has been helping birth mothers get through the adoption process since 1986. We are here when you need us!
As the Vice President (VP) of Lifetime Adoption, Heather Featherston holds an MBA and is passionate about working with those facing adoption, pregnancy, and parenting issues. Heather has conducted training for birth parent advocates, spoken to professional groups, and has appeared on television and radio to discuss the multiple aspects of adoption. She has provided one-on-one support to women and hopeful adoptive parents working through adoption decisions.
Since 2002, she has been helping pregnant women and others in crisis to learn more about adoption. Heather also trains and speaks nationwide to pregnancy clinics to effectively meet the needs of women who want to explore adoption for their child. Today, she continues to address the concerns women have about adoption and supports the needs of women who choose adoption for their child.
As a published author of the book Called to Adoption, Featherston loves to see God’s hand at work every day as she helps children and families come together through adoption.