When my husband and I were going through the home study process, we received mixed advice about whether or not to include information about our dogs in our profile. On the one hand, we did not want an expecting mother to reject us as adoptive parents solely because we had dogs, but on the other hand, our dogs were a part of our family.

When we put our first profile together, we chose to leave the dogs out. We never lied about having pets: We simply did not... more

In my last post, Adoption Home Study: Child Abuser in Extended Family, I discussed the impact of having a child molester in the extended family on a person's ability to pass a home study. This post broadens the scope to having a lawbreaker of any kind in the extended family. Will you still be able to adopt if you have lawbreakers in your family?

As with having a child abuser in the extended family, the short answer to the question is yes – You can still adopt... more

Over in the Adoption Forums, I saw a question posted about issues in your family that could affect your home study. The person posting the question has a brother who was convicted of child molestation. He never molested her, and she only sees him at the family's annual Christmas party. Her question was whether having a child molester in the extended family would prevent her from being able to adopt.

The short answer to this question is no – you will not be prevented from adopting solely because a blood relative has abused children.... more

From Adoption 101: How to Adopt a Child:

4. Complete a home study.

A home study is a series of meetings with the social worker with two goals:

Evaluate how safe a home you will provide for a child Educate you to prepare you for parenting an adopted child

This is the part of the adoption process that hopeful adoptive parents tend to dread the most.... more

If you have a “past” of some form, you might worry about how it will affect your ability to adopt a child. I just completed a series for adult survivors of childhood abuse who might have concerns about the adoption home study process. In addition to a history of being abused, there are many other background concerns that you might have when beginning an adoption home study.

In browsing the forums,... more

If you are an adult survivor of childhood abuse, you might be feeling angry about having to discuss your history with a social worker during the adoption home study process. You might rail against the unfairness of it all. This reaction is very normal and, in my opinion, healthy. It is what you do with your anger during the adoption home study process that matters.

There is a lot to be angry about. Your abusers took away your innocence and your ability to trust, and now they are potentially taking away... more

Last night, on my post entitled Abuse Survivors: Therapy during Adoption Home Study, “Kept Confidential” left a long and heartfelt comment about this topic. This post is to address many of the issues she raises about her frustration with abuse survivors having to discuss their histories as part of the adoption home study.

Let me start by saying that I agree with many (but not all) of her points. Here are the issues she... more

If you were abused as a child but have never sought therapy, I strongly urge you to consider entering into therapy during the adoption home study, if not before. Even abuse that happened “just one time” can cause serious aftereffects: Just that one incident of abuse is enough to steal a child’s innocence and shatter her trust. Be sure to find a qualified therapist with experience in working with people who suffered the type of abuse that you did. Your therapist can become your strongest ally during the adoption... more

As part of the adoption home study process, the social worker will likely ask you to come alone to one meeting. (Most meetings will be as a couple.) This will be the meeting where you discuss your childhood, so it will likely be the meeting during the adoption home study process in wich you will be asked about the childhood abuse.

Here are some of the questions that I was asked. Prepare yourself ahead of time for these questions so that they do not blindside you:

How old were you when you were abused?... more

If you were abused as a child, then you will likely be asked to discuss your history with the social worker during your adoption home study. The best way to get through this is to prepare yourself as much as possible before that meeting in your adoption home study. How can you do this?

Talk to your Therapist

Schedule a meeting with your therapist to talk about the home study before you have your one-on-one session with the social worker. Your therapist can provide you with strategies to get... more