Finding Birth Parents

Reasons Why to Search for Birth Parents

GENERAL FAMILY INFORMATION

Individuals may want to know the names of their birth relatives, where they live, whether they have birth siblings, and what they are like. Birth parents may want to know whether their birth children are alive and have been happy and well treated.

FAMILY TRAITS AND PERSONALITIES

Many adopted people and birth parents want to know how their birth relatives look and act and whether they share similar traits.

MEDICAL HISTORY INFORMATION

Information on genetic diseases and conditions can be crucial for safeguarding an adopted person’s own health and the health of his or her biological children.

CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE ADOPTION

Often, adopted people feel a need to know why they were placed for adoption or why the rights of the birth parent were terminated and how that decision was made. Birth parents may want the opportunity to explain the circumstances to their child.

ESTABLISH CONNECTIONS FOR ADOPTED CHILDREN

Some adoptive parents wish to find and reunite with their child’s birth family to preserve these connections for their children until they are old enough to maintain a relationship on their own, if desired. Adoptive parents may also contact birth relatives to help their children with specific issues of grief and loss and to reassure birth relatives that their child is doing well.

The practice of birth families maintaining relationships with their children who had been adopted became more commonplace in the 1980s and 1990s. The increase in these open connections is due to the recognition of the benefits for all of the adoption constellation—children who are adopted, birth and adoptive parents, and extended families. All adoptees have experienced separation, and the feelings of loss and grief associated with leaving their birth families. These feeling can emerge during different developmental stages or life milestones. Maintaining and building relationships with their birth families can help them process those feelings. There are many reasons for the separation. Sometimes adopted children, not knowing the reasons, want to learn more, bringing a sense of satisfaction, completion, and even closure.

Call us today to discuss our services and how we can help you reunite with your family.