Common Myths of Domestic Adoption

In this post, I will go into some of the myths that people believe about domestic adoption.  It wasn't until I started to research myself that I realized I was wrong about so many things.

Myth #1: Domestic infant adoptions take years to complete.

In reality, depending on how picky the adoptive family is, domestic infant adoptions can take a few months to 18 months.  The average is usually around 1 year.  This is actually much quicker than an international adoption. International adoptions typically take over a year and sometimes as many as 3-4 years.

Myth #2: Domestic infant adoption is much more expensive than international adoption.

In fact, in most cases it is much cheaper.  The average cost to adopt an infant from the US is $28,000. And 40% of the adoptions fall below $20,000.  International adoption often costs much more than that. An average adoption from China is $30,000, South Korea is $32,000, Ethiopia is $28,000, and Russia is $59,000.

Myth #3: In domestic infant adoptions, birth parents can get their baby back at anytime.

Once the adoption is finalized, the adoptive family is recognized as the child's family by law.  There are short periods after the babies birth that the mother can change her mind.  Each state varies on the length of time.  In Georgia, it is 10 days.

Myth #4: There are no infants available for adoption in the US.

After reading Myth #1, it should become obvious that there are many infants available for adoption.  The current estimated US born newborn adoptions each year is 18,000. Compare that to the approximately 9,000 international adoptions each year.

Myth #5: Birthmothers are typical teen moms.

Birthmothers are actually usually in their twenties and already parenting other children.  They are typically single and struggling.  They are choosing adoption thoughtfully and because they want a better life for their child.

This is only a small selection of the many myths I have heard.  I believed all these except Myth #4.  I am NOT saying Domestic Infant adoption is better than International adoption.  In fact, when we started the adoption process, I thought International was a much better option.  I still think it is a great thing to do.  This post is to hopefully open your eyes to how we often believe what we hear without checking the facts.  And to let you know that Domestic Infant adoption may be much easier than you expected. What have you heard about Domestic Infant Adoption?