“Parenting is a gift and a privilege. Adoption has healed my heart, and renewed my faith. Each day, I am inspired to be the best parent I can, by the simple fact that our children’s birthmothers and God have entrusted them to us.”
-Sherra Buckley
Adopting a child is becoming more and more popular these days. There are celebrities who have adopted children and this has added to the popularity of the beautiful gesture of love. Finally more and more people are opting for adoption. Being parent doesn’t necessarily need a reason, still going for adoption could be instigated by emotions, reasons which are very personal or the pure desire to favourably influence the life of a child. Let’s discuss about a few of the reasons behind adoption here.
1. ‘Infertility’: Not the end of hope
Due to the lifestyle infertility is becoming common among couples of today. Many such couples may strongly want a child and may want to avoid going through the hazards of infertility treatments as these treatments have harmful side effects and there is no assurance of 100% success, also quite an expensive affair too. Research shows, there are about 52 percent couples who resort to adoption privately and there are close to 72 percent who suffer from infertility related problems.
2. Love for a child
“Adoption is about respect, it’s not charity. More and more people should come forward to adopt. We believe in ties of the heart, not just those of blood. I will adopt as many children as I can raise.”
– Sushmita Sen (Miss Universe, 1994)
There are people who love kids. They may therefore opt to adopt a child or multiple children. This may sound unrealistic, but they may adopt a child in spite of having children of their own. Their genuine love for a child may strongly influence them to adopt a child.
3. A helping hand to be held
Some people may want to help a needy child or children with special need. Therefore they may chose to adopt a child. This could be their way of contributing to society. As per surveys conducted by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there are 70 percent private adoptions and about 90 percent international adoptions made by people who want to to help a needy child.
4. Remain Single yet be a parent
There are several single celebrities who have adopted a child. Being single may not necessarily mean they do not want to have children. Many such single people would like to experience parenthood, however, may not want to compromise on their choice of being single. Adoption is a wonderful solution in such situations. It benefits the child as well as the parent.
5. Ending lonelyness of the only child
An only child can get very lonely at times. Children love to have siblings in order to play, share and for company too. The parents may not want to go through the whole cycle of pregnancy, again physical constraints can also be the reason. They may therefore decide to adopt a child and complete their family. Thus, they could become the family for their adopted child and there is a sibling playmate for their biological child.
6. Joy sans labour
There is a joke that the height of laziness would be a healthy couple adopting a child. Many people feel that if a couple could have a child of their own, they should not resort to adoption. However, there are people who consider the whole process of birth as a very difficult period. There are women who are afraid of labor pains and the nine month pregnancy cycle. Some others may not want to lose their physical charm and appearance due to pregnancy. Adopting a child allows such people to enjoy parenthood without undergoing the pain of labor and pregnancy.
7. Genetic disorder: There always is a way
Many couples after marriage find out about the possibility of them having a child with some kind of genetic disorder like Thallasaemia due to their genetic combination and the recessive or dominant genes. The couple might not want to risk an unhealthy child birth, in the scenerio adoption is the best solution. Thallasaemics are especially prone to birth a Thallasaemic child and often resort to adoption.
8. Modern day workaholic
Fast life in this competitive world has made most of the people workaholics. Many couples are so busy in furthering their career that they do not have the time for the otherwise beautiful 9 month ordeal of pregnancy. But, that does not mean that they do not hope or wish for their own little family complete with a kid or two. In such a case they deem it better to adopt a child of appropriate age to complete their family and to bring the ultimate family bliss.
9. Natural disaster: For one another
Natural disasters bring chaos with them. There are children who lose parents. There are parents who lose children. Some of these parents wish to give themselves and the less fortunate little angels a second chance at life and adopt them. So the parents have children and children have parents. It is not only true for natural disaster though. There are many parents out there who having lost a child in an accident decide to adopt another one.
10. Adopted adopt: Pure empathy
There are many people who being adopted themselves understand the difference between incompleteness of not having a family to fall back to, not having a support system, not getting the comfort of mothers’ lap or no one to call in the time of need and having a family to love and protect. That kind of life they get after being adopted is something they would wish for the children of similar fortune out there too. So, those who are adopted themselves believe in adopting others as well.
11. For the LGBT community: Adoption is the way to parenthood
The world is finally accepting the LGBT community and the Gay and lesbian couples are finally coming out of the closet, They too wish to have a happy family life with kids in the cradle disturbing their sleep at 2:00 am. They as such are adopting kids. There are a number of celebrities who have adopted children quickly after tying the knot.
12. Foster care
There are many kids each year who are put in foster care. Sometimes, they stay so long with the family that the family begins to think of them as one of them and thus end up adopting them officially once they become available for adoption. Well, love really has no boundaries and who could stop falling for little innocent angels who bring joy to our lives.
Children have a way of bringing smiles and spreading joy wherever they go. Adopting a child is always a matter of joy to everyone involved, be it the child or the parent.