Child Welfare Information Gateway Logo Child Welfare Information Gateway.  Protecting Children, Strengthening Families  
Search Child Welfare Information Gateway
Advanced Search | Search Tips | Search A-Z | Glossary

RSS RSS  

Topics Family Centered Practice Child Abuse & Neglect Preventing Child Abuse & Neglect Responding Supporting & Preserving Families Out-of-Home-Care Achieving & Maintaining Permanency Adoption Systemwide Resources National Foster Care & Adoption Directory Online Catalog Library Search State Statutes Search Statistics User Manual Series Related Organizations Conference Calendar Find Help With a Personal Situation Children's Bureau Express Online Digest Children's Bureau Express Online Digest









Home > Intercountry Adoption > Intercountry Adoption - Adjusting to Your New Family

Intercountry Adoption : Where Do I Start?
Factsheet for Families
Author(s):  Child Welfare Information Gateway
Year Published:  2009
email Email print pdf Print  (PDF 307 KB) Share Share

Rate Rate This    1.0/5, 2 Reviews






  previous You are in section:
next

Adjusting to Your New Family

What You Should Know

Adjusting to a new family and culture may be challenging for your child. Children who have spent most of their early lives in an institution must adjust to living in a family. Receiving one-on-one attention, sleeping alone, and owning things may be completely new experiences. Children often have trouble with new eating and sleeping schedules, in addition to changes in diet, tastes, smells, and numerous other cultural differences. Keeping some items familiar to the child, such as a favorite blanket or article of clothing or familiar-looking items from the child's country of origin, may ease the transition as well as provide important mementos for the future. Older children also may struggle with language, school, and cultural issues and will need more time to adjust.

Soon after your child arrives in the United States, you may consider taking him or her for a thorough checkup with a doctor who has experience in intercountry adoption. There are a number of clinics around the country that specialize in international adoption medicine. (See Some Places to Go, below.)

Your family also must adjust to your new status as a transcultural and possibly transracial family. Parents who have not joined an adoptive parent support group may wish to do so to share the joys of parenting, learn from each other's experiences, and help each other through challenges. Adoptive parents also need to be aware of the impact that the adoption of a child from a different country may have on other children in the family and on extended family members.

During this transition and throughout your lives as an adoptive family, adoption agency staff may be a valuable source of support. Some adoption agencies provide services for adoptive families, from about 6 months to several years after placement, to make sure your child is adjusting well. During this time, adoptive parents can also locate resources and referrals for additional services they need. It is normal for adopted individuals and their families to need support beyond this initial transition period. See Information Gateway's factsheet on postadoption services for more information about adoption services and their benefits: www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/f_postadoption.cfm.

Some Places to Go

The American Academy of Pediatrics offers a directory of pediatricians with a special interest in adoption and foster care medicine: www.aap.org/sections/adoption/SOAFCAdoptionDirectory2.pdf

A listing of clinics that specialize in international adoption medicine can be found at: www.comeunity.com/adoption/health/clinics.html

View Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations for vaccines and preparation for travel early in your adoption process to ensure you have time to complete any necessary series of immunizations.

Information about follow-up medical exams and screening tests for children adopted internationally is offered by:

Find more information about children's needs after adoption on the Information Gateway website:

Rainbowkids.com: The International Adoption Publication is an online resource designed to educate and support families built through intercountry adoption: www.rainbowkids.com.

  previous You are in section:
next


This material may be freely reproduced and distributed. However, when doing so, please credit Child Welfare Information Gateway.

email Email print pdf Print  (PDF 307 KB) Share Share

 

Download FREE Adobe Acrobat® Reader™ to view PDF files located on this site.

Contact Us | Disclaimer and Policies | Link to Us | Accessibility | Children's Bureau | USA.gov

Home | About Us | FAQs | Highlights | Press Room | Free Subscriptions | Send Us Comments | Resources in Spanish | Site Map | Family-Centered Practice | Child Abuse & Neglect | Preventing Child Abuse & Neglect | Responding to Child Abuse & Neglect | Supporting & Preserving Families | Out-of-Home Care | Achieving & Maintaining Permanency | Adoption | Systemwide | National Foster Care & Adoption Directory | Online Catalog | Library Search | State Statutes Search | Statistics | User Manual Series | Related Organizations | Conference Calendar | Find Help With a Personal Situation | Children's Bureau | Children's Bureau Express Online Digest
Department of Health and Human Services Logo