Part One
Part Two

With the addition internet services to our home, a world of other adoption support group options opened up for our family. A ton of great sites exist out there representing people who have experienced all forms of adoption. At first there were many message boards, forums, live chat rooms, and countless websites available, and then blogs became all the rage.

When I logged onto my first adoption chat, it was so exciting! Talking to people all over the world, many who seemed to have so much in common with our own adoption experience. Not only that but you could get this great support from the comfort of your easy chair. For several years adoption.com chat and forums were a big favorite of mine (well still are when I have time) and I made many good friends online. A few of those online friendships with extreme care have evolved into real, lasting friendships with people I see and visit often.

Of course the down sides to online support is that it can be hard for the whole family to be involved. You also have to posses a lot of self confidence when you run into the anti-adoption rhetoric. With all the positive, supportive adoption information that exists online, there is also a sub culture of anti-adoption related groups, and they often aim below the belt in their tactics. When it comes to adoption, there are many perspectives and issues involved but beware of any site that does not encourage sharing of differing perspectives and instead only promotes a steady diatribe of adoption rancor. For a time I fell prey to it and allowed myself to question if I was in fact the “baby-thieving evil adoptress” that those dark sites would have me to believe. Once I regained my balance, I understood that I had learned a lot of how NOT to deal with adoption issues from those anti-adoption groups. Even though they have little merit, they did serve that purpose for me. Over all I would say avoid them if you’re able.

So for me the search for adoption support has been a long journey, one that still is evolving. Being a member at the blogs here has presented a new and exciting way for me to again redefine they type of adoption related support I can benefit from.

Coming up- Adoption Support- An Online Friendship