Using Your Time Wisely When Coping with the Wait of Adoption in Florida

Waiting for adoption in Florida is enough to cause any prospective adoptive parent a little anxiety. Though adoption is a joyous occasion for those involved, wait times vary widely, and when waiting for a moment as life-changing as adopting a child, it’s often hard to be patient. 

Thankfully, at American Adoptions, we understand the emotional, and psychological toll that waiting for an adoption match in Florida can take on hopeful parents. We strive to limit wait times using several tried and true strategies we’ve learned over almost 30 years of serving prospective adoptive parents like you.

If you’d like to learn more about adoption wait times and what American Adoptions does to shorten them, simply call 1-800-ADOPTION or fill out our online form. Meanwhile, you can read on for additional info on adoption wait times and how to reduce the stress of waiting to adopt a baby in Florida.

What Happens During the Adoption Waiting Process in Florida?

Some people assume that adopting an infant happens soon after you decide to adopt. That’s not the case most of the time. After choosing to adopt and selecting an agency, you’ll need to complete an adoption home study, then enter the “waiting time.” That’s a period during which hopeful parents are waiting for adoption before being chosen by an expectant birth mother.

During the adoption waiting process in Florida, there will be a flurry of activity, some of it behind the scenes. Your adoption specialist will expose your adoptive family profile to expectant birth mothers, who will review it and decide if it matches the wishes specified in their adoption plan.

You’ll always get an estimated wait time from your American Adoptions specialist, but remember, it’s only an estimate. There’s no way to know for certain how long you may be waiting to adopt a baby in Florida. Lots of factors can impact your adoption wait time, including:

• The kind of adoption professional you’ve chosen to use
• Your chosen adoption type 
• Your degree of preparedness
• Your flexibility about different adoption scenarios
• And more

Approximately 63 percent of hopeful families waiting for adoption in the U.S. find an adoption opportunity inside of a year of becoming active. Sometimes, others waiting for an adoption match in Florida experience wait times in excess of 12 months before finding a viable match.

No one wants to find themselves waiting for adoption in FL for more than a year. When that happens, adoption wait depression in Florida becomes more likely. Fortunately, you can learn methods of coping with the wait of adoption in Florida so that you can stay upbeat and positive. Keep reading to learn more.

How Can American Adoptions Help Minimize the Adoption Waiting Period in Florida?

Before we get to some coping tips, we want you to know what American Adoptions can do to help cut your waiting time. Though it’s impossible for an agency to guarantee a brief adoption waiting period, there are several things we do to minimize wait times and reduce the stress of waiting to adopt in Florida.

What specifically does American Adoption do to limit the adoption waiting period? Below you’ll find details on some of the tactics our specialists use to shorten the time hopeful adoptive families spend waiting for adoption in Florida.

• Nationwide Exposure: National agencies like American Adoptions work with hundreds of pregnant expectant mothers across the U.S., while local adoption professionals may work with a few at a time in their state. Choosing a national adoption agency means you may get an adoption opportunity more quickly.
• Extensive Advertising: American Adoptions advertises extensively to women considering adoption all over the country. In fact, when you partner with our agency, you’ll get 800x more exposure than when you work with other leading agencies. Some of the places we advertise include crisis pregnancy centers, hospitals, social media and other adoption websites. We reach more prospective birth mothers than anyone else, which is why we have more adoption opportunities and reduce the average time our families spend waiting for adoption.
• Focus on Balance: American Adoptions strives to create balance between the number of adoptions we complete and the number of adoptive families working with our agency. The reason is that doing so allows us to more accurately forecast wait times. Our professionals are licensed, and that licensure means our wait times are routinely confirmed by state authorities. Unlicensed professionals may promise false adoption wait times with no accountability.
• Broad Networking: Our agency networks with other adoption professionals across the U.S. Those professionals can contact our agency if they’re working with a birth mother who needs a family, for example, and we can help them make the perfect match with one of our waiting families.
• 24/7 Availability: A woman considering adoption who calls our agency will never get a voicemail and will move on to another adoption professional. We always answer the phone because American Adoptions specialists are on call 24/7.

How Can You Use Your Time Wisely While Waiting for Adoption in FL?

The adoption waiting process in FL can be frustrating and tough to process, and that’s totally natural. You never know how long and stressful your adoption journey may be, but the good news is you can put that extra time to good use while maintaining a positive outlook.

When you’re waiting for adoption in FL, it’s a good idea to stay busy and make progress toward the day you’ll finally welcome your child into your home. Preparing for that joyful occasion will benefit you in several positive ways. You can find a few tips for coping with the wait in a productive manner by reading below.

1. Go on a Pre-Adoption “Babymoon”

There’s a trend among new parents to take a “babymoon” vacation before facing the rigors of parenthood. That’s an option for prospective adoptive parents, too. Few events will be more life-altering than having a child, so you can make the most of your time by enjoying your last days before becoming a parent.

Even the act of planning your babymoon is beneficial because it will keep your mind off of waiting for adoption in FL. You may even be able to use it for a practical purpose if you’ve been matched with an expectant birth mother in another state. Traveling to the birth mother’s area and exploring is a great way to use the time preceding the birth of your child. 

2. Preparing for the Day You Bring Your Child Home

Ever hopeful adoptive parent processes waiting for adoption in Florida in their own way. Some may find comfort in taking a vacation, while others would prefer to focus on preparation while waiting to adopt a baby in FL. 

How you cope is totally up to you. There’s no right or wrong way of surviving the wait. Adoption in Florida can take some time, but that time shouldn’t be wasted. Your adoption specialist will teach you how to get organized for life as a parent as you’re waiting for adoption in FL. That may include things like:

• Preparing your future child’s nursery with gender-neutral decor
• Baby-proofing your home
• Updating your will or life insurance policies
• Researching possible pediatricians in your area
• Finding dependable babysitters
• Organizing your list of emergency contacts

These preparations (and others) will allow you to make headway toward the day your child is placed in your home. They also give you an effective tool for battling adoption wait depression in FL. Don’t run yourself ragged with overpreparation. Instead, take a few steps to ease into parenthood before placement occurs.

3. Plan Some Self-Care and Improvement While Waiting for Adoption in Florida

Have you been meaning to make yourself a priority lately? If so, there’s no better time to do that than while you’re waiting for adoption. It’s the perfect opportunity to take care of yourself and process the stress of waiting to adopt in Florida.

Focusing on yourself becomes inherently harder once you have a child because they become your priority. One thing you can do before they arrive, though, is developing a healthy routine while waiting for adoption. That can set the stage for healthy habits during parenthood. As a parent, you need to be healthy and well, so use the time to your advantage.

Below is a list of a few self-care practices to begin while waiting for adoption:

• Improve your diet
• Move more frequently
• Boost your mental wellness by enjoying activities such as meditation, yoga, or long walks
• Spend time with friends and family
• Catch up on any books you’ve been meaning to read
• Learn to speak a new language
• Take music lessons
• Start a new hobby

Taking better care of yourself allows you to take better care of your future child. It’ll also help you avoid adoption wait depression in FL.

4. Don’t Dwell on Waiting for Adoption in FL

You may have heard the saying, “A watched pot never boils.” That’s also true when it comes to the waiting period for adoption in Florida. Focusing on the length of the wait time only makes it seem longer. Many successful adoptive parents looking back after placement say they should have simply lived their lives when waiting to adopt a baby in Florida rather than obsessing over the wait.

If you’ve checked all the boxes on your list, your best bet is to just go on living while coping with the wait for adoption in Florida. Your opportunity is destined to come, maybe even when you least expect it. Much of the adoption process is beyond your control anyway, so why worry about it?

We understand you may feel the need to control the situation. That lack of control, for some, leads to adoption wait depression. However, you’ll be better served by staying calm in the knowledge that, eventually, your adoption dreams will come true.

Final Words on How to Cope with Adoption Wait Times

Conquering adoption wait depression while waiting for adoption in FL isn’t as simple as it sounds for many, but you have some control over how you respond to it. You can focus on making the most of your wait time by using the tips in this guide to stay positive when waiting to adopt a child.

To learn more about adoption wait times and staying positive while waiting for adoption in FL, please call 1-800-ADOPTION or complete our free online form. We’ll connect you with a compassionate, highly-trained adoption specialist who can answer your questions today.

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