If you are pregnant and making an adoption plan, one thing that you may need to prepare for is how you plan to leave the hospital. You want to give these things some thought now as you may be pretty emotional when you are discharged from the hospital, especially if your baby is going directly home with his/her adoptive parents.

Also, you’re baby doesn’t have to leave the hospital immediately with the adoptive parents if you need more time to think through your decision or you want to try parenting, then you can of course take your baby home with you. If your baby will be leaving with you, don’t forget that you will need a car seat for the baby. Most hospitals will not let you leave with the baby until they have verified that you have a car seat.

You will not be able to drive yourself home, so be sure that someone is there with you to drive.

For some birthmothers, when they leave the hospital is important to them. For example, one birthmother didn’t want to leave the hospital before her baby as she said she would feel like she was abandoning her baby. So, she had his adoptive parents take him and leave, waited a little bit, and then left after him.
Also, keep in mind that when you and your child leave is dependent upon how each of you are doing physically. Sometimes the baby may have to be in the hospital longer than the mother and vice versus.

Have a plan as to where you are going when you leave the hospital. Will you be going home to your own place or staying with someone else for a few days? I know several mothers who didn’t want to go home and be alone, so they stayed with family members or friends for a few days.

This will be an emotional time and preparing ahead of time is helpful.
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Related Posts:
Creating a Birth Plan
Hospital Series