Approximately one-fourth of all adoptions by American parents are international adoptions, according to Dr. Spock. This means that the child being adopted was born in a country other than the United States. While all adoptive families face potential obstacles such as attachment and bonding issues, infertility and children feeling abandoned by their birth families, there are some issues that are especially relevant to families pursuing international adoption.
Health Issues
The quality of the health care of children in foreign countries varies widely. While many internationally adopted children are healthy, your child may be ill, malnourished or may not have had his routine childhood vaccinations. Children are often placed for international adoption due to poverty or disease in the birth family. Often the health histories of the biological mother and father are unavailable or incomplete. Your child may be suffering from a disease such as tuberculosis, HIV or hepatitis. Attachment disorders, lice, parasites, fetal alcohol syndrome and sensory disorders are also not uncommon in the internationally adopted child. It is important to have your child seen by a pediatrician who has experience with the issues unique to internationally adopted children as soon as possible after his placement.
Language Barriers
If you are adopting an older child from overseas, chances are good that she will come to the United States not knowing any English. While she will learn to speak the language fluently in time, the transition period will be difficult for her and for the rest of the family. Your child's new school may have services available to assist with teaching her English, or you may elect to hire a professional tutor or teacher. Kathryn Patricelli of MentalHealth.net states that children from a European or South American country may pick up English faster than those from Asian countries, because their native language's root word structures are similar to those in English.
Cultural Issues
If you adopt a child of a race different from yours, people will sometimes comment on these differences. Your child may hear questions such as, "Is that your real mother?" or "Are you adopted?" from strangers and acquaintances. He may also be the victim of racial prejudice and harassment.
Many parents who adopt internationally recognize the importance of exposing their child to their native cultural practices. Festivals, traveling to the child's home country and camps for internationally adopted children can benefit your child as well as the rest of your family.
