An obstacle adoptive parents face is learning their child's health history. Sometimes, untangling information about our own health histories is difficult and complex. Researching an adopted child's health history can be even more difficult. My advice is to ask questions, a lot of questions.
Our agency provided us with a lengthy health questionnaire completed by the birth parents of our children. Oftentimes, the health history form is completed by the birth mother and information from the birth father is lacking. We have experienced both sides of the spectrum. In one of our adoptions, the birth parents were together and both provided information to the best of their ability. In our other adoption, the birth father was not present or available and did not complete any information. After reviewing the questionnaire you may have questions and/or concerns. Ask your agency or adoption social worker, they may be able to find answers for you from the birth family. If not, at least you attempted to gather as much information as possible.
Also, after our boys were born, their hospital records were turned over to the adoption agency. The agency then provided us with complete copies of their medical charts. If you are working with an agency ask them about providing you with copies of all medical records obtained during the child's birth and after delivery. Sometimes, birth mothers will provide additional information to the hospital that was either not requested by the agency or overlooked at the time.
I have provided our pediatrician with all the information we have on our children and he has reviewed it thoroughly and we have discussed it together. Sometimes something will happen and you still will not have an answer. For instance, one of our sons suffered two febrile seizures. Febrile seizures are often hereditary but nothing was noted in his medical history we received from both of his birth parents. It is possible it was an oversight on their part or it is possible no one they knew of within their family suffered seizures. Fortunately, the risks for febrile seizures lessen as kids grow older and most will out grow them. We believe this has happened with our son because he has never suffered another...knock on wood, fingers crossed and prayer said.
If you are working with an agency, I would advise you to request any and all health information they can obtain about your child's birth family. Also, provide your pediatrician with any information you obtain and ask them to review it and discuss it with you. We will never know everything about their biological family's history of health, but we want to know as much as we can.
If you have a topic you want to discuss, know more about, or a question you would like for me to address on my blog, please send me an email at adoptivemomma2@yahoo.com.
Anna
4 comments:
You brought something that bugs me often. Mist has really no background history..:(
There is even less info available when you adopt internationally. We just have to figure it out as we go.
Are you willing to give all of your medical history to the birth parents? After all, they are taking a gamble in letting you raise their children, shouldn't they know whether or not you are healthy or have risk factors for early death, dementia, etc?
We had to have physicals and forms completed by our physicians stating we were in good health before being approved by our agency. Our health information is on file with the adoption agency. I do not know how much of that information is shared with the birth parents. I would not be opposed to them knowing our health history.
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