Birth Parent Grief & Loss

Websites

Birth parent specific

• Birthmom Buds - while not super active, one of the only nationwide groups or sites
  • Birthmoms Today
• Life After Placement - serving parents who have made adoption plans for infants only
• Lifetime Healing Foundation - sit knee to knee program

Grief related

• Ambiguous Loss - Pauline Boss
• Grief - David Kessler
• What's Your Grief? - articles & resources for many types of grief

Recommended Books or Articles

• Are We Living in 'Grief Limbo'? How to Cope With Ambiguous Loss? by Beth Tyson, LLC - author in ORPARC's library!
• Birth Mother Grief by Grief & Symphony
• Forever Grieving as a Birth Mother
• Grief & Loss Coping Strategies for Foster Parents Factsheet by Washington DSHS
• Grief Silverstein Article by Deborah Silverstein
• Impact of Adoption On Birth Parents by Child Welfare Information Gateway
• Is Anyone Out There? Finding Support as a Birthmother by Adoption Advocate
• Understanding Birth Parents: Grief & Open Adoption by Adoptive & Foster Family Coalition
• What Ambiguous Loss Is and How To Deal With It by Cleveland Clinic
• What's Your Grief? - some relevant articles below and more on the site
  • Addressing Chronic Avoidance of Grief
  • Ambiguous Grief: Grieving Someone Who is Still Alive Part I and Part II
  • Cumulative Grief AKA Overload
  • Disen whaaat? Understanding Disenfranchised Grief
  • A Grief Intensified. A Grief Sidelined. A Grief Forgotten.

Videos & Podcasts

• Birth Mother Stories in Adoption by Jeanette-ically Speaking (videos)
• Creating Positive Relationships with Birth Parents by The Honestly Adoption Podcast
• Understanding Grief & Loss by Bethany Adoptions (video)
• We don't move on from grief. We move forward with it. by Nora McIrney, TedTalk

Note on Language: Opinions and awareness on positive, respectful or honest adoption language and terms continue evolving. Best practice? Ask the individual themselves what they prefer.