Call, text or fill out our expectant parent contact form. Counselors are available seven days a week between 7am and 9pm PT. If after 9pm, a counselor will reach out the next day.
We provide a compassionate, nonjudgmental space for pregnant and parenting people to talk about their thoughts and feelings. We treat each person with dignity and respect as they explore their options.
Our all-options counseling services are available to people throughout the U.S. We have offices in Portland, Eugene, and Seattle and can travel to meet with people throughout Washington and Oregon. We’re also available to meet via Zoom.
Options counseling Together, we’ll explore all your options. We will provide you with information and support as we talk about each option. Only you can decide which choice is right for you. If your choice is abortion or parenting, we’ll connect you with the resources you’ll need. If your choice is adoption, we will help you create an adoption plan. Choosing a family If you choose adoption, you’ll review the profiles of prospective adoptive parents in our waiting families pool. (Read about the family preparation process here.) Each family has prepared a letter, photo book, and video describing who they are and why they are hoping to plan an open adoption. Get to know our waiting families. You can request an official homestudy report to learn even more about each of the families you are interested in. This report includes detailed information about their home and neighborhood, careers, relationship with each other and family/friends, parenting philosophies and values. Introduction meeting When you have chosen a family you’d like to meet, an OA&FS counselor will be present to support all of you as you meet for the first time. This is a casual get-together and an opportunity to explore whether it feels like a good fit. Sometimes, expectant parents and adoptive parents will spend time together right after this meeting to continue to get to know one another. After this meeting, we’ll check in with each of you to see how things feel. Adoption planning If you and the prospective adoptive parents decide to move forward after your first meeting, you’ll continue to get to know each other. Then, you will all meet with a counselor again to talk about specifics such as your hospital time, naming and decisions like circumcision. Together, you’ll create an Open Adoption Agreement, which is a legally enforceable document that outlines ongoing contact, such as how often visits will take place or updates will be shared. You’ll decide what you want including: Will the adoptive family be with you during the birth? Will the baby stay in your room during your time at the hospital? Will you breastfeed? You are in control of every step of your process, and we will support and guide you along the way. Learn more about adoption planning. Consent, placement A counselor will be at the hospital to support you after your child is born. We’ll review your options again. Parents sometimes feel differently about their decision once their baby is born, and we will support you if you decide to parent your child. If adoption still feels like the right path for you, you’ll sign legal consent documents when you feel ready. Once you sign your consents, your child can legally be placed with the adoptive parents you have chosen. You may decide to spend time caring for your child all together at the hospital, if that is what feels right to you. Not all placements happen at the hospital, and you decide when and where this step will take place. In some cases, a placement may occur days, weeks, months, or even years after a child is born. Honor the moment At the placement, some adoptive parents and birth parents plan a special moment in the process that signifies the entrustment of the child to the adoptive family. This can be as simple as saying a few words or can be a more formal entrustment ceremony. You might light a candle, read a poem, say a prayer, play music, have a group photo taken … whatever is meaningful to all of you. This recognition of a bond created around the child creates a lasting reminder of how this special, lifelong relationship began. Ongoing relationship After placement, adoptive and biological family members continue to love and support their child. They may gather for dinners, holidays, or other events. People get together in person, have video calls, send text messages, share gifts and photos or any combination of these. Each open adoption relationship is unique and is based on the needs of the people involved. These relationships change over time, just like any other relationship. Read more about open adoption. Post-placement support Ongoing support from an OA&FS counselor is always available no matter if it’s months or years into your adoption. You’re also welcome and encouraged to join in our open adoption community events, including the summer picnic and the winter party, our annual birth parent meetups, monthly virtual gatherings and private Facebook group. You’re now a member of our open adoption community! Learn more about ongoing support and community.
“ The parents I chose for Brianna are such compassionate and accepting people. I’m in awe of what great parents they are. The openness and honesty [my child] is being raised with have made her the happy and secure little girl she is today. ” ~ Melissa, OA&FS birth parent
