[Isabo]

Originally Posted by Hadley2

Hi,
One of the biggest issues I read about over and over is first families saying that adoption agencies misinform, mislead and manipulate women in crisis to get them to place their babies instead of actually helping them make fully informed decisions including all options.

At first it struck me as an odd thing to say because it seemed as if, well, of course, an adoption agency is going to try to persuade you to place, that's what their business is. Why would you expect them to discuss anything else?

Hadley,

My mother took me to a family services agency when she discovered I was pregnant. The agency failed to consider myself and my child a family and instead were serving the clients paying the agency to acquire a family for them. The agency was unethical and didn't explain that I wasn't considered a client but instead was a means to an end and my son was a commodity. So, I did think I was going to a full services agency, but I was naive and I trusted people who had an air of authority. I believed what they told me was best.

So, my anger at the agency stems from their lack of counseling for me and that they failed to explore ways that I could parent my child. Instead it was adoption "counseling" all the way.