[stephdpenn]

I know this is a really personal question but I didn't know who else to ask. If you would rather PM me that would be great.

Since we are now waiting on our agency to receive the next list of SN children it got me to thinking about all the different things that are considered SN. I have a list already of different SN but I was hoping to hear from individuals who have adopted SN children or who are in the process of adopting.
What is your child's SN? How severe is it? How do you plan on meeting the needs of this child? If the child is home then has the experience been what you expected?

Sorry so many questions. I am trying to get as much information as I can so I can be more informed when viewing the children.

Thanks so very much for sharing

[lotsoflove]

Originally Posted by stephdpenn

I know this is a really personal question but I didn't know who else to ask. If you would rather PM me that would be great.


Since we are now waiting on our agency to receive the next list of SN children it got me to thinking about all the different things that are considered SN. I have a list already of different SN but I was hoping to hear from individuals who have adopted SN children or who are in the process of adopting.
What is your child's SN? How severe is it? How do you plan on meeting the needs of this child? If the child is home then has the experience been what you expected?

Sorry so many questions. I am trying to get as much information as I can so I can be more informed when viewing the children.
Thanks so very much for sharing

Same here, I would like to know as well. Espically cleft lip, palate, dwarfism, and maybe a few others. Thank you.

[jt421_2000]

I am leaving Friday to pick up my son who is 2 1/2 he has a cleft lip (repaired) and a palate (unrepaired). The report says it is the 1 degree, which is suppose to be the least severe. He has a appt. with a palate team 2 weeks after we get home.
Hey great idea bout taking bottles...my sons orphanage has none so I am taking 24. I hope it all fits.

[Emmaline Lola]

I met a mother at an agency info meeting when we were deciding on agencies, and she had just brought home her 2nd daughter from China 3 1/2 weeks before.

The little girl had a blood anemia disorder which will cause her to be very small. She is just the cutest little girl! She was eating a dunkin donut from her lap and just looked up and waved to everyone. When they showed her Gotcha Video, she started waving at the tv screen, as soon as it played street scences from her province--she definately recognized her 1st home--it was a touching experience.

If you like, I have the mother's email address and I am sure she would be happy to discuss her experience with you.

I have also heard from other families adopting, that they say their child was listed as a SN with whatever condition be it heart, hearing, sight disorders, and once they were home and were checked by their pediatrician, they were given a clean bill of health! crazy, no?

I am sure there are others on this boards who can give you more indepth answers, but that is the little experience I have had with a special needs adoption.

catherine

[stephdpenn]

Catherine, thanks so much for the touching story. I may get in contact with you for your friends email address after I view the new list coming out. Thanks!

[stephdpenn]

The main reason that I am trying to find out as much as I can is because we do not have a major children's hospital nearby. The closet one is St. Louis Children's Hospital and it is app. 3 hrs. away. Don't misunderstand me if we need to go we will. When my youngest ds was little we drove up there a couple of times every month for his immune defiency. So I am very used to the drive and the hospital once we are there. I guess my main concern is I don't think I would accept a child where we would most likely be having to go up there all hours of the night. I have done that before with having 2 children and it is tough, I don't know if I could do it with 3. Plus my grandmother helped me so much back then and she passed away over 2 years ago.

Another thing I would not accept is a child who is deaf. Only because the only educational resource in our area is the state school. Again there is a good private school in St. Louis but there is no way I could send my child off to school like that.

When a child has a cleft palate or lip and have already had the surgery do they usually require additional surgeries once they are in the US? I know we could handle that even with a few surgeries. Just trying to get an idea of what kind of additional treatment might be involved.

[foxl]

My dd2b has a cleft lip, only. On paper anyhow ... I have been forewarned not to be too surprised if she actually has more than that.

With cleft palate, Steph, you might need help from: plastic surgeon, ENT (ear tubes can be very important!) and SLP. I do not know how common or important it is for SLPs to specialize, but "our family SLP" (who worked with my daughter in EI), has recently specialized in CL/CP needs. It seems to me it is common enough that most Therapists/pathologists should be able to effectively handle it. It is a profession which requires CE hours, and I would think anyone close to your area would be constant touch with the academic specialists ...

[mdaisyq]

We are preapproved to adopt a 2.5 year old boy from China. He has a repaired cleft lip, repaired III degree (cleft through the entire palate) palate and a repaired hernia. All of his surgeries were paid for under China's Tomorrow Plan.

We do know that he still has a cleft in his gum, but the surgery to repair this will probably be done when he is 8 or 9. Too, we do not know how well the surgery was done on his palate - the repair to his cleft lip looks great from the pictures.

Because we have 3 other children, we felt that we could not adopt a child that would need a lot of initial surgery and/or medical care, though if our new son requires it, we will deal with it.

[stephdpenn]

Thank you Melissa for sharing.
We could handle a situation like yours ok. Since our oldest is almost 13 he would be an adult by time the child needed any other surgeries.

[crick]

Steph,

Not to invade your thread...

Your post about not accepting a deaf child, are you under the impression you would need to send her to a deaf school? Because you wouldn't need to do that. I went to a public school my entire life, and that was back in the 70's/80's. And things have changed so much since then.

Do you have an audiologist in town? Do your public schools have things in place for tutors etc. if needed?

Just saying that deafness isn't necessarily something that requires a different school etc.

[stephdpenn]

Crick,
We live in a town with a population of under 500 people. I am sure that the state would have to provide her with a tutor but I know a lady that has a deaf daughter and they send her to the school I mentioned earlier in St. Louis because of lack of resources down here. When I was still in elem. there was a girl that was hearing impaired, she wasn't completely deaf but close. She went to public school with everyone else. I really do not know how they handled her education, I had forgotten about her till just now. My SIL is an elem. principle I could ask her how the educational system would handle this type of situation.
I really have to be honest here. I have such a fear that if we adopt a sn child then she might not get the best access to services since we live in such a rural area. I know that we have enough love and money to take care of her. She would have the best of everything, I promise. I am worried about her education though in situations such as being deaf. I am trying to keep an open mind though and be ready to explore all options.

[crick]

ah...that IS a small town!

I'd think the school would have to provide the interpreter if necessary? Not sure on that in your area, but would ask your SIL. I know for my years in school, they had to provide everything for me. I didn't need an interpreter though I did need the equipment for hearing the teachers and had a speech path. that came to the school every week to cover the class work etc., making sure I was doing okay. And I was the only kid in school with a hearing impairment. Not easy, I'll be honest there, but back then it was different in that teachers and the schools were so unfamiliar with the idea of mainstreaming kids with needs into regular public schools. Now it's more the norm...kwim?

Think it's good if you keep an open mind anyway. There are so many levels of deafness for one, and 2, with technology these days...it's really amazing actually how so many things help. And don't forget too, that a cochlear implant might be a possibility. Now, obviously that would require testing and hospital visit, but it's temporary...not a forever thing.

Anyway...I'm not trying to convince you of anything, just wanted you to know that being deaf isn't necessarily something that would make it impossible for education etc. Certainly would need some advocacy in your town, but wouldn't think it's impossible.

[stephdpenn]

Bumping this back up for the current discussion on SN children.

[Marshie]

There is a yahoo group called waiting children china that is a great resource for people who are adopting, have adopted or are considering adopting a waiting child from China. Right now there are great discussions going on about albinism and missing limbs. It seems you can find at least one parent who has adopted a child with any need you are considering and will be willing to talk and advise you about it.
My niece, as I mentioned in another post, was born with bilateral cleft lip/palate so I know a little about that also.

[SummerMommy]

We have pre-approval for a little girl who has a first degree cleft palate (not lip).

To better understand her degree of severity, our Doctor had us put our tongue against the roof of our mouth, near our front teeth and slide it backwards across the hard upper surface. If you keep going back, as far as you can, you'll find that the roof of your mouth is no longer hard but fleshy and soft. If the fissure (or opening) is in that soft area only, it's a 1st degree cleft palate. He said this was very minor and wouldn't affect her speech (except that she might sound 'nasaly' until the fissure is closed).

When we started our 2nd adoption and wanted to consider a SN child, we thought the medical issues would probably be more significant and we prepared ourselves for that. Our agency only had 10 waiting children on their last list and they only told us about the one we ultimately fell in love with. We didn't even see the other 9 kids because this one tugged at our heart so hard!

I better get back to my paperchase now....