[Sampaguita]

My husband has had MS for 15 yrs & is in a powered wheelchair. Except for the fact that his darn'd legs won't allow him to walk, he is pretty much fine. In fact, he is the breadwinner in our family and is the happiest person I know.

I'll admit I'm a little anxious because of the latest rumors circulating about the physical health surrounding adoptive parents.

Has anyone gone through the adoption process with MS or a similar disease? We will probably start pushing all the paper next month...but I just wanted an idea of what we might be facing in this regard.

If it's more comfortable, please feel free to PM me.

Thanks!

[mom3boys]

The rumors on APC have been flying that the CCAA has been rejecting applications with people in wheelchairs. I would fully check this out with your agency before investing too much time and energy. The rejections for medical reasons seem to be unclear and everyone is pretty freaked out about it.

Best of luck, Marjorie

[Sampaguita]

Thanks, Marjorie. That was the feedback I was afraid I'd get back...but it's good to know going in.


If anyone hears of anything more, I'd really appreciate a shout-out.

Many thanks!

[Sampaguita]

BTW - what is APC?

[mom3boys]

Sorry for the bizarre lingo. APC is a huge yahoo group. I don't post there often because there are so many postings. It stands for A parents China. You go to yahoo and click on groups. You should be able to find it there. YOu have to join the group to be able to see the postings. I really wish you the best of luck, but didn't want to "sugar coat" things for you. There is so much uncertainty in Chinese adoptions right now!

Marjorie

[drmalcolm]

Sampaguita,
I'm not sure if you've checked other programs. I'm not up to date on every country, but I do remember watching an episode of "Adoption Stories" (show that used to be on Discovery Health Channel) where the husband was in a wheelchair. He had been paralyzed in a motorcycle accident in his early 20s. They had luck adopting from Columbia.

Good luck to you!

Christina

[Godsdghtr2006]

The CCAA had this to say on their website under Frequently asked Questions


Can disabled foreigners adopt children in China?

Date of Post：October 12, 2005 Source: CCAA

The CCAA shall not assign prospective adoptees to mentally retarded and psychiatric disabled foreign adoption applicants. As to the foreign adoption applicants with other disabilities, the CCAA shall deal with each case on case by case basis. For those disabled who can look after themselves and have the ability of bringing up and educating the prospective adopted children, CCAA shall identify appropriate adoptive referrals for them.

I hope this helps. I think your agency should be able to have some insight or maybe they can speak to someone who has experience witht he CCAA and knows exactly what they mean by this statement.
I know how scary it can be because it almost seems a big risk to take not knowing 100% what the CCAA will do. It seems like lately I have been hearing that they are rejecting more so now for things that in the past the have not rejected for. Maybe it is because they have so many applicants now that they are trying to weed some out, but I could be totally wrong. No way of knowing. You hear so many rumors its hard to know what to believe anymore.
I myself have my own issues that I am dealing with in regards to being afraid I maybe rejected because of something from the past on the criminal background end. No one can give me a definitive answer about it, and again the CCAA says on their website in regards to this that it is done on a case to case basis when the charge was a misdemeanor (which it was ) My agency went and contacted the agency that is their contact with the CCAA and they said it looked positive for me to proceed, but then again they did not gurantee an adoption in the end, so I am totally taking a leap of faith. But then again I don't think they can ever predict with 100% certainty what the CCAA will do.

[Sampaguita]

Marjorie - thanks for the clarification; I joined APC just to see what that is all about.

Christina - thanks! I am going to start looking into other countries that might be a little more lenient with the wheelchair situation.

Godsdghtr2006 - I am so sorry that it has been rough for you as well. It must be very frustrating and frightening to get positive feedback yet know you might still not be guaranteed the completed adoption. Judging from what I've been reading/seeing over the last few months, I think you're right - it takes a leap of faith and acceptance that CCAA is often times unpredictable.

****as a follow-up, I wanted to let you know that I did call the agency we are probably going to use & was told that wheelchair prospective parents are looking like an issue with CCAA. However, the person I spoke to seemed to be encouraged when I told her DH worked full-time, is our bread winner, drives and is otherwise healthy and that I (healthy) would be the primary child care giver.

She asked me a lot of questions and then said she would contact CCAA about our particular situation.

Thank you all for taking the time to answer my questions. I really appreciate it!