It is an exciting time when you and your partner to decide to add to your family with adoption. As you start to get fully into the process, you may be finding yourself or your partner with a lot of stress. The stress can be felt at any point in the adoption process, whether you’re just now starting out or nearing your birthmother’s due date. It can be difficult to deal with emotionally, because most of the process is out of your hands and it involves a lot of waiting.
Why Worry About It?
Finding ways to cope with the stress of the adoption process will keep you and your partner is the proper mental state. Stress can negatively affect you not only mentally, but also physically. Stress can cause headaches, digestive issues, weight loss or gain, sleep disturbance, low energy, irritability, and low self-esteem. These are just a few examples of what stress can do if you do not coping with it properly. If left unaddressed, it will eventually branch out to affect your friends and family as well.
Healthy Coping
In order to avoid these effects of stress, here are 10 tips that you and your partner can use to cope with the adoption stress.
- Know your triggers. Know what things stress you out and try to avoid them if you can. This will help to reduce your stress.
- Write an adoption journal. Using an adoption journal to write down all your negative thoughts and feelings is a good way to release them. Once released, you will have more room for positivity. You can also use your adoption journal for writing positive and happy things as well.
- Get healthy. This means exercising and changing your diet. These are good way to keep you busy, but also prepare you for constantly having to keep up with your new little one.
- Surround yourself with your friends and family who are supporting you in this process. Their positivity will help you when coping with the stress.
- Keep up with your hobbies. These are the things that will keep you happy during the stressful waiting process. It is good to have that outlet by doing things that you enjoy to do.
- Focus on the end result. When the adoption process is all said and done, you will have a beautiful, brand new addition to your family. Keep in mind that the end result is much larger and more meaningful than the stress you may be feeling now.
- Let all your emotions out. This means all of them, from anger to happiness to sadness to joy. It is not healthy to keep your emotions inside so if you want to laugh, then laugh and if you want to cry, then cry.
- Pay attention to self care. This means being aware of what you and your body needs and responding appropriately to them. If you are able to constantly do this with yourself, then you will be able to do this for your new child when he or she arrives.
- Don’t forget to breathe! Knowing the proper way to breathe when you feel stressed is a quick way to get you to relax. Coping means taking the time to listen to your breaths and ensuring they are deep enough to provide oxygen to all parts of your body.
