| The past few decades have brought a previously | | | | child a father and an intact home. Others will |
| never seen and a remarkable increase in the number | | | | erroneously point to and cite statistics linking single |
| of families headed by single mothers. Yet unlike the | | | | motherhood to a variety of potential social ills for |
| stereotypical images conjured up by the general | | | | their child. To pursue the consideration and possibility |
| population of an un-wed, poverty-stricken, | | | | of adoption, a single woman may even have to |
| uneducated, and abandoned young teen or woman | | | | develop newfound courage to conquer her own inner |
| facing parenthood alone and ostracized, an increasing | | | | demons and alleviate her own previously held |
| number of successful single well-educated | | | | thoughts and beliefs about adoption. |
| professional women in their 30s and 40s are arriving | | | | After investing so much financially and personally in |
| at motherhood by choice and through adoption. | | | | fertility treatments or traveling around the world to |
| Advocates note the number of both domestic and | | | | finalize the legalities of adoption, both married and |
| international adoptions have been steadily increasing | | | | single adoptive parents may struggle with high |
| over the last decade. However, compared to their | | | | expectations and transition to sharing their lives with |
| married counterparts, citing the process of | | | | a child. Single mothers can feel guilt and shame when |
| international adoption as less lengthy and the | | | | they long for moments of solitude and the |
| likelihood of adopting a younger child much greater, | | | | independence of their former single lives. Unlike |
| single women are more likely to pursue international | | | | married couples, where 'alone time' may not need to |
| adoption over domestic adoption. With domestic | | | | be scheduled or arranged well in advance, single |
| adoption, birth mothers are more likely to select | | | | mothers often need to make arrangements ahead of |
| couples over singles for their babies and age is a | | | | time and allocate limited financial resources to get |
| greater consideration with most agencies. | | | | their own "Mommy time". |
| Not unlike their married counterparts who pursue | | | | Fortunately the Internet, television, and the media |
| adoption, single women often pursue motherhood | | | | have raised awareness of the issues single women |
| citing the same need and desire to love and nurture a | | | | face in the adoption process as well as the challenges |
| child of their own. However, unlike married couples, | | | | they may deal with after placement. Furthermore, |
| the single woman faces the arduous process and | | | | the 24/7 nature of the Internet and the availability of |
| costs of adoption alone and with the reality she may | | | | tremendous amounts of information and resources |
| end up raising her child alone without a father or | | | | on the web specific to single mothers have led to an |
| partner. | | | | increasingly savvy and well prepared prospective |
| Many single mothers who adopt will openly share | | | | adoptive mother. The successful single mother |
| although they have chosen motherhood at this point | | | | realizes it is not a sign of her weakness or an |
| in their lives; they are not necessarily single by choice | | | | indication of failure to reach out for assistance and |
| and hope to ultimately parent their child with a | | | | support. Whether via a support group for adoptive |
| partner. Others are not only comfortable with being | | | | families, her personal counselor or the cyber world, |
| single but choose to remain single throughout the | | | | she and her newly adopted child are well served by |
| adoption process and the raising of a child to | | | | reaching out and receiving help. As she makes the |
| adulthood. Faced with the reality of a ticking biological | | | | transition into her new role as a mother, the guidance |
| clock, numerous of them have unsuccessfully pursued | | | | and information gathered from single mothers who |
| intrauterine insemination with donor sperm &/or | | | | traveled the road ahead of her assists her in |
| donor egg prior to pursuing adoption as the road to | | | | watching out for known potholes and barriers, a |
| parenthood. | | | | benefit for her and her child. |
| Whereas friends, family, and society may embrace | | | | It is not reasonable to assume all married couples will |
| the married adoptive couple for rescuing or adopting | | | | stay married, nor should it be presumed all singles will |
| a child and elevate them to the status of saints, | | | | forever remain single. Instead advocates for adoption |
| single mothers are not always so readily lauded for | | | | by single women note an individual's character, |
| their desire and plan to pursue motherhood through | | | | strength and potential parenting capacity are better |
| adoption. Detractors and critics will accuse the single | | | | considered in providing a child with an adoptive home. |
| mother of selfishness for not providing the adoptive | | | | |