If you're pregnant and you've decided to proceed with an open adoption, make sure you get the help you need. Choosing adoption can leave you experiencing emotions that you're not prepared to handle. Without the right help, those emotions can become overpowering, which is where counseling comes into the picture. You might think that you're strong enough to navigate an open adoption without counseling, but that's not necessarily the case. There are a lot of reasons why you need counseling during an open adoption. Here are just four of the reasons you should participate in counseling now that you've decided to go through with an open adoption. 

Make Knowledgeable Decisions

If you've decided to go with an open adoption, you may think that all of your decisions have been made. But that's not the case. Choosing open adoption is the first in a long list of decisions that you'll need to make. Unfortunately, if you don't have the right team, you might not have all of the information you need to make knowledgeable decisions. That's where adoption counseling comes into the picture. Through counseling, you'll learn how to make knowledgeable decisions that will benefit you, the adoptive parents, and the baby you plan to place with them. 

Learn Beneficial Coping Skills

If you're going through an unplanned pregnancy and you've decided to proceed with an open adoption, there may be times when you feel out of control or overwhelmed with the process. When that happens, you'll need to know how to work through the feelings you're experiencing, which is why you need adoption counseling. One of the benefits of adoption counseling is that you'll learn coping skills that will help you navigate the feelings you might be experiencing for the first time. These coping skills will also help you navigate the emotions you'll experience once you place the baby with the adoptive parents. 

Receive Emotional Support

If you've decided on an open adoption and you don't have a strong support group, it's important that you arrange for counseling. Navigating an open adoption without a strong support group can put you at risk for emotional harm, which is why counseling is so important. Counseling will provide you with the emotional support you need to survive the process. Your counselor can also put you into contact with birth parent support groups, which will allow you to meet with others who are experiencing the same issues.