Adoption? special needs?

Question

"Adopted children should be considered 'special needs' children"

a quote by someone on here, writen as a part of their answer.

Does anyone agree?

I personally dont, think its pathetic to call an adopted child a "special needs" child. just my opinion.

Answer 1

I don't think it's right to name all children that are adopted as being 'special needs' or somehow disabled.

However, many children who are adopted will go on to have emotinal or behavioural problems, especialy those that are adopted at the age of 3 and above.

I am saying this out of experience, as my younger brother is adopted and has went on to have emotional and behavioural problems, and the things that he has experienced in the past have caused this.

I think children who are adopted as toddlers or older often have more trust issues than children who are not adopted and this is why they should sometimes be considered as having special (or more appropriately different) needs.

Answer 2

Of COURSE children who come home through adoption are not automatically "special needs" anymore than biological children are automatically "special needs"!  What classifies a child a "special needs" is his/her medical or emotional health status.  Examples of special needs are:  Children with cerebral palsy, epilepsy, bi-polar disorder, HIV+, mental retardation, PTSD.  Older children (age 10+) and large sibling groups can also be considered special needs.

LABELS HURT!  Special needs means just that....the child has special needs beyond the average healthy child.

Hope that helps!

Answer 3

There is such a thing as a "special needs" child, but that doesn't mean that EVERY adopted child is "special needs".  "Special needs" means that the child needs a bit more care.  It may be because of mental limitations, physical limitations or emotional limitations.  Teenage children that have been bounced around from home to home and have anger problems are considered "special needs".  Perhaps that sort of thing is what the person was referring too.  

Maybe you could email the person and ask them what they meant by their answer.  You can't always assume what people mean by only a few sentences on an internet forum.

Answer 4

There are children up for adoption that are special needs cases, but there are also children up for adoption without special needs. You can't lump them all into one category though

Answer 5

Just because a child is adopted, that does not make that child a "special needs" child.

Answer 6

I don't agree either.

Answer 7

I agree that adopted kids should be considered special needs.

Also treating adoptees the same as bio kids is minimizing their individuality and living in denial of all your differences. Love can not overcome all, especially with a child too hurting to feel or believe in love.

Answer 8

I think that is pathetic myself. You are pre-determining them for setbacks. That is just plain shallow and narrow minded. That is probably coming from someone who has no children.

Answer 9

i agree with you, adopted child shouldn't be named "special needs" children just because they are adopted.

Answer 10

The label "Special needs" has a very different conotation when dealing with disabilities.

It is wrong to use the label for adopted children. At least they know that they are wanted and did not just happen.

All children have special needs because they are vunerable.

Answer 11

Adopted kids do have special emotional issues that other children just don't face, especially abandonment issues.

It's wrong to brush those issues aside, just because they are not severely debilitating.

Even something as seemingly innocuous as a family tree project at school reminds an adopted kid that they are different from all of their friends, and that needs to be recognized by parents and teachers.

Answer 12

When somebody says special needs, people often think of disability be it physical or learning etc...  However, special needs isn't just that.  It can mean a child has certain 'special' needs such as in the case of adoption, they may have emotional needs due to physical,mental abuse or neglect.  That is probably what they meant by saying special needs. Which if you think about it it is right isnt it?  Its just not nice to label them though.  But unfortuantely that is the way of the world.  I have a child with severe learning difficulties and epilepsy.  So I know about labelling.

Answer 13

i had to consult my friend on this one, seeing how she is an adopted child.

My friend admits she has tons of emotional issues, that trace back to her knowing about the adoption, also being the only one out of 4 kids who WAS adopted (she was the middle child). She had fears of abandonment with relationships, trust issues, and low self esteem. There are tons of studies that show that adopted children are more prone to social and emotional problems. I'll link later on. When I asked her if she thought adopted children had special needs, she laughed.

"Just because i was adopted, doesn't mean I ever had or needed special attention. I thought everyone was out to get me, didn't trust a lot of people, and always had low self esteem because my birth mother only put me up for adoption. i always wondered if i did something wrong, or if she just didn't like me. I know its not true now, but it messed with my head when I was a teenager. So no... we don't have "special needs" we just go through more emotional drama then most kids that age. When we grow out of it though, we are x10 times stronger".

So there you have it.

Answer 14

no i don't agree with that quote.

Answer 15

I'm not sure if you are referring to an answer that I provided or not.  I don't recall ever labeling all adopted children as special needs, but I do know that I have written about "special needs" adoptions and it may have been misinterpreted.  Our son's adoption was considered "special needs" because he has a life-threatening disorder.  

I do not feel that all children who have been adopted should be considered "special needs", however, I will say that I believe many of the children in foster care are "special needs" because of the issues they have experienced.  Again, that is not saying ALL but I do believe that many of the foster care children are "labeled" as special needs.

Answer 16

I agree it is wrong to lable a child special needs just because they were adopted, however, I believe some people try it just for the extra benefits they are given.

Answer 17

in a way adopted children are special needs they have (especialy if parents gave them up or they dont know bioparents) are special needs they need counselling (private of course) and consideration from the teacher. i remember when I was in grade five we were supposed to find out about a great grandparent, uncle aunt, or other relative and it bugged me that I could not do this on my bio family as i didn't have a way to get in touch.

but No they do not need like physio or other things that some real special needs children need so

Adopted children are not special needs but do need carefull guidance and occasionally emotional consideration from teachers

As I explained up above I told my teacher I was adopted and she dropped the assignment for me as the whole purpose was to find out who your ancestors were. i still got full marks as she gave me another assignment to do just for her a paper on why adoption is special and why I am special because I am adopted...She is still my fave teacher.

Answer 18

Frankly, all children are "special needs" because they are all special and they all have different needs. I agree with you, though. Adopted children shouldn't be treated any differently than any other children. They all deserve the same love and care.

Answer 19

You and Erin L are right. Even though adopted children in the beginning will have different needs and issues, does not mean they are "special needs" children. There is a huge difference.

Answer 20

Some adoptees have special needs, however, I am adopted and have 2 adopted children that are not consider special need. I am very thankful that there are people out there that would adopt a child with a special need- however not all are.

LOVE KJ's answer actually!!!!!!!!

Answer 21

I don't agree.

Answer 22

What people mean when they say that all adopted children are special needs children is that, because of the separations and losses they have undergone in their life, even under the best circumstances, they have needs beyond children raised in biological families.  It is telling adopted parents that they can't parent an adopted child exactly like a biological child.  For example, when my daughter joined our family at 9 months old, our pediatritian recommended the Ferber method for sleeping (basically crying it out).  Now, if it were a child who had known me for 9 months and had a history in which she knew I would always meet her needs, I may have tried that.  But I thought that using the Ferber method with a child that, first of all hadn't even recovered from jet lag, was in a home she she didn't know, with people who were still strangers to her, was completely out of line.  She needed to learn her parents would be there to meet her needs and take care of her, parents who recognized the fear she was feeling and would provide comfort.  I slept in the same room with her, and I responded to every cry within seconds as recommended by attachment specialists.  So that is an example of how my parenting changed due to acknowledging my child's "special needs" as an adoptee.

Answer 23

Well it all depends on how it is texted. If the person is reffering to it needing special attention, then yes, only because it is going through so much more than expected, but by no means should adopted children be considered "special needs children". Thats ust ignorant and rude.