What is Adoption-Competent Therapy?

Adoption-competent therapists understand the unique developmental, emotional, and behavioral issues involved in life for everyone in the community of adoption and foster care, and provide mental health services that acknowledge the complexity of these issues without pathologizing them. They are well-versed in the different types of adoption, the losses involved for each person, the impact of trauma, the dynamics of openness,  common emotional and behavioral challenges, and difficulties of identity development, among other issues vital to nurturing emotional, psychological, and relational well-being.

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At Arbor Cove Therapy, LLC, our professional background includes over 18 years of experience working with individuals of all ages who are adopted, as well as their biological and adoptive families. Our clinical experience also extends to foster care, counseling children and adolescents in care along with their foster and biological parents; helping support the reunification of children and their biological family whenever possible through family counseling; and facilitating training and consultation to area foster care and adoption community groups and ministries. 

Over the years, clients have taught us invaluable lessons about the journey each person walks through adoption and equipped us with a depth of compassion and respect for all family members.    ​

Current services with an adoption focus that are offered at Arbor Cove Therapy include:

• Individual and family counseling for individuals ages two and up who are adopted, as well as their biological and adoptive family members, focused on mental health issues, parenting, family formation, navigating open adoption relationships, and/or the search and reunion process;
• Parent coaching based on the TBRI (R) (Trust-Based Relational Intervention) model developed by the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development; 
• Counseling for biological parents of a child placed for adoption who desire ongoing support;
• Mediation between biological and adoptive families after adoption when there are challenges related to openness;  
• Support groups related to adoption;
• Video conferencing-based services for adults living in states where we are licensed where access to an adoption-competent therapist is limited; and
• Workshops/presentations to churches, child welfare, healthcare, legal, and educational organizations.

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To learn more about adoption-competent therapy:

• “A Need to Know: Enhancing Adoption Competence Among Mental Health Professionals” (published online by The Donaldson Adoption Institute) 
• ​"Selecting and Working with a Therapist Skilled in Adoption” (published online by the Child Welfare Information Gateway)

​Contact Arbor Cove Therapy to schedule adoption-competent services for yourself, your family, or your organization.

*There are a number of terms people prefer to use to describe individuals whose children have been placed into adoptive families. For ease of common understanding, we use the terms "biological mother," "biological father," “birth mother,” “birth father,” "biological family," and “birth family,” but respect others’ preferences and will gladly use an individual’s preference in work together.