Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

and please add why you could or could not.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Well how below are we talkin here?

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

humn...had no specifics besides sepcial ed...
humn I dont know..I guess that could change everyhing.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

ok well pick a sepcification and we will go with that

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

true...but if you look at the other posts I am creating...well not much help there!

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Special ed could also be for emotional reasons, or for learing disabilities with average or higher intelligence....

Also, below average intelligence could be in the Low Average or Borderline ranges of intelligence, and still not mentally retarded. In these cases, I would certainly be willing to adopt, as I feel I would be a good advocate for a child in the school system in order to get the help he or she needs. I think I would also be willing in the case of mild mental retardation. I don't think I would be willing to adopt a child with moderate, severe or profound mental retardation because these people will never live independent lives and will constantly need my support and supervision or the support of another guardian.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

probably not

DH and I were both the nerdy, bookworm geeks. So, I think we would better understand and relate to our children who will most likely be the same way.

eta: but it depends. My bestfriend (since I was 7) has a learning disability. So, I guess we would be able to deal with a mild disability.

Message edited 5/28/2005 12:16:00 AM.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

it depends on so many factors- mainly.. would i be the child's Only/ best hope for a positive lifestyle? if it were due to a family or close friend situation, and i needed to 'step up to the plate' then i would. But if its just at random, i dont know. Also, it would depend on how old the child is (my brother had issues when he was little, but now hes almost 15, and hes doing great in school-- my parents pushed for ALOT of early intervention). Then again, i also dont know if i would adopt in general (personal decision), so i'm not sure if that was added on top of it.

Maybe i would feel differently after a few years of marriage, i dont know, but i'm still scared to death to have biological children, so i couldnt even think about adopting

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

NO...i couldn't.

I know exactly what it takes to take care of a special needs child. I pretty much have 48 of them ranging in all aspects od special needs...


IMO It is EXTREMELY difficult job and wouldn't do it voluntarily

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

I think I could. I would have to be better off finacially and emotionally, but if Im risking having my own child that could have a million things wrong, and I couldnt have my own, I would not discriminate against another one who did.

Its a subjective wuestion as we can see. Below average is different then say very mentally handicapped.

I say I could because I feel like I could love that child just as much, no matter what and could be happy and put a lot into their care. But I can honestly say if I were looking into adoption, it wouldnt be the first place I looked.

If for example I had a few kids, or even one or two and wanted to adopt more, and financially could, then yes, I definatly would without a doubt.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

I would without a doubt. My step sister has severe mental and physical disabilites and will have to live with my dad and his wife for her entire life, but she is such a sweet girl and grateful for the things she can do in life. It's certainly not easy to care for her, but extremely rewarding.

To be honest, to me once you've decided to adopt, it's no different than if you had a child with problems naturally. I am a firm believer that God doesn't give you more than you can handle and would feel like there is a reason I'm being asked to care for that child. But that's just me.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Message edited 5/28/2005 4:33:24 PM.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

To be honest, I don't think I could.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Message edited 5/28/2005 8:53:57 PM.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Honestly, if I were to adopt, I would want to adopt a baby, in which case they probably would not be able to tell exact IQ.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

Knowing how hard it is, I don't think I could. I'm talking about a child with severe disabilities. If he or she was dyslexic or was hearing disabled, that may change my answer

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

It depends. I know how quickly an average child can end up in an accident where they may become mentally damaged. I also know how hard and time consuming it is to deal with a child with special needs. I want a life after children and I am hoping for that but if my child ended up with a disability I would take care of them but to adopt a child that came with a mental disability I would have to say no. I would want to be able give that child all it needs and I could not do that unless I never had any other children.

Re: Could you adopt a child of below average intellect?

I think that GOD doesn't present us with any more than we can handle. I think that if it was in the cards for me to take care of a child with special needs my FH and I would be able to.
My son was born very early...and because of the prolonged period of time he was on Oxygen there may be some side effects....so far none are present....and we are so happy that he is healty now...and no matter what happens he will the cetner of our world.
My sister's son...also a preemie has a little bit more of a difficult road than my son does. But through everything he is one of the happiest toddlers I have ever seen. My nephew recieves all sorts of therapies to help him catch up. I think the reason my nephew is so happy is because of all the special attention he receives because of his special needs. He knows that he is loved and well cared for...even at his young age.