For the first time in a long time I wasn't thinking about myself, I chose Abel. With the amount of drug exposure, there was I had only ONE family to choose from.

With adoption as my option, I never considered how open it could be. In fact, my idea of “very open” wasn’t all that open at all. I never dreamed that my adoption would be where it is today.

"Four days that I will never forget. I’ll never forget the pain, both mentally and physically." Keep reading as Shelbi explains there is light at the end of the tunnel.

"It has all come full circle. Adoption is beautiful. It wasn't always happy go lucky...The beauty of open adoption. There is always a window to see that everything is ok." - Emily, birth mom #BraveLove

When Dominique, a single mom, found out she was pregnant, she felt stuck. She was doing ok parenting one child, but what was it going to look like to now financially support two? Her first thought was to have an abortion or try to parent another child.

When I placed my daughter for adoption twenty years ago, open adoption wasn't really discussed as a preferred option, and I didn't even know of anyone who had experienced adoption in that way.

I didn’t give my child away—he’s not a piece of trash. I placed my child into a loving and thriving home in order to give him a better chance at life.

I see her love on her mom, I see her lean on her dad. I see them love her with all their heart. My choice was not easy, but it was right, and I had to be brave for her. I had to put away my pride for her. I couldn’t be selfish, and I knew I had to let her go.

It took me about a year to understand or have feeling in that hole in my heart. I did not completely start healing until about 10 years later.

“You are pregnant.” I heard those three words at age 18 when I was just weeks into my freshman year of college. I was devastated. I was not ready to be a mom. I did not want to be a mom. I was so excited about my new life and future as a college student.