LIFE OF JOSEPHINEG. MERCADO
( AS AN ADOPTED DAUGHTER)
BY:
Jophite Eve G. Mercado
Roselyn M. Macolbacol
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CHAPTER I
The Problemand It’s Scope
INTRODUCTION:
All people wanted to live a joyful and better life and most of us
wish to have a happy and perfect family and in every children wishes
to have a parents who can give them love, care and guidance until
their last breath of life. Yet there are many reason why parents decide
or choose to give their child to the person who can give them a better
and bright life. But even through we pray nor wish for perfections,
still life is not fair, life doesn’t think of perfections, just think another
way around. Just like an adopted child their life is not that easy and
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perfect compare tothe others, because they grow up without
knowing the love, care, guidance and presence of their biological
parents. It may cause them the lack of financial support and
that’s one of the reason why their child let adopted. Life of an
Adopted child they have so many. questions in their mind on
what and why their parents choose to let them be adopted.
Adopted may experience feelings of grief and loss as a result of
growing up not knowing their birth parents, they feel like they
lost their birth parents, ands even a part of themselves. Some
adopted child may struggles with self-esteem issues.
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They may felldifferent or like they don’t fit in because of their
adoption. In this research we would like to tackle what are the
possible challenges that they encountered as an adopted child and
reasons why they got adopted.
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GENERAL STATEMENT OFTHE PROBLEM
To determine the challenges faced by Mrs. Josphine G.
Mercado as an adopted daughter.
Specific Problems
1. Who is Josephine G. Mercado?
2. How old when she was adopted?
3. Did she know what’s the reason why she get adopted?
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4. How doesit feel after knowing that she is adopted?
5. What are the challenges that she encounter as an adopted
daughter?
6. Does she still have connection with her birth mother?
7. Does her adoptive parents allowed her to meet her birth family?
7.
Significance of theStudy
This study can be helpful to all adopted children and to the
biological parents and to all people who is planning to file an
adoption. This study is an awareness of the possible feeling
being adopted on how the child manage and accept that they
have a new family.
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Scope and limitation
Thisstudy focuses on the life of Mrs. Josephine G. Mercado,
a resident of Barangay Cabangahan, Siaton, Negros Oriental. The
challenges and struggles, she face as a adopted child and the
reason why she was adopted. The love story of the said
respondent is not included in this study.
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Theoretical Framework
The coreof adoption is the desire to give a child a life
full of love and happiness, birth parents worry about whether
they are making the right decision for their own child to the
adoptive families that here left the question of wonders how
their child will feel about being adopted ang why they got
adopted. Adoptee’s themselves may be curious about the ways
they benefit from and are affected by being adopted.
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Many studies shouldhave been done over the years to
determine if there are benefits of being adopted . While every
adoptee’s experience is different, they are many with wonderful
stories that can gives us a good life lesson not only for those
adoptee’s out there, from adopted families, birth parents also the
people wondering that challenges they face and what it feels to be
adopted.
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Challenges
We acknowledge thestruggles of some adopted on how they face
the challenges on being an adopted to the family who never give
birth to them in the first place. The fact that they are adopted and
how the community, relatives thought about them, the challenges
they face to find the truth of why they got adopted the curious
minds of an adoptee’s to find who are their birth parents and the
climax of life what they feel.
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Grief and loss
Theyare two types of feelings the grief and loss experience of an
adopted child as an result of growing up, we know that many
adoptee’s had a good life experience with their adoptive family and
some of them haven’t, the grief and loss has the result of growing up
not knowing their birth parents and since they didn’t have a choice
in their adoption, they may feel like the lost their birth parents and
even a part of themselves.
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Identity Issues
This isone of the most common struggles and challenges
adoptee’s face, having the lack of information about their birth
parents, it can be difficult to feel in the gaps of finding the live and
care they want from their birth parents and a question of why they
were placed for adoption or what became in their parents. We know
the saying blood is thicker than water , family is more genetics ,
knowing their genetic background are important for some adoptee’s
by understanding them, where they came from and were they can
feel a better understand themselves.
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Insecurities
Self-esteem issues aresome adoptee’s struggle, they feel different
and likely don’t fit in because of their adoption, maybe they feel
rejection or fear that their birth parents don’t want them. being
adopted can create opportunities.
The challenges od adoption are real even though the fact of driving
out about the birth parents decision to place their baby for adoption
so that they have the access to opportunities. The birth parents may
not have the financial stability to give their child the life they want
for them. That’s why birth parents choose adoption so that they can
find a suitable adoptive family who can give their baby an amazing
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life, so forthe adoptee’s the benefits of being adopted can include;
• Their adoptive parents can able to dedicate more time to them.
• They are able to pursue higher education goals.
• A safe and stable home environment.
• A two parent household.
Advantages of being Adopted
The benefits of being adopted in the numerous studies of have
done to assess the research shows that adoptee’s may have unique
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advantages that non-adoptedchildren don’t experience like.
• Improved academic performance
• Addition extracurricular involvement
• Increased attention to their mental health
• The mentality of knowing they were chosen
• Having the love of two families
Adoptee’s receive more attention from their families compared to
that non-adopted children. The study shows support the idea that
being raise by dependable and stable parental figure is more
important than biology.
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The Love ofTwo Families
Every adoption has it’s own different stories. In some cases, an
adopted child may not know their birth family or understand their
motivation for choosing adoption the fact that their birth family and
understand that adoption was a decision made of love being adopted
can mean knowing that you are loved by many the birth parents who
chose to give you is the best life possible and adoptive parents who
has given you all of their love and support. So, while the answer to “
How does it feel to be adopted?” will be vary depending on each
adoptee’s experience and also studies have proven that adoptee’s who
grow up with communication with their birth parents are happier.
Related Literature
From theadoptee story of Ms. Justine Thompson-Clarkin a and
raise from a Ukrainian family. She was adopted at the age of 6 weeks
old and named as Justine Thompson. The time has come that her
adoptive parents told her the truth that she was adopted, her birth
parents named her Michele Burn, after what happen her adoptive
parents allowed her to find her birth parents and now she tried to find
her birth parents, at first she failed. However she didn’t stop she
continue and try and try again until she found her birth mother after 10
years with the help of private investigator. Within one day, she found
her birth m other’s own face-book.
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This time ,withher patience she was able to connect and see her
birth mother and now she already have her own family and had 2
brothers and a sister on that side of the family. She also found her
birth father and now she was able to forgive her birth parents for not
being able to provide her level of love that she needed to feel safe.
https://thisadopteelife.com/adoptee-story-Justine-Thompson
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Another story ofadoption, from a young man named David, His
birth parents named Melissa and Brian signed him up for adoption
after he was born, according to David his mother was young and not
yet ready to raise child, and Melissa her birth mother almost bring
him up in the site that she have to abort him, she had made it as far as
the operating room with the doctor but her birth mother Melissa
choose to left the clinic and had a decision to choose his son to live
and after giving birth to him she gave him up to adoption.
After 19 years past by his birth mother decided to update his address
with the adoption agency, David was offered the chance to meet his
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birth parents. Initially,David feared that he would diminish the life
that he’d built over the past 19 years with his adoptive parents. But
David eventually decided to meet his birth parents and Courtney, his
biological sister.
https://lookingglass.montrosesschool.org-oage-scroll/2019/12/10/res
pect-for-life-celebrates-life-with-true-adoption-story
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The Susan’s adoptedstory, she is now 59 years old was adopted
as a baby. According to her, when she 11 days old she was turn over
to the Children’s Home, and in two months old she got adopted by
her loving adoptive parents, she was still a kid when her adoptive
parents told her that she was adopted, and as she got older she finally
decided to find her birth parents with the help of Kate, the Care
Taker of Children’s Home, she found out her birth mother had her at
age 31 and her birth parents got married after she was given for
adoption, her mother was the Secretary of to the principle of Bible
Training College and his father was a student. And that time her
father was a student and got involved with missionary work.
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Her parents areafraid of what well happened if everybody will found
out that her birth mother is pregnant with her, that’s the reason why her
parents sign her for adoption. With her patience for finding her birth
mother, she finally see her in person but her birth mother unfortunately
had a first stage of dementia and it’s difficult for her to be remembered
who she is her life. Unfortunately, her birth mother pass away 2 years
to the day they got reunited and also his birth father too.
https://www.sfcs.org.uk/adoption/real-adoption-stories/susan’s-story
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CHAPTER II
RESULTS ANDDISCUSSION
This chapter presents the results and discussion of this study.
Based on the result of the interview conducted, Mrs. Josephine G.
Mercado 55 years old and a resident of Barangay Cabangahan
Siaton, Negros Oriental as an adopted daughter .
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According to Mrs.Josephine G. Mercado, she was adopted at a
young age of toddlers, she was adopted to another family and now she is
bless to meet her own birth parents, she live as an ordinary kid and a loving
caring child, she is also helping her adoptive parents in their work, they
have a small store in maloh selling coffee, puto maya and tsokolate and that
is where they got their financial support for their own family, her adoptive
parents don’t have a child, so she is the blessing of the couple. But as an
adopted child she also face a lot of challenges and discrimination from the
other people and relatives. According to her she was adopted in her toddler
years, her birth mother give her for an adoption to one of her close friends,
who can’t bear to have a child, because of the financial support and poverty
that’s one of the reason why she got adopted in the first place but she is one
who got adopted , her adoptive parents told her that
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she has atwin sister , but sadly her twin sister died in her toddler
years in the hands of the other adoptive family but as an adopted
daughter she was given a freedom to know her birth mother and also
getting to know her siblings and her adoptive parents are the one who
want her to get know them and allowed her to attend their birth family
celebrations and that’s because her birth mother and adoptive parents
know each other, the way she feel secure in the two families but for
her she still feel different towards her birth family as she didn’t grow
up together with them right now she feel that the part of herself is
now complete by getting the chance to know her birth mother who is
now at its 90th
age and a understanding siblings that she can rely on.