Anonymous wrote:THOUGHTS FROM ANOTHER ADOPTIVE MOM re Jen & Remy:
I have gone back and forth on whether or not Jen is a narcissist or just has narcissistic traits and I am leaning more towards the full on NPD camp solely because of how she treats Remy and this is why:
I also adopted a kid from Ethiopia so I know a ton of other adoptive parents both online and IRL, most great/normal, but a couple awful, so I have a bit of insight into adoptive parenting.
1. It’s obvious that Jen never attached to Remy, which was exacerbated by the possibility that Remy is on the ASD. Therefore she truly does see Remy as just a roommate, not her child. If attachment is not natural then achieving it in an older child is a MAJOR time commitment which probably requires professional help. If the child is struggling to attach, you need to literally rewire their brain. If the parent is struggling to attach, they may need intervention or not (there are lots of resources available) but you have to be 100% committed.
For instance, when my kid came home, she was with me 24/7. If not me, then my husband. I would NEVER go out of town for several days. Literally unthinkable. Would you leave your 3 day old baby for a week? Same thing. All adopted kids will have abandonment issues plus coming to an entirely different culture is so confusing and overwhelming and overstimulating. Adoptive parents are even told to avoid loud noises or bright lights (some families who adopt around the holidays forgo Christmas trees - I think that’s a bit much but I appreciate the intention) because their little brains are on such total overload when they get home. You “cocoon”: don’t leave the house for at least a couple of weeks, and no one outside family is allowed in. You’re literally teaching the child what a family IS. Homeschooling is an option and may be a necessity, but regardless, you definitely delay school for days or weeks. In a nutshell, you seek to recreate the womb/newborn days of protection from the outside world as much as humanly possible. It’s very intense but no different than taking maternity leave for a newborn. Do we do that for the mom or for the baby? For the BABY. New babies need their mommies. New adopted kids, whether 2 or 5 or 15 need their mommies too.
I know for a fact that Jen did none of this. She traveled for speaking gigs and she had those kids in school, like, immediately. I remember that because I was shocked. Imo she did not attach to Remy, and she has only herself to blame. And she knew she was supposed to do all these things. ANC had lots of families who had adopted who did it right. Plus the adoption agency tells you all this. Our agency required us to go to a 2-day seminar just on attachment because the knowledge is SO vital for successful adoptions. She knew. She could have done it. She blew it off. She chose to ignore the experts. She knew better.
2. There is a problem with some people adopting because my gosh, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been told “wow you guys are so amazing” for adopting our kid. It makes me SQUIRM. I hate it! ugh! I’m not amazing, this is just a choice we made on how to grow our family. I just hate the thought of kids in orphanages and this is how we responded. That’s it. But, I remember after we brought her home thinking, after being told how awesome I was for the umpteenth time, that wow, I could *really* let this go to my head. Like, this is exactly how it happens. Or if I had seen other moms get that praise after adopting, I could go “wow if I adopt everyone will tell me what an amazing mom I am! And whoa!! Bonus points for a black kid!!!” Like people who fake cancer for attention, kwim? So so gross. But … it happens. I’ve only seen it very rarely. The adoption process is such a long, expensive, paperwork pain in the ass that it naturally weeds out most of those people. You have to really want a child to stick it out. But I have seen it happen. Just like it happens with narcissistic women who keep having children for attention that pregnancy and babies bring, but on steroids.
3. And to me, this is the clincher: the problem with narcissistic mothers is that once their babies get past the mommy-is-perfect stage and start asserting their own independence and have their own opinions, the narcissistic mother is infuriated. How dare they defy me? How UNGRATEFUL for all my SACRIFICES! Okay - so now imagine the narcissistic mom if the kid is adopted? I can see it so easily- “I spent THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS for you! I went to AFRICA to get you! And this is the thanks I get??”
I knew a mom on Facebook who had adopted lots of kids (child hoarding) who also had a rebellious teenage daughter from Ethiopia. Every time she would post one of this poor girl’s acting-out in detail in a Facebook it would make my blood boil. But then the comments she would get - “oh you’re so wonderful! You don’t deserve this!” “You’re an amazing mom! Keep up the good work!” Like, lots of them. Which is why exactly why she did it!! And I think this is exactly why Jen does it too.
And I think it’s freaking unforgivable.
Just found this thread and I know these people IRL. Jen pawned Remy off to other ANC families and people in her circle when she was way too vulnerable to be able to process it. It's so sad. Remy is a lovely girl. I don't think she's on the spectrum, as others have said. She's scrappy and has definitely had to fend for herself but her dad does a pretty good job and she's got a good relationship with most of her sibs. What a sad farce of a family to have to grow up in.