"I just believe that the plan for their life and my life is going to exceed everything I've gone through." - Michelle Senior, adoptive mom following emergency foster care placement

Less than a year after her son was murdered, Michelle Senior found herself unexpectedly caring for three children under the age of two. When people comment that she "saved" them, she's quick to correct them that her three "miracles" saved her.

Grief mixed with the overwhelm of unplanned motherhood and trauma from her past had her contemplating taking her own life.

Thankfully, she didn't. Although Michelle, instead, recognized the blessing in having more to live for - despite the challenges - this conversation dives deeper into how do parents care for themselves navigating personal trauma while also caring for traumatized children.

It takes more than love in either case, that much is for certain.

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RECOMMENDED ADOPTION RESOURCES

• LISTEN: Voices of the Black Adoption Experience and African American adoptees on ⁠The Black Adoption Podcast⁠
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• FEATURED #BTTBreads: Torn Apart: How the Child Welfare System Destroys Black Families and How Abolition Can Build a Safer World by Dorothy Roberts

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