Wellness Check-In: A Guided Reflection for Adoptees
By Astrid Castro, Founder & CEO of Adoption Mosaic
“While National Wellness Month is ending, it’s never too late to practice wellness all year around. We invited Astrid Castro, Founder and CEO of Adoption Mosaic, to speak on ways for adoptees to incorporate wellness practices into your every day life.”
Astrid and her dog Guapo take a selfie on the beach.
At Adoption Mosaic, we specialize in providing adoption education and support services to any person who is impacted by adoption. Through courses, consultations and community events we create space beyond the rainbows and unicorn social narrative of adoption and hold space for critical thinking within adoption. All of our programming centers the lived experience of those most impacted by adoption, adoptees, in every program and service we offer. We believe that tending to our wellness is not a luxury, it’s essential for living fully and authentically as adoptees. Yet for many of us, “wellness” wasn’t modeled or encouraged in our childhoods. Our needs often went unseen, our grief and loss unspoken, and our sense of belonging questioned.
This reflection is meant for adoptees and adoptive parents who want to nurture emotional, physical, and relational wellbeing, for themselves or in support of the adoptees in their lives. It’s also a resource therapists and group leaders can use to guide conversations.
Astrid and Ana, an adoptee friend, pose for a photo during Adoptee Pizza Social, presented by Adoption Mosaic.
What Wellness Means to Us
For me, wellness has always been about self-care and community. As adoptees, many of us have grown up in isolation, racial isolation, cultural isolation, and often isolation from other adoptees. That separation can make it challenging to put ourselves out there, even when we know we need connection.
Recently I attended an adoptee only conference, in-person, and I was reminded of spaces like this where our adoptee community can feel deeply seen even if sometimes it may feel overwhelming. Wellness isn’t just what we do alone; it’s also what we create when we show up for each other.
And here’s the truth: there are countless adoptees who are also looking for connection. Sometimes all it takes is one act of courage to say, “I’m here,” to discover that you’re not alone.
What Makes a Therapist “Adoption Competent”
Astrid and her adoptive mother puzzling.
At Adoption Mosaic, we define an adoption-competent constellation member as someone who has knowledge of the history of adoption, is aware of the system of adoption, knows various appropriate terms used when talking about adoption, and why these terms may be contended (or not) by others in the adoption constellation.
Adoption competent means more than simply having worked with adoptees before. It combines:
Cultural & Lived-Experience Awareness
Understanding adoption beyond the “rainbows and unicorn” narratives.
Awareness of racial, cultural, and identity complexities.
Knowledge of the lifelong nature of adoption’s impact
Clinical Skill Set
Trauma-informed training.
Experience with attachment, grief, separation, and identity development.
Ability to create a safe space for exploring complex feelings without minimizing or pathologizing them.
Checklist for Selecting an Adoption Competent Therapist
(Available as a free downloadable PDF.)
Guided Wellness Journal Prompts for Adoptees
(Available as a free downloadable PDF, for individual use or in therapy/group settings.)
Closing & Community Invitation
Wellness is not a destination, it’s a practice we return to again and again. For adoptees, that practice is deeply personal, but it doesn’t have to be solitary. Whether it’s a conversation with a trusted friend, a therapy session with an adoption-competent provider, or joining a community event, every step we take toward caring for ourselves strengthens our collective wellbeing.
We invite you to download the Wellness Check-In PDF and share it with other adoptees, adoptive parents, therapists, and group leaders. Use it as a tool to start conversations, deepen self-reflection, and remind yourself, you are not alone in this journey.
🌿 Join Us in Community and Connection
This spring, join us on our Community & Connection Wellness Trip in Sedona, Arizona—a retreat-style experience created for international and domestic adoptees and loved ones to pause, reflect, and connect in a supportive space.
If this sounds like the space you’ve been waiting for, spots are limited—check out our trip page to learn more, request info, or register to save your place today.