If you found out that your child was not biologically yours, would you still feel like his or her parent?

If I had raised a child as my own, for any reason, I would go on loving them as I always loved them. I do think the grown child deserves to know the circumstances of their birth.

It does sometimes happen that children are switched at birth, and is devastating for everyone involved when the mistake is discovered - you naturally get attached to children when you raise them and watch them grow up. I guess I would still feel like they were *my* child in that I taught them and helped shape them, the same as an adoptive parent. I do sympathise with men who find out they are not the father, sometimes after many years and thousands spent in child support but I can only say that, if I were a man and someone said a child was mine, I would get a paternity test - I don't understand why they didn't, but they chose to accept a level of risk, imo :-)

I think people forget that there are biological mothers and fathers and then there are "mothers" and "fathers." Being a biological parent does not mean you necessarily fulfill the parental role and not being a biological parent doesn't necessarily mean you don't fit the parental role. I have biological parents both of whom I've never seen more than a handful of times let alone developed a relationship with and then I have my parent and that is my grandmother, the woman who raised my siblings and myself as if we were one of her own.

If I gave birth to and raised a child despite genetics that child would be mine. I have loved them, I've cared for them, I've supported them, I've been disappointed in them,etc. If I found out that child was not biologically mine I would indeed be shocked but that would not change the intense parental love I had for that child.

People adopt children all the time and they grow to love those children. They fight for those children and some have even died for those children. The only difference between these two situations is you were mislead into believing the child was yours.

Directing your anger at the misleading party is justified but that anger should not be directed towards the child and your feelings for that child should not change.

I feel absolutely terrible for men who are or have been in this situation but I think any person (man or woman) who would forsake a child, that they've raise, after finding out he or she is not biologically theirs is a cold-hearted person indeed.

I think it would come as a shock when I find out, but since I would have been a mother to that child from the beginning, he or she would still feel as my child. After all, being part of a family is more than only genes.

Maybe the bond with the child will even become stronger knowing that we have built up a strong relationship anyway.

If that happens even thou its highly unlikely once a woman gives birth to a child no matter what reason she is the biological mother . Does not matter how who what when or where she carried for nine months in her incubator .Now on the other hand a man is not the father unless his sperm was used in fertilization. So mom baby's dad maybe.

I'm answering this question without looking at other peoples answers. Oh yeah, thats me - if the baby grows on me (after a period of time) and 6 months to 5 years later, I will consider that child mine even if it is not biologically mine. People just grow on you as you get older - its natural, it's biological, it's instinctive, it's just what it is if you grew up with responsible parents.

The answer is, "yes and no", I would want to keep the child but have to give him/her if told to do so if its not mine...but would want to keep in touch to see how the child is doing, see pictures of the child over time, etc. That's my answer to all this....

This is a very long stretch for me, I'm not a parent to begin with. I know I would feel devastated but I don't know if my feelings for the child would change. I don't think I'd feel that they're suddenly not my child anymore, but it would change things to an extent, I would imagine. It's hard for me to answer this one. It's a different thing from knowingly adopting a child that you know is biologically not your own. I think it would be an emotional rollercoaster. I don't think anyone can answer this unless they've been through it firsthand.

absolutely no change in feelings toward the child.........if you've been there for the child's entire life that child is yours no matter what! As for the mother id have to take a long hard look at weather or not its worth continuing a relationship with her but as i said that kid is not at fault at all and you've raised him\her they're yours. :)

I would feel like the child was conceived in deceit.

Also, there is a chance the real father might make a claim on him/her.

I would still care for a child in that situation, but only from a far.

I certainly would not feel responsible for the child.

Don't get me wrong I would be devestated, who wouldn't. But, I would love them the absolute same, and still feel like their parent. If I found out one of my sons, were accidentally switched at birth, I would keep the one I had...biological or not...I could not bare the thought of either of them not being in my life. I love them too much, regardless.