013 – It Wasn’t That He Didn’t Care, He Cared Too Much
Jennifer learned that she was adopted when she was six years old. Interestingly, her adopted parents shared a letter with her that was written by her biological mother whose instructions were that Jennifer should have it when they felt she was ready. In fact, her parents had an entire package of detailed information about her…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode072 – Amazing Intuition, One Cousin Connection
Recalling her early family life, Ann said she felt like her parents were sucked into feeling like they had to have a family, and while they were focused on creating a better world in their professional lives, that didn’t necessarily translate to their home life. She always had the feeling her parents cared more about appearances…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode097 – You Gotta Forgive
James called me from right up the road in Laurel, Maryland and we have one degree of separation with one of my adoptive father, Willie’s, friends. In his story you’ll hear his struggle to find himself and an identity as a youth in a family that didn’t look like him. It took him years to find his voice…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode029 – A Lifetime of Interveners Saw Me Through
Born in the Panama Canal Zone, Stephanie was adopted by a US military family stationed there in 1961. She was never told she was adopted, but she always knew there was a family secret. When she was 43 years old Stephanie discovered the secret was her own adoption. Because she was born in the Panama Canal…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode041 – I’ve Finally Gotten Myself To A Sense Of Peace
After two years in foster care, Janet was adopted into the foster family. An interracial woman, she grew up in a white midwestern community in Ohio. Janet recalls the love she felt from her family and the isolation of being one of two people of color in her town. Through the International Soundex Reunion Registry (ISRR.net) she…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episodeGoodbye 2020
Listen, I can’t even pretend it was easy to podcast during what has been an absolutely crazy year. Before I sign off season 7 I need to cover a few things. I’m grateful to be able to say thank you to some wonder folks who’ve committed to supporting the Who Am I Really podcast this year.…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode137 – Searching For Mom
Sara, from Seattle, Washington, was an over achiever adoptee who was secretly struggling and going off the rails. She intentionally avoided babies until her sister gave birth.. and having kids of her own drove home just how precious babies are. Sara feared reunion would literally kill her adoptive mother. But in reunion she finally heard from her biological mother that…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode136 – Your Absence Has Gone Through Me
To date, I’ve only interviewed a few guests who weren’t adoptees, and this will be another one. Today you’re going to meet Anne-Marie from Southern California who drafted an impassioned submission to be on the Who Am I Really podcast. At first I wanted to stay true to the focus of the show, sharing adoptee…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode135 – Something About This Tells Me We’re Family
Isaac, from Hawaii, talks about himself as a boy who was loved, but struggled to connect with his adoptive parents in certain ways. Having left the island, a chance musical gig put him back on Hawaiian soil and in position to launch his adoption reunion search. In reunion he reconnected with both of his parents at the same time,…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode134 – Destined To Be Unique
Liz, from Michigan, grew up in a neighborhood full of adoptees, so it wasn’t until years later in the Dominican Republic teaching a class with a lot of adoptees in it that her own adoption sunk in. After finding her natural mother through an intermediary they reunited during a sleepover in a hotel room where they…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode133 – Bet She Was Praying For You
In this episode Cheryl, the mother and our adoptee, is joined by her natural daughter Diahan from Washington state and South Florida respectively. Cheryl had an idyllic life growing up an athletic tomboy outside of Seattle. When her daughters started having children she got concerned about the missing medical information she was unable to transfer down the family…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode132 – Nearly Dying Is One Of The Best Things That Ever Happened
Adria, who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, has lived around the country and in different parts of the world, only to find himself right back in the town where everything started for him. An avid mountain biker, he nearly lost it all when the widow maker tried to tear him down. Adrian fought through recovery, vowed to…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode131 – I’m More Confused Now, I’m Broken
Elissa, from Hilton Head, South Carolina, said never bonded with her adopted mother. She did find a second home with her horseback riding coach and the horses she adored. Finding her biological mother gave Elissa a glimmer of hope that the woman stokes and extinguishes in a torturous cycle. Speaking with her birth father only once,…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode130 – The Gift Best Given
Ed called me from Hillsborough, North Carolina, but his journey begins in New York City. He describes a wonderful life in the suburbs of the city with no real concerns for his adoption — even after carrying his original birth certificate around as a teenager. Sparked by reunion television shows Ed searched for his natural parents discovering that…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode129 – Finding Him Brought Closure
Tracey called me from Nashville, TN. She was raised in a family with a genetic trait that deeply impacted her middle sister, driving her appreciation for the power of genetic testing. Tracey knows a lot about her birth mother even though the woman rejected her twice.Process of elimination led her to her birth father, several loving siblings, and healing from…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode128 – A Peace Came Over Me
Val called me from outside of Houston, Texas, but her story started in in Kansas. She had a great childhood with her parents until a neighbor revealed her adoption to her, rocking her world, sending her into rebellious phase in life. When Val searched for her biological father, because his name wouldn’t have changed over the years,…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode046 – I Am Adopted, It Is Who I Am
Jennifer is a reunited adoptee from Pittsburgh. She’s a petite, white blonde of European descent whose adoptive parents are a Spanish man and a Mexican woman. Through her search, she found both of her natural parents are deceased, and she had half brothers on both sides, both named Tom. Unbeknownst to Jen, her maternal half-brother attended the…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode063 – I’m Really Glad You Came, But It’s Gonna Be A While
Brenda was born in California, grew up on the east coast and lives in Texas. She’s the child of a military family that has lived all over. When a school project required her to ask her adoptive mother about her family tree at eight years old, she was shown her non-identifying information for the first time. While the…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode033 – My Sister Reunited Too, But Didn’t Know About Me
Jenny journaled about her birth mother from an early age. She grew up in a loving family, but the urge to find her birth family was always there. When Ohio opened it birth records, she obtained some vital information that led her to her birth mother on Facebook and later to her birth father. But she never expected…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode007 – I’m Great With My Family, They Love Me For Me
As a child Denise’s family blamed her for a tragedy that took the life of her younger brother. They mistreated Denise and her tyrannical stepfather ultimately saw the children as a means to his own financial gain. She took drastic steps to get herself kicked out of the house on a path to her own independence. Today, Denise…
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