163 – It’s All About Connections
Debbie lives outside of Portland, Oregon. Her parents adopted her and her brother too soon after tragedy struck their family. Debbie found her roots in Kansas, in a small town where the grape vine unexpectedly spread news fast that she was in town. Uh, sad loss. Oddly gave Debbie a chance to connect more deeply…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode162 – Looking At Him, I Could See Who I Was
Cindy lives outside of Sacramento, California. She and her sister were placed in foster care where they learned to protect themselves and be tough. Cindy’s search started with an abundance of identifiable information thanks to her adoptive parents. In reunion, she found a man she truly resembled, was bonded to, but who was forced to…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode161 – Dear Stephen Michael’s Mother, Kevin Barhydt
Kevin, from upstate New York, shares his journey to find his worthiness, to beat in this life. His search for his birth mother led him to the one woman who knew he existed and the unexpected sibling set that has fortified his own fight to carry on. Kevin continues his search for his paternal connections.…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode160 – He Was Waiting For Me
Erika called me from outside of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Ericka and her older adopted brother were doing fine with their adoptive parents until the birth of their siblings created an unspoken split between the children. In reunion, Erika’s mother was an open book about her experiences as one of the girls who went away, while…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode159 – Voices of Indian Adoptees
Today’s adoptee story is Winnie’s. She called me from Los Angeles, California. Growing up, Winnie’s adoptive parents were closed to discussing her adoption, rejected her basic desire to socialize and left her to fend for herself in the name of creating an independent woman. But her treatment was unfairly different from that of her adopted…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode158 – Creating Space To Find Who I Am
Pam called me from Lexington, Kentucky. Growing up in adoption she suffered in the care of her adoptive mother who was unable to be a to parent her children because she was barely holding on herself. In reunion Pam found two alcoholics and when she looked in the mirror she saw someone who needed to…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode157 – My Surreal Parents
Ed called me from here in Maryland. He shared the sad, circumstances of his adoptive parents losing two children, but not really healing from the losses, feeling loyalty to his adoptive parents. Ed went on a clandestine search for his birth mother, found her then lost touch for years. All of which exacerbated his anxiety…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode156 – Sibling Strangers
I’m Damon Davis. And today you’re going to meet Jennifer who called me from standards, Ville, Virginia. Growing up in New York, she had a very different childhood experience in her family than her sister who was biological to their parents. Their mother suffered with substance abuse and deep down. Probably knew she wasn’t as…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode069 – I Lived As A Secret, That’s Not Healthy
Honor described a childhood in isolation, so much so that it impacted her health when she started school. Wondering about her biological parents, she developed a romantic story in her mind that they were in love but simply couldn’t keep her. It took her many years to track down her real story which was far more complex,…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode086 – Second Time
As an interracial adoptee and musical artist, Ferera grew up feeling different from her adopted family. When her adoption was tearfully confirmed by her Mom, it created doubt within her about whether it was okay to be different? Ferera met her birth mother, and the woman’s twin sister, so their reunion was a shared experience that somewhat fractured the intimate…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode080 – It’s Not About How You Got Here
Rachel is a Hispanic woman of Chilean descent, raised in a Jewish family. She shared her feelings of otherness trying to connect with other Spanish speaking children with her limited proficiency. Rachel describes her father’s blindness to her heritage, and her unbelievable luck to have strangers who went out of their way to help her meet her…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode2020 NAAM – Adoptee Podcaster Perspectives
Adoptees have the ultimate voice about the adoption experience. Adoptee podcasters are offering fellow adoptees outlets for sharing their inner thoughts and deepest emotions about their adoption journeys — the happy and sad, incredible experiences and the awful outcomes. On Wednesday, November 4, 2020 @ 7pm ET the hosts of some of the leading adoptee…
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 episode020 – I Don’t Silence Julie Anymore
Michelle says growing up she felt very different from her adoptive family because she looked completely different from them. When she was a teen she embarked on a voyage to reunite with her birth mother, traveling back to the UK where she was born. Seeking some of the basic answers to her identity and acceptance by her biological…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode076 – What Would My Life Be Like In Korea?
Kim is a Korean born adoptee raised in an all-white community. She shared how she always pushed down her desire to search for her birth mother until the recent political climate brought out the true colors of her adoptive mother. I’ve heard stories of Asian adoptees having trouble making connections overseas, but Kim’s connection was quick and easy. But building…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode053 – Seeing The Life That Could Have Been
Meredith had enough adoptees around her growing up that adoption was no big deal. Yet, her parents never felt comfortable actually discussing adoption. After getting pregnant, and spurred on by her mother-in-law’s intuition that Meredith wanted answers, she started searching. When her social worker found her biological parents, they were married with children. Her reunion…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode065 – Two Years Too Late, Then I Was Shocked
Dana received her original birth certificate and when her husband looked up her birth mother’s name they found her obituary. It took her two years to find an address for her surviving aunt and a year to find the courage to write to her. Her Aunt gave Dana a name for the man who could be her…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode017 – He Is My Brother And I Will Find Him
Renee searched for her mother literally her whole life. But her search predated the internet so she frequented the library and scoured local high school year books. with hopes of finding someone she felt she was related to. When she located her biological mother she refused to share any information about Renee’s biological father and forbade Renee…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode013 – 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 episode155 – Adoptee Podcaster Perspectives, 2020 National Adoption Awareness Month
Adoptees have the ultimate voice about the adoption experience. Adoptee podcasters are offering fellow adoptees outlets for sharing their inner thoughts and deepest emotions about their adoption journeys — the happy and sad, incredible experiences and the awful outcomes. On Wednesday, November 4, 2020 @ 7pm ET the hosts of some of the leading adoptee…
Press the Play button to Listen to this episode