Brandi, who called me from myrtle Beach, South Carolina, is an inquisitive person adopted in to a family with a history of scholars, which is rare for a black family in the south.  DNA led Brandi to a cousin who was determined to help her figure out their biological connection and which of two men were her birth father.  Coincidentally Brandi studied the music of a uniquely east coast southern diaspora of African people, only to learn she was studying the music of her own roots. This is Brandi's journey.  Support this podcast

Who Am I Really?

144 – Gullah Girl

When Susan, from Irving, Texas, found her natural mother, she learned she was conceived in transit when two young lives collided, then never saw one another again.  Her birth mother's life seemed too chaotic the women to make a deeper connection. The woman ended things abruptly when Susan didn't behave the way she wanted.  Susans's paternal connection, while a complete surprise, was filled with joy and acceptance for a father who needed to fill a void, and a daughter who craved the same.  This is Susan's journey.  Support this podcast

143 - He Really Stepped Up

David, and his birth mother Margaret's story of adoption relinquishment, lives lived apart but close to one another, and their brief emotional reunion is told in the book, "American Baby", written by New York Times Best Selling Author, Gabrielle Glaser.  Gabrielle first met David while he was on kidney dialysis awaiting a transplant where he shared that he hoped he would find his birth mother one day. In reunion, David learned that he had always been loved, and his birth parents never forgot about him.  Gabrielle share's David's journey.  Support this podcast

142 - "American Baby", Gabrielle Glaser

Gloria called me from Texas where she grew up with Mexican parents. In younger days she tried to find the ways she looked like her family. In adulthood, following the whim of some co-workers, Gloria did a DNA test naive to what it could possibly reveal. In a matter of months she was plunged into the deep end as a late discovery adoptee. She began drinking to cope, accidentally pushed away her paternal sister, but managed to hang onto her relationship with her biological mother. This is Gloria's journey. Support this podcast

141 - That Wasn't The Real Me

Darryl, from Australia, admits he had a challenging childhood from his relationship with his adoptive father, to their family's need to move around a lot because they were so poor, and his experience learning he is a late discovery adoptee. Darryl describes himself as a person for whom the truth is very important, so as an adult he discharged his adoption setting his personal record straight. This is Darryl's journey. Support this podcast

140 - I Wanted To Be My True Self

Wendy, from Minnesota, had a lot of information about her natural mother and assumed the woman would want to know her, but that wasn't the case. They corresponded once, solely for her natural mother to share clinical information, then the door closed. Wendy said finding her paternal sister Jen, a woman she could have met years earlier at church, has been a redemptive blessing that's brought Wendy peace. This is Wendy's journey.  Support this podcast

139 -A Sense Of Peace And Calm

Marilyn called me from Southeast Tennessee. When she met her natural mother, she finally learned the story of what the woman had been through as the pieces of 50 years of history returned to her memory. Maryilyn admits she didn't have a huge void to fill in seeking reunion but that being in reunion has opened up closeness with her natural mother that some of her closest friends have waited years to achieve. Listen at the end for the cute story of how her son met his grandmother for the first time right at his own school, you're gonna love it. This is Marilyn's journey. Support this podcast

138 - She Never Thought She Would See Me Again

Nicole was adopted into a military family, the structure of which ran against her freewheeling nature. She’s an interracial woman with interracial adopted parents, so they looked like a natural family. In reunion, Nicole is facing secondary rejection from her birth mother, but her maternal grandparents and uncle have accepted her with open arms. She’s learned that her birth father wanted to keep her, and her paternal family feels so natural, Nicole feels like she’s found her tribe. Read Full TranscriptNicole:                         00:05               I feel like I’ve found my tribe. These are, these are the people that like I fit. I feel like I’ve found peace within myself because it’s not who am I really? It’s it’s I am me and I’m who I’m always supposed to have been. It was just put in a different family. Voices:                        00:30               Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Damon:                       00:42               This is who am I really a podcast about adoptees that have located and connected with their biological family members. I’m Damon Davis, and on today’s show is Nicole. She called me from the terrible rush hour traffic in downtown Atlanta, Georgia. She was raised in the south, but her mixed racial heritage partially originates from Germany by way of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state we’re in adoptees. Legal rights to obtain their original birth information are extremely prohibitive in reunion. She’s exercising patience with her birth mother as she waits to be revealed to her maternal siblings, but she’s also surrounded by love and acceptance by other family members on both sides. This is Nicole’s journey. Damon:                       01:30               Nicole was born in Virginia, adopted after three months in foster care. She is a woman of mixed race and she was adopted into a mixed race family. Her mother is white from Germany, her father is African American from Boston, and she grew up in a military family. Nicole:                         01:46               You know, growing up it was, it was pretty normal. Adoption was like, you know, I was a typical day, you know, in the fog adoptee. That makes me special. And it was one of those things where, I mean, it was it really necessary to talk about, you know, it was, I’m adopted and that’s what it is. And you know, here’s our family. Damon:                       02:09               Did you have siblings? Nicole:                         02:10               No, I’m an only child. So my parents actually adopted me when they were both in their late thirties. Um,... Support this podcast

058 – I Feel Like I’ve Found My Tribe

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 mother, her trip was going great, until the neighbor came over and asked who Michelle was. What happened next became a pivotal moment in Michelle’s quest to discover herself. But the acceptance and love that Michelle was looking for were still out there and they came from a person that she didn’t even know existed. She located her half brother in Spain, and was able to he relay the final emotions of their dying father, bringing some peace to Michelle. The post http://www.whoamireallypodcast.com/020-dont-silence-julie-anymore/ (020 – I Don’t Silence Julie Anymore) appeared first on http://www.whoamireallypodcast.com (Who Am I...Really? Podcast). Michelle (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/UBg0WpOv0O2LEyMUCI-bJX26RZSx1b7pqn1aAO5qsBNguHSrS7f9zmooi2FBkfnRVNdL8tLhg6-c8PDuNETVFh71474?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=3.41 (00:03)): And climbed back as a teen. I just remembered, I don't know how to do this, but I know that these people aren't the ones to give me my truth and I'm either gonna find it myself or I'm gonna die not knowing, and I wasn't willing to live a life not knowing. Voices (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/UBg0WpOv0O2LEyMUCI-bJX26RZSx1b7pqn1aAO5qsBNguHSrS7f9zmooi2FBkfnRVNdL8tLhg6-c8PDuNETVFh71474?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=25.72 (00:25)): Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Damon (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/UBg0WpOv0O2LEyMUCI-bJX26RZSx1b7pqn1aAO5qsBNguHSrS7f9zmooi2FBkfnRVNdL8tLhg6-c8PDuNETVFh71474?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=37.11 (00:37)): This is Who Am I Really? A podcast about adoptees that have located and connected with their biological family members. I'm Damon Davis, and today you're going to meet Michelle. She told me she grew up feeling very different from her adoptive family because she looked completely different from them. Michelle reunited with her birth mother as a teenager traveling back to the United Kingdom where she was born. She was seeking some basic answers to her identity and acceptance by her biological mother. Things were going great for them until the neighbor came over and asked who Michelle was. It became a pivotal moment in Michelle's quest to discover herself. But the acceptance and love that Michelle was looking for was still out there and it came from a person that she didn't even know existed. I asked Michelle about her journey and what adoption was like for her growing up. Michelle starts us off with the events that brought her into this world. Her parents weren't able to keep her. So Michelle was placed in foster care and it was there even in those early days where people placed judgment about her existence. Michelle (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/UBg0WpOv0O2LEyMUCI-bJX26RZSx1b7pqn1aAO5qsBNguHSrS7f9zmooi2FBkfnRVNdL8tLhg6-c8PDuNETVFh71474?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=99.63 (01:39)): Well, I was born in England. I go back to that because it's really part of the whole journey of identity for me. Uh, I was born in England. Mother was British, father was Spanish. Um, I was a product of their affair. My mother at the time was married. She had three children and my father was single, a bachelor. They had an affair. I was the product of that and it was quite a scandal actually at the time. And I was secreted away into foster care. My birth father said he didn't want to be a father, didn't want to raise me. Birth mother had a choice to make, you know, she couldn't keep me. And she looked to keep her family intact with her husband and her three children. In foster care in the U K I was labeled because of the circumstances around me. You know, it was labeled in my foster records, illegitimate dark,... Support this podcast

020 – I Don’t Silence Julie Anymore

Stephanie grew up in a very wealthy family in South Carolina and you’ll hear discuss the family’s fortune, but pause before you pass judgment on how easy life must have been. Her story is filled with manipulative behavior, malicious intentions, and a foundation created from lies. You’ll also hear Stephanie’s intelligence and tenacity to get her through the tough times as she learned the truth about her adopted family’s feelings towards her, the story of how she arrived in her aunt’s care, and the tough road to connect with her sister. Read Full TranscriptDamon:                       00:04               I’m going to say at the time I really didn’t want to meet her. My life was pretty torn up as it was, but the reason I said yes is I thought, what if this is the only chance I have? What if? What if this is it? There’s no more chances. Voices:                        00:24               Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Damon:                       00:36               This is who am I really a podcast about adoptees that have located and connected with their biological family members. I’m Damon Davis, and on today’s show is Stephanie. She called me from Charleston, South Carolina. Stephanie grew up in a very wealthy family and you’ll hear her talk about the family’s fortune, the pause before you pass judgement on how easy life must have been. Her story is filled with manipulative behavior, malicious intentions, and a foundation created from lies. But you’ll also hear Stephanie’s intelligence and tenacity to get through the tough times as she learned the truth about her adopted families, feelings towards her, the story of how she arrived in her aunt’s care and the tough road to connect with her sister. This is Stephanie’s journey. Stephanie was born in upstate South Carolina in her adopted family. She was the oldest child and all of her siblings, except for her half brother are adopted. Adoption was part of their lives with adoption children’s books around that were red from time to time, but it wasn’t an open topic of discussion. In fact, quite the opposite. Stephanie:                   01:48               My parents did not like talking about my adoption and it wasn’t that they ever told me you’re not allowed to ask any questions, but when I would start speaking about it, the only way I’ve known to describe it is it is like this thunderstorm suddenly came over my mother’s head and just the entire mood just changed. And I knew I was treading on thin ice. I was told the same kind of background stories as a kid. I was told by my aunt, my father’s sister, that um The way I came into the family is she had a friend who worked for social services and she went by one day to have lunch with her and there was this little child, this toddler sitting in a chair. And, um, she just said she thought I was so beautiful and her friends that I just have to finish up here before we go. I’m trying to find a home for this child, a temporary home. And um, my aunt said that she just immediately said, oh, well I’ll take her home with me. And that’s how I ended up with her.... Support this podcast

061 – I Know They May Not Love Me…

Serena told me she had a similar experience to what a lot of adoptees feel, even though she grew up with her birth mother. I’m always talking about empathizing with others, so I wanted to hear her story. Serena told me about her birth on a Native American reservation in Arizona then her mother moving away. She was adopted by her father when he married her mother, but Serena never knew her biological father. When her paternal family called to say her birth father was ill, she was too stunned to act quickly, so she only met his relatives at his chaotic funeral. Take a moment to listen to the parallels between what I’ll call Serena’s “adoption adjacent” experience and those of other adoptees. Read Full TranscriptSerena:                        https://www.temi.com/editor/t/HRAiDFqI20tet-RS7zClkGhoHkl-4jdVNqytGeleMaouVu7H7kuVbL8ctnYP8nQNMiBGMxb-HNN3Qn29eFOcsyntxd0?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=2.73 (00:02)               I don’t think I recognized the severity of his sickness. I didn’t… At that age, you still think you’re invincible and I had never had anyone that was even close to me die. So to have, you know, these people who are part of my paternal family, but I’ve never, I’ve never known call me and sort of dropped this sort of bomb. I think I just kind of froze. Voices:                        https://www.temi.com/editor/t/HRAiDFqI20tet-RS7zClkGhoHkl-4jdVNqytGeleMaouVu7H7kuVbL8ctnYP8nQNMiBGMxb-HNN3Qn29eFOcsyntxd0?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=35.91 (00:35)               Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I in mind? Damon:                       https://www.temi.com/editor/t/HRAiDFqI20tet-RS7zClkGhoHkl-4jdVNqytGeleMaouVu7H7kuVbL8ctnYP8nQNMiBGMxb-HNN3Qn29eFOcsyntxd0?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=47.2 (00:47)               This is who am I really a podcast about adoptees that have located and connected with their biological family members. I’m Damon Davis, and on today’s show is Serena. She called me from Virginia shortly after I met her at the Maryland Pod-casters Association meetup. She told me she had a similar experience to what a lot of adoptees feel, even though she grew up with her birth mother. I’m always thinking about empathizing with others. So I wanted to hear her story. Serena told me about her birth on a native American reservation in Arizona. Then her mother moving away, she was adopted by her father when he married her mother, but Serena never knew her biological father. When her paternal family call to say her birth father was ill, she was too stunned to act quickly, so she only met his relatives at a chaotic funeral. Take a moment to listen to the parallels between what I’ll call Serena’s adoption adjacent experience and those of other adoptees. This is Serena’s as journey. Damon:                       https://www.temi.com/editor/t/HRAiDFqI20tet-RS7zClkGhoHkl-4jdVNqytGeleMaouVu7H7kuVbL8ctnYP8nQNMiBGMxb-HNN3Qn29eFOcsyntxd0?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=109.97 (01:49)               Serena was born on the Navajo reservation in Fort Defiance, Arizona, but her mother was only 18 at the time living with a friend because her own mother and grandmother had moved... Support this podcast

074 – I Feel Some Of It Too

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 has filled her with mixed emotions because she’s thankful for the life she’s led but’s she’s seen the family photos for the life that could have been. The post 053 – Seeing The Life That Could Have Been appeared first on Who Am I...Really? Podcast. Meredith (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/TEnupnvC1ae7EsW7lFBEtwAGtoCg40swyNOPeaXYDJebeTHk4c1XMVnJCSDgxAWDc6oqFAluoK9aXFNnHtNRtpYi368?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=3.17 (00:03)): In the beginning. I, I didn't set boundaries for myself, for the relationship with them, for, I didn't give myself time to feel anything. I think I was, you know, adoptees are people pleasers and that's what I was being. And I was so concerned about what everyone else was feeling. And I don't, I didn't recognize what I was going through. And I think maybe that's why I struggle a little bit more now with my emotions. Damon (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/TEnupnvC1ae7EsW7lFBEtwAGtoCg40swyNOPeaXYDJebeTHk4c1XMVnJCSDgxAWDc6oqFAluoK9aXFNnHtNRtpYi368?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=35.84 (00:35)): Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? This is who am I really a podcast about adoptees that have located and connected with their biological family members. I'm Damon Davis and on today's show is Meredith. She called me from Northern Virginia, but her story takes place up North in a small town in Massachusetts. There, she felt loved and adoption was no big deal growing up because there were adoptees around her and life was good. Her reunion happened quickly, but it was transformative for her when she learned her biological parents were together and her adopted parents felt betrayed. This is Meredith's journey. Meredith grew up in a quaint little town in Western Massachusetts. She said she doesn't remember even being told, but she always knew she was adopted. She also had an older sister, also adopted, but unrelated to herself, coincidentally Meredith's childhood best friend who lived right across the street was also an adoptee. So Meredith (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/TEnupnvC1ae7EsW7lFBEtwAGtoCg40swyNOPeaXYDJebeTHk4c1XMVnJCSDgxAWDc6oqFAluoK9aXFNnHtNRtpYi368?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=109.34 (01:49)): It just felt very normal to me. And then actually the day that I was adopted, I was adopted a month after I was born. Uh, we celebrate that as my special day. And, um, my mom always would make cupcakes for the class at school. Um, so it was kind of like a second birthday for me. Damon (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/TEnupnvC1ae7EsW7lFBEtwAGtoCg40swyNOPeaXYDJebeTHk4c1XMVnJCSDgxAWDc6oqFAluoK9aXFNnHtNRtpYi368?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=130.7 (02:10)): That is so cool Meredith (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/TEnupnvC1ae7EsW7lFBEtwAGtoCg40swyNOPeaXYDJebeTHk4c1XMVnJCSDgxAWDc6oqFAluoK9aXFNnHtNRtpYi368?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=130.7 (02:10)): Yeah. And we still, you know, she'll send me a special day card every year, which I still get. So yeah, it's always just been something that made me feel unique. Damon (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/TEnupnvC1ae7EsW7lFBEtwAGtoCg40swyNOPeaXYDJebeTHk4c1XMVnJCSDgxAWDc6oqFAluoK9aXFNnHtNRtpYi368?loadFrom=SharedLink&ts=141.02 (02:21)): Both sisters got birthday and special day celebrations and the girls were made to feel cherished and loved Meredith said she always had questions about adoption, but when she was younger, sometimes she would get a little pushback from her mother when she broached the topic. So she usually didn't Meredith... Support this podcast

053 – Seeing The Life That Could Have Been

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 adoption which satisfied some her curiosities and sparked new ones that she wanted answers to. Thanks to some clever sleuthing her biological mother was very easy to locate. Jennifer’s adopted father had calculated who her mother likely was and pinpointed where she probably lived based on some of the information they already had. But what began as a warm introduction turned cold when Jennifer was forced to repeatedly ask her biological mother for identifying information about her biological father. When she finally learned who he was, and traced his family to their home in Florida, she learned that her deepest connection on this journey was with the father she never knew. The post http://www.whoamireallypodcast.com/013-jennifer-b/ (013 – It Wasn’t That He Didn’t Care, He Cared Too Much) appeared first on http://www.whoamireallypodcast.com (Who Am I...Really? Podcast). Jen (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/ReffC6RcBtGv254ahi9sdEM5eYGCn85PlzerF2PPDn9uYaueHQ9n11Zh_MZcizW9mYRntqMNuPpdDycvRjIWKcWqsm8?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=1.98 (00:01)): Basically every question that I had ever had was, you know like did they want me? Do they care about me? There was no doubt that I had been lied to and my entire world suddenly flipped because my mother who had told me that that they didn't want me, they wanted nothing to do with me and all this other kind of stuff was now a lie. Voices (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/ReffC6RcBtGv254ahi9sdEM5eYGCn85PlzerF2PPDn9uYaueHQ9n11Zh_MZcizW9mYRntqMNuPpdDycvRjIWKcWqsm8?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=27.78 (00:27)): Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Damon (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/ReffC6RcBtGv254ahi9sdEM5eYGCn85PlzerF2PPDn9uYaueHQ9n11Zh_MZcizW9mYRntqMNuPpdDycvRjIWKcWqsm8?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=39.05 (00:39)): This is Who Am I Really, a podcast about adoptees that have located and connected with their biological family members. Hey, it's Damon and today I spoke with Jen. She's a Marylander just like me and in her journey she learned that her biological family lived just one County away from her growing up. She's a rare case for adoptees because she was given a really comprehensive package of information about her adoption, including a letter written to her from her birth mother. Her biological mother was very easy to find and connect with thanks to her adoptive father's ability to calculate and pinpoint some of Jen's family based on the information they already had. But what began as a warm introduction turned cold when Jen persistently asked her biological mother for identifying information about her biological father. Here's Jen's journey. Damon (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/ReffC6RcBtGv254ahi9sdEM5eYGCn85PlzerF2PPDn9uYaueHQ9n11Zh_MZcizW9mYRntqMNuPpdDycvRjIWKcWqsm8?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=101.24 (01:41)): Jennifer says she had a pretty typical middleclass upbringing, three kids and a dog. And the topic of adoption was always open for discussion at their house. Jen (https://www.temi.com/editor/t/ReffC6RcBtGv254ahi9sdEM5eYGCn85PlzerF2PPDn9uYaueHQ9n11Zh_MZcizW9mYRntqMNuPpdDycvRjIWKcWqsm8?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=109.66 (01:49)): I was adopted at two months old and was the first in the adoptive parents family. They had tried for 10 years to have a child and just couldn't. So they went through Catholic charities and you know, ended up with me and when I was about 22 months old, they adopted two twin boys. So there was none of that conflict of biological mixed with adoption or anything like that. It was just strictly all adoption. So I had younger twin brothers, which was definitely an experience in Support this podcast

013 – It Wasn’t That He Didn’t Care, He Cared Too Much

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 than about who their children were in their uniqueness. Ann sought out her birth mother, but found her maternal grandmother instead. The woman’s receptivity to Ann’s return seemed to be a good sign but ended with secondary rejection. There has only been one cousin who has accepted Ann into her life, and that’s because she’s distanced herself from the family too. Read Full TranscriptAnn:                            https://www.temi.com/editor/t/sYi3sdNcQ6mcMWNb_tADeTQkKwQ0qGcbxveIDqw9VHBdwlXr8R9aOaqbchZyv7u2SuXaA7qmCRNiyCXRgL1zFHabw4k?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=4.4 (00:04)               If that was her, if that was your upbringing, and then all of a sudden union happens in Georgetown poor thing. she gets shuttled off to a home for unwed mother that I’ve also researched and it just looks almost slave like, so yeah, I have a whole lot more empathy and compassion and I really feel for the fact that she had such a societal burden to bear, Damon:                       https://www.temi.com/editor/t/sYi3sdNcQ6mcMWNb_tADeTQkKwQ0qGcbxveIDqw9VHBdwlXr8R9aOaqbchZyv7u2SuXaA7qmCRNiyCXRgL1zFHabw4k?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=35.92 (00:35)               who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I? Who am I in mind? Damon:                       https://www.temi.com/editor/t/sYi3sdNcQ6mcMWNb_tADeTQkKwQ0qGcbxveIDqw9VHBdwlXr8R9aOaqbchZyv7u2SuXaA7qmCRNiyCXRgL1zFHabw4k?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=47.21 (00:47)               This is who am I really a podcast about adoptees that have located and connected with their biological family members. I’m Damon Davis and on Today’s show is Ann she lives in West Virginia. Recalling her early family life. She 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 into their home life. Ann sought out her birth mother, but found her maternal grandmother instead. The woman’s receptivity to Ann’s return seem to be a good sign, but ended with secondary rejection. There has only been one cousin who has accepted Ann into her life and that’s because she’s distanced herself from the family too. This is Ann’s journey Damon:                       https://www.temi.com/editor/t/sYi3sdNcQ6mcMWNb_tADeTQkKwQ0qGcbxveIDqw9VHBdwlXr8R9aOaqbchZyv7u2SuXaA7qmCRNiyCXRgL1zFHabw4k?loadFrom=DocumentDeeplink&ts=99.461 (01:39)               Ann said she learned she was adopted when she was four years old. Her friend Jenny was at her house when Ann’s mother decided to tell her that she was adopted, but Jenny was not. Ann’s mom neglected to clearly explain that Ann was not born from her own womb, so Ann thought that her mother was saying the reverse was true. She thought Jenny was not born from her mother’s womb. Ann and her sister, also an adoptee who is a Support this podcast

072 – Amazing Intuition, One Cousin Connection

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 after a bitter divorce left him and his adopted siblings abused. Thankfully James’s wife, an excellent investigator found his birth parents and helped initiate meaningful reunions that allowed James to express forgiveness and find belonging. Jame's book, "The Miracle" is available here: https://amzn.to/3kMYSxV (https://amzn.to/3kMYSxV) The post http://www.whoamireallypodcast.com/097-you-gotta-forgive/ (097 – You Gotta Forgive) appeared first on http://www.whoamireallypodcast.com (Who Am I...Really? Podcast). Support this podcast

097 – You Gotta Forgive

Adoptees telling their stories of life in adoption, the search for their birth family, and how their reunion attempt turned out. Stories that make you laugh, cry, or simply say "wow". This podcast has two purposes: 1) To help you explore your own feelings about your adoption, accept your desire to try to understand your own personal history, and decide for yourself whether a search for reunification with your biological relatives is right for you. It will help you understand how others have dealt with issues related to protecting the feelings of their adopted families who may be supportive of your search, or question your motives and present challenges. 2) For non-adoptees, this podcast will help you understand some of what is in the minds of your friends, family members, or others who are adopted, but you didn’t know if you should ask some of the questions that will be answered here. The stories will make you smile or bring you to tears, but they’re all true as told by the people who lived them. In them, I hope you’ll find something that inspires you, validates your feelings about wanting to search, or motivates you to have the strength along your journey to learn “Who Am I Really?”

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Who Am I Really?

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