Adoptees On

Shannon Peck, a conceptual artist, shares her story. Adopted at 11 days old, she had an "idyllic childhood" and yet something was amiss in her life. In her forties, Shannon discovered attachment theory and began to realize the loss she had first experienced at birth. "Your Daughter is in Good Hands" is an exhibit documenting Shannon's "search for her true identity." Cover photo and title provided...

This is a special episode where I bring you some recordings I made when attending the Concerned United Birthparents Retreat in Carlsbad, CA. I talked with adoptees, first mothers, and a grandmother of loss. We discuss what they learned at the retreat, and what they wish society knew about adoption. If you'd like to hear some of my reporting directly from the event, check out the Adoptees On Facebo...

Today we discuss what happens when you search for your origins and find out you're too late. Tracy also shares some painful stories about what her childhood experience of growing up with a narcissistic mother was like. Tracy explains her inspiration and the symbolism behind the broken heart adoption pendant. We wrap up with a great discussion about fostering creativity in ourselves and how that ca...

Derek Frank tells his story about how the movie Philomena brought his desire, to know where he came from, to the surface. We talk about his reunion with his birth father and siblings and what's holding him back from connecting with his birth mother. We tackle some deep topics including feeling like "culturally cousins" instead of like siblings, grief, and the importance of art therapy. Ridghaus (f...

Ridghaus shares about relinquishing a son at age 19, and then moving ahead to age 35, he is surprised to learn he too is adopted. We discuss the crisis of identity caused by late discovery and how he managed to establish and ground himself during a two-year healing period. Ridghaus also shares an intimate conversation between himself and his son, processing adoption loss and what he would do if he...

Jessenia Parmer of I Am Adopted shares her incredible journey from being abandoned as a baby, her challenges within her adoptive family, to becoming an advocate and voice for adoptees. She is incredibly candid about her personal adoption trauma experiences which include abuse, identity issues, and suicide attempts. As a Christian, Jessenia is open with her faith yet struggles with how the church p...

Lesli and I answer a listener question from Kate: How do we talk to significant others or friends about your feelings about being adopted? Any advice on how to teach a non-adopted partner or friend to be an ally?   Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptees On: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Monthly Newsletter Send a Note or Record a Voicemail   Sub...

Liz Latty is a powerful writer, adoptee advocate, and activist. She shares her story with us and we talk a lot about reunion with our Dads and why we think first fathers often don't even get a second thought. We dive deep into the complexities of adoption, sexuality, and the seemingly oh-so-common secondary rejection. Liz is incredibly candid about how concerned she was about coming out to her eva...

Pamela Cordano, MFT teaches us why so many adoptees struggle with perfectionism. Even better… she gives us three practical tools we can use to work on our perfectionistic ways.    Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptees On: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Monthly Newsletter Send a Note or Record a Voicemail   Subscribe Apple Podcasts | Google Play...

Can you really be adopted back into your family of origin? I get to introduce you to Jemma Sullivan, and she shares some incredibly painful realities of having a narcissistic adoptive parent, it's not all gloom and doom though - I promise you need to wait to hear what happens at the beginning of Jemma's new chapter with her first mother.    Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitt...

Lesli A. Johnson, MFT answers a listener question about finding our identity. "Lesli kept saying it was important to know your narrative as a way to heal trauma. I don't know mine. I don't know really anything about how I came into the world, I don't even know who my father is. Half of my ancestry is a big black hole. And society tells me to be grateful for that. How do we move forward without kno...

If you are in reunion or are anticipating one shortly… this episode is for you. Marni Hall shares her story and walks us through three guiding principles that she has for a successful reunion, and they are so helpful.    Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptees On: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Monthly Newsletter Send a Note or Record a Voicemail...

Haley talks about how to find an adoption-competent therapist. She gives you five questions to ask and multiple tips for finding that perfect fit.    Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptees On: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Monthly Newsletter Send a Note or Record a Voicemail   Subscribe Apple Podcasts | Google Play | iHeart Radio | Spotify | St...

Rebekah Henson shares her story of growing up as an only child, then discovering she was one of seven biological siblings.  If this sounds at all familiar, I actually interviewed Rebekah's older sister Mary Anna King on season one, episode 7 . Rebekah is incredibly open with me about the challenges of such a complex reunion. We also dish on all the awkward and completely inappropriate things peopl...

Katie Jae Naftzger, LICSW discusses why adoptees can hold themselves back from becoming successful. Why do we feel like we're not worth that much, that we don't have value to bring to the table? How can we manage our insecurity?   Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptees On: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Monthly Newsletter Send a Note or Record a...

Mariette Williams tells us about her experiences as a Haitian adoptee growing up in Vancouver, Canada, and finding out that her adoption was non-consensual. We touch on some things that transracial adoptees may struggle with and Mariette gives us her perspective on adoption reform.   Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptees On: Twitter | Instagram...

Is adoption really as traumatic as some people say it is? Lesli A. Johnson, MFT teaches us about what the word trauma means and confirms that indeed a trauma occurs when an infant, a baby, a child is separated from their mother. There's even brain science to prove it! The process of separating a baby from its mother is coded in the nervous system as traumatic for both the mother and the baby. We c...

An in-depth discussion with a first mother and daughter (Maret Headley and Erica Curry VanEe) that is one of the most touching and intimate views I've ever had of a reunion. They were extraordinarily candid with me about what's been lost because of adoption. Three adoptees (Ruth Rawlin Tacoma, Lisa Floyd, and Michelle Madden) tell me, "what do you really think about adoption?", "what would you say...

Mike McDonald, the host of The Rambler podcast, tells us about his experiences as a Korean adoptee, his work with the Also Known As Teen/Youth Mentorship Program and why he did DNA testing before he got married. Mike teaches us about the extensive Korean adoption program and tells us that there are over 200,000 Korean adoptees worldwide.   Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitte...

Pamela Cordano, MFT and I discuss anger. What is it and why are so many adoptees accused of being "angry adoptees"? We discuss the reasons we have for legitimately being angry. Pamela teaches us about different types of anger and gives us some practical exercises to work on. I find out I've been engaging in Spiritual Bypass, and why that is so toxic. Anger is a powerful emotion, let's harness it t...

Lesli A. Johnson, MFT answers the question, "How do I tell my adoptive parents I'm searching for my biological family". An adoptee's desire to search is not a rejection of their biological parents. It's a natural, normal desire to want to know your biology, to know the circumstances of your birth, and to see someone who resembles you. Lots of great takeaways in this episode!   Full Show Notes Here...

Keith Sciarillo is a late discovery adoptee. His cousin accidentally told him he was adopted when Keith was 33 years old. No one would confirm this for Keith, so he went on to search and find out for himself. We talk about how almost everyone in Keith's extended family knew and just assumed Keith knew too.   Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptee...

We talk with Katie Jae Naftzger, LICSW about what to do when you don't find answers at the end of your search. Katie shares about her trips back to Korea to search and her two moments of clarity during her second trip. One while hearing babies cry all night long at the adoption agency and another when a birthmother asks her, "What's the hardest part about being adopted?". We've got four steps to f...

Anne Heffron (author of You Don't Look Adopted) goes deep into all kinds of things in her story, including failures that she attributes to adoption trauma, things she's working on to find healing, what "write or die" means to her, and we find a way to laugh a lot.    Full Show Notes Here   Connect With Us Haley Radke: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Adoptees On: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Month...

We talk with Melissa K. Nicholson, LMSW about adoptee suicide (sometimes in a graphic manner and so please listen at your discretion). An incredibly important topic as adoptees are at a greater risk for suicide than the general population. We talk about some warning signs, how to get help, how we can intervene and also therapies that are beneficial for adoptees who may struggle with suicidal ideat...