I know my parents were trying to protect me. But all their secrecy made me feel like something was wrong with me.
[Book Review] Lost Daughters
Parents of young girls can read Lost Daughters to explore how their daughter might feel as she travels through life as an adoptee.
[Book Review] Prison Baby
Jiang-Stein always knew that she was adopted, but only discovered that she was born in a prison at age 12.
“Should I Play the ‘Adoption Card’?”
I began to have second thoughts about sharing my story in application essays — just as it’s no one else’s business, it shouldn’t factor into a college’s decision to accept me.
Video: Open Adoptee Experiences
In this open adoption video, teen and young adult adoptees who grew up knowing their birth parents share their thoughts and experiences.
“Many Kinds of Love”
Being adopted, I have found, means being familiar with many different kinds of love, many varieties of connection. It’s a roller-coaster of sorts. There’s an immense amount of gratitude; yet an overarching sense of loss persists, and permeates every interaction, every decision, and every relationship.
“Journey to Calcutta”
Despite my parents’ urging, I had always rejected my Indian identity. At 21, I learned to embrace it.
[Book Excerpt] Trail of Crumbs: Hunger, Love, and the Search for Home
In this excerpt from her adoption memoir, Kim Sunée describes the hunger she experienced as a child, and how food helped her bond with her adoptive family.
Putting Your Feelings on Paper
Infertility, parenting after adoption, growing up in an adoptive family, relinquishing a child—all give rise to complex emotions. Learn about the innovative Therapeutic Writing model that’s helping many lay bare and make sense of their innermost thoughts.
“A Hunger for Words”
The elusive memory of a kindred spirit has steered me, over the years, toward the heart of my own story.
“Family by Choice”
One adoptive mother describes her dad’s decision to make her legally his daughter by stepparent adoption, and how it influenced her understanding of family.
“Three Little Words on My Adoption Day”
A decade of disappointing foster care placements made me doubt the two people who had taken me into their hearts.
“When My Birth Mom Was an Astronaut”
I looked for my birth mother everywhere. For a little while, I found her on the Space Shuttle.
“In Our Own Words”: Two Adoptees’ Stories
Stop wondering how your child feels about adoption and start listening to the many adult adoptees who are sharing their experiences.
“Did You Ever Mind It?”: On Race and Adoption
I tell prospective adoptive parents to take a good, hard look at their social circles, their neighborhoods, their churches, their communities and think about how those places and spaces will look and feel to their child.
“Where Did You Get Those Dimples?”
Even among same-race families physical differences can prompt curious questions. How did you handle it?
Are Adoptees Selfish For Wanting To Search?
Finding my birth family has never been an attempt to replace anyone else, but simply an effort to find myself, a desire my adoptive family understands.
“Prison Baby”
In this personal essay, one adoptee describes all the questions she wanted to ask her birth mother when she visited her birth country: a jail.
Dear Mom and Dad!
An adoptee’s letter to prospective parents lets them know what their children might be thinking.
“The Day I Joined a Forever Family”
A 10-year-old recalls the day a foster family became a forever family for him and his sister.