A comprehensive list of adoption resources including books, podcasts, search angels, organizations, and events.
EVENTS
If you know of an event you would like added to this list, email me at patricia@myadoptedlife.com.
PODCASTS
If you know of a podcast you would like added to this list, email me at patricia@myadoptedlife.com.
BOOKS
Adult Adoptees and Writing to Heal: Migrating Toward Wholeness
Adult Adoptees and Writing to Heal shares the framework and method of using writing as a practice for adult adoptees, therapists, teachers, and researchers interested in learning how to migrate and heal embodied trauma. It analyzes lived experience and the author’s own writing to develop a methodology for moving toward wholeness by writing and speaking the truth of internal adoptee experiences.
The Story You Need to Tell
A practical and inspiring guide to transformational personal storytelling, The Story You Need to Tell is the product of Sandra Marinella’s pioneering work with veterans and cancer patients, her years of teaching writing, and her research into its profound healing properties. Riveting true stories illustrate Marinella’s methods for understanding, telling, and editing personal stories in ways that foster resilience and renewal.
What My Bones Know: A Memoir of Healing from Complex Trauma
A searing memoir of reckoning and healing by acclaimed journalist Stephanie Foo, investigating the little-understood science behind complex PTSD and how it has shaped her life.
Hole In My Heart
In the days before Roe v. Wade, an ambitious young journalist, abandoned by her beau, leaves Michigan for a dream job on the city desk of a Rochester, New York newspaper. Burned once, she’s eager for love, but as the only Girl in the newsroom, she’s more concerned with finding allies and making friends.
When a new leading man appears, she recognizes a kindred spirit. Soon her bylined stories claim front-page space. However, when she becomes pregnant, she must switch her attention from deadlines to decisions.
With adoption on the horizon, she pushes her man to make a commitment. Sadly, he wants her, but not their daughter. Will Dusky ever find the little girl she longed to raise, and if she does, what will be the fallout from their years apart?
No Bad Parts
Discover an empowering new way of understanding your multifaceted mind – and healing the many parts that make you who you are.
The Primal Wound
The Primal Wound is a seminal work which revolutionizes the way we think about adoption. It describes and clarifies the effects of separating babies from their birth mothers as a primal loss which affects the relationships of the adopted person throughout life.
Adoption Therapy
A much-needed anthology addressing a variety of potential psychological and physiological concerns, Adoption Therapy, Perspectives from Clients and Clinicians on Processing and Healing Post-Adoption Issues is a must-read for adoptees, adoptive parents, first families, and vitally, mental health professionals.
The Journey from Abandonment to Healing
The fear of abandonment is one of our most primal fears, and deservedly so. Its pain is often overwhelming, and can leave its mark on the rest of your life. In the midst of the hurt, it’s hard to see an end to your feelings of rejection, shame, and betrayal.
Seven Core Issues in Adoption and Permanancy
Based on a hugely successful US model, the Seven Core Issues in Adoption is the first conceptual framework of its kind to offer a unifying lens that was inclusive of all individuals touched by the adoption experience.
When the Past is Present: Healing the emotional wounds that Sabotage our Relationships
The popular author of How to Be an Adult in Relationships reveals how past trauma can negatively impact our present-day relationships—and offers guidance on what to do about it
Healing the Child Within
Here, frontline physician and therapist Charles Whitfield describes the process of wounding that the Child Within (True Self) experiences and shows how to differentiate the True Self from the false self.
Coming Home to Self: The Adoped Child Grow up
Coming Home to Self is a book about becoming aware. It is written for all members of the adoption triad: adoptees, birth parents, and adoptive parents as well as those who are in relationship with them, including professionals.
If you know of a book you would like added to this list, email me at patricia@myadoptedlife.com.
SEARCH & SUPPORT
Search Angels & Organizations
- Angel Search Network: A dedicated team of search angels offering adoption search support and assistance. They have a wide network of resources and volunteers ready to help individuals in their search for birth parents, adoptees, and other relatives.
- Search Angels Worldwide: A global community of search angels providing support and guidance to those involved in adoption searches. They offer various services, including document research, DNA analysis, and emotional support throughout the search process.
- Adoption Reunion Registry Search Angels: This organization specializes in reuniting birth families and adoptees through their search angel network. They provide personalized assistance, access to databases, and expert guidance to navigate the complexities of adoption searches.
- DNA Detectives: A group of experienced genetic genealogists who offer their expertise in using DNA testing and analysis to uncover family connections. They specialize in adoption-related searches and can help individuals interpret DNA results and navigate genetic genealogy databases.
- Search Squad: Composed of volunteer search angels, Search Squad assists individuals in finding their birth families through research, public records, and social media platforms. They have a dedicated online community where individuals can seek guidance and support throughout their search journey.
- Find My Family Adoption Search Angels: A team of passionate search angels dedicated to helping adoptees, birth parents, and siblings find each other. They provide personalized search plans, access to databases, and emotional support during the search process.
- Adoption Search Consultants: A group of professional search consultants who specialize in adoption searches. They offer comprehensive search services, including record retrieval, genetic genealogy research, and expert advice on navigating adoption laws and regulations.
- Birth Parent Finder: A network of search angels with expertise in locating birth parents and facilitating reunions. They offer personalized search strategies, document retrieval, and emotional support for both adoptees and birth parents throughout the search process.
- Search Angels of Adoption: A nonprofit organization comprised of dedicated search angels who volunteer their time and expertise to assist individuals in finding their biological families. They provide guidance, research assistance, and emotional support to individuals searching for their roots.
- The Seeker’s Heart: A group of search angels committed to helping adoptees and birth families find each other. They offer a range of services, including record searches, DNA analysis, and personalized support throughout the search and reunion process.
“Who in the world am I? Ah, that’s the great puzzle.”
-Lewis Carroll, Alice in Wonderland
ORGANIZATIONS
Adoption Therapy
A much-needed anthology addressing a variety of potential psychological and physiological concerns, Adoption Therapy, Perspectives from Clients and Clinicians on Processing and Healing Post-Adoption Issues is a must-read for adoptees, adoptive parents, first families, and vitally, mental health professionals.
The Journey from Abandonment to Healing
The fear of abandonment is one of our most primal fears, and deservedly so. Its pain is often overwhelming, and can leave its mark on the rest of your life. In the midst of the hurt, it’s hard to see an end to your feelings of rejection, shame, and betrayal.
Seven Core Issues in Adoption and Permanancy
Based on a hugely successful US model, the Seven Core Issues in Adoption is the first conceptual framework of its kind to offer a unifying lens that was inclusive of all individuals touched by the adoption experience.
When the Past is Present: Healing the emotional wounds that Sabotage our Relationships
The popular author of How to Be an Adult in Relationships reveals how past trauma can negatively impact our present-day relationships—and offers guidance on what to do about it
Healing the Child Within
Here, frontline physician and therapist Charles Whitfield describes the process of wounding that the Child Within (True Self) experiences and shows how to differentiate the True Self from the false self.
Coming Home to Self: The Adoped Child Grow up
Coming Home to Self is a book about becoming aware. It is written for all members of the adoption triad: adoptees, birth parents, and adoptive parents as well as those who are in relationship with them, including professionals.
If you know of an organization you would like added to this list, email me at patricia@myadoptedlife.com.
