A Spouse and a Podcast Led This Adoptee to Reunion
S4, Ep. 12: Janet
Janet M was born in Virginia in the late 1970’s to a 16-year-old mother. At 6 weeks old she was placed via a closed adoption into a loving home with her parents and older adopted brother. She always knew she was adopted but it wasn’t a topic that was discussed openly or often in her family. Not knowing her origin story fueled her curiosity around the subject of pregnancy and birth. She became fascinated with childbirth and the beautiful relationship between new moms and their babies. She became a labor and delivery nurse in the year 2000 and has been helping new moms and babies ever since.
Janet always had a genuine curiosity about her biological family, especially her biological mother. But she never had the courage to pursue finding and connecting with any of them. It wasn’t until she was in her mid-forties that she started to “come out of the fog” by listening to podcasts about adoption, exploring adoptees on social media, and reading The Primal Wound. This past year for Christmas her husband bought her an ancestry DNA kit. The results revealed 4 close family member matches that led her to her biological mother and half-siblings. They reunited very recently and together are learning to navigate this tender new relationship. Janet lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband of 21 years, 3 teenagers and 2 dogs. She loves to travel, hike, and spend time with her family.
Also in this episode, Sarah and Louise discuss American Baby by Gabrielle Glaser.
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Reckoning with the Primal Wound Documentary
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