Home
Categories
EXPLORE
True Crime
Comedy
Business
Society & Culture
History
Sports
Health & Fitness
About Us
Contact Us
Copyright
© 2024 PodJoint
00:00 / 00:00
Sign in

or

Don't have an account?
Sign up
Forgot password
https://is1-ssl.mzstatic.com/image/thumb/Podcasts211/v4/ad/c1/9d/adc19d32-8312-0b14-b4d1-d082b8a0b0c3/mza_16014735268921027392.jpg/600x600bb.jpg
Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Louise Browne & Sarah Reinhardt
190 episodes
10 hours ago
Two adult adoptees, Sarah Reinhardt and Louise Browne, delve into all things adoption - from their perspectives as adult adoptees. Each season Sarah and Louise recap a chapter from a book centered on adoption and then interview a guest. Sarah and Louise come out of the 'fog' in real-time through Seasons One and Two and are advocating for change in the adoption industry. They want to give voice to all adoptees. Adoptee stories are needed to reframe the narrative around adoption.Sarah and Louise, two former business partners who had a successful ice cream truck in Los Angeles, team up again - this time in frank and honest conversations about all things adoption from the adoptee perspective. Both were adopted shortly after birth, but they had very different experiences. These will be intimate conversations, but also fun - because Sarah and Louise know how to lighten things up and have a good time. They also have an uncanny ability to get to the heart of a subject with anyone who crosses their path - so conversations will take many turns.
Show more...
Parenting
Personal Journals,
Kids & Family,
Society & Culture
RSS
All content for Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories is the property of Louise Browne & Sarah Reinhardt and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.
Two adult adoptees, Sarah Reinhardt and Louise Browne, delve into all things adoption - from their perspectives as adult adoptees. Each season Sarah and Louise recap a chapter from a book centered on adoption and then interview a guest. Sarah and Louise come out of the 'fog' in real-time through Seasons One and Two and are advocating for change in the adoption industry. They want to give voice to all adoptees. Adoptee stories are needed to reframe the narrative around adoption.Sarah and Louise, two former business partners who had a successful ice cream truck in Los Angeles, team up again - this time in frank and honest conversations about all things adoption from the adoptee perspective. Both were adopted shortly after birth, but they had very different experiences. These will be intimate conversations, but also fun - because Sarah and Louise know how to lighten things up and have a good time. They also have an uncanny ability to get to the heart of a subject with anyone who crosses their path - so conversations will take many turns.
Show more...
Parenting
Personal Journals,
Kids & Family,
Society & Culture
Episodes (20/190)
Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Stephanie: Breaking Silence, Building Connection
Stephanie was adopted shortly after birth into a loving family whose early losses profoundly shaped her empathy and understanding of belonging. Now a family law attorney and mother of two, she advocates for children and families while navigating her own meaningful reunion with her birth mother and half-brothers.
Show more...
10 hours ago
57 minutes 16 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Doug: Digging for Truth, Finding Belonging
Douglas Shaver, adopted shortly after birth, spent his youth navigating questions of identity that were later shaped by his experiences living in Saudi Arabia, where he developed a deep appreciation for different cultures. His lifelong exploration of belonging and adoption-related trauma ultimately guided him toward a career in archaeology and a commitment to understanding human relationships, both personally and professionally.
Show more...
1 week ago
1 hour 4 minutes 1 second

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Elena: Through Adopted Eyes
Elena S. Hall is a Russian adoptee, author, and social worker who uses her platform Through Adopted Eyes to bring honesty, faith, and empathy to adoption conversations. Through her books and advocacy, she invites others to see adoption in all its complexity-both the joy and the grief.
Show more...
2 weeks ago
39 minutes 27 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Charlotte: From Secrets to Self
Charlotte Angeles was adopted at birth in Pasadena, California, and always knew her beginnings held unanswered questions. After becoming a mother herself, she began uncovering her biological roots-finding family, loss, and ultimately, a deeper sense of identity.
Show more...
3 weeks ago
55 minutes 45 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Kim: Adoption and the Power of Story
Award-winning author and journalist Kim Orendor, adopted at three months old, shares her personal story through her writing, including her young adult novel To Whom It May Concern, which explores adoption and won the NextGen INDIE Gold Medal. She lives in Northern California.
Show more...
4 weeks ago
43 minutes 59 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Tim: From Hidden Wounds to Wholeness
Tim Perdion, adopted at birth in 1969, grew up in a loving family but struggled with identity and belonging until reuniting with his biological parents at 46. Now a senior leader, life coach, and mentor, he helps men embrace vulnerability, heal from hidden wounds, and live with greater clarity and wholeness.
Show more...
1 month ago
1 hour 4 minutes 12 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Abby: Live Podcast from Washington, D.C.
Dr. Abby Hasberry, a domestic transracial adoptee and birth parent, is in full reunion with both her biological family and her son. Through her work, Adopting Privilege, she raises awareness of the trauma and identity challenges in adoption while centering adoptee voices in the adoption narrative.
Show more...
1 month ago
51 minutes 8 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Susie:A 35-Year Journey to Belonging
Susie DeTitta was adopted as an infant in California and raised in Arizona, where she built a loving life with her adoptive family. Decades later, a long-awaited reunion with her biological relatives sparked a 35-year journey of discovery, connection, and belonging between two families and two worlds.
Show more...
1 month ago
46 minutes 26 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Dave: From Separation to Self
Dave Verrone’s life, shaped by early separation and adoption, carried both love and struggle. From bonding with a foster family to navigating identity in his adoptive home, he grew into a quiet but resilient “pleaser.” Through perseverance, he built his own family, faced life’s challenges, and eventually reconnected with his biological relatives-a journey of resilience, acceptance, and self-discovery.
Show more...
1 month ago
1 hour 2 minutes 54 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Karen: From Reunion to Healing
Karen’s reunion with her birth family at 29 was both transformative and emotionally complex, highlighting the lack of adoptee-centered therapeutic support. Inspired by this gap, she pursued graduate studies in her 40s and now works as an adoptee-competent therapist, offering empathetic care rooted in lived experience.
Show more...
2 months ago
55 minutes 12 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Pete: A Mother Lost, A Self Discovered
Pete Droge, acclaimed for his 1994 debut Necktie Second and praised for songwriting likened to Bob Dylan and Neil Young, has released a series of solo albums, composed for film and television, and appeared in Cameron Crowe’s Almost Famous. In this episode, he discusses his new album Fade Away Blue, a deeply personal sonic memoir chronicling his journey to reconnect with his birth family, confront a mysterious illness, and embrace his most vulnerable songwriting to date.
Show more...
2 months ago
59 minutes 46 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Bob: Unsealing the Past and Embracing the Present
Bob Wilson, an adoptee born in the early 1970s, began searching for his birthmother after reading Ann Fessler’s The Girls Who Went Away, ultimately reuniting with her nearly two decades ago and building a close relationship. Now an associate professor at Syracuse University, he reflects on their story and the wider history of adoption in his published essay Relinquished.
Show more...
2 months ago
1 hour 18 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Mee Ok: A Curious Soul Turns to Healing
Mee Ok Icaro is a Sacred Medicine Advisor, Integration Specialist, and award-winning writer who blends ancient and modern traditions to guide others toward healing, authenticity, and personal growth. With over a decade of experience working with ayahuasca, she partners with Shipibo healers in Peru, drawing on her diverse background in philosophy, creative nonfiction, and social justice to help people reclaim their truth.
Show more...
2 months ago
1 hour 5 minutes 22 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Simon: Reforming Adoption in Kenya
Simon Njoroge is an adopted person from Kenya. He has been involved in the child care reform agenda in Kenya in various capacities for more than a decade, including coordinating an adopted persons support group.
Show more...
2 months ago
46 minutes 58 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Barbara: The Clues that Led to Self-Discovery
Barbara was relinquished at birth in 1964 and spent 16 unexplained months in foster care before being adopted; years later, a blood drive at work sparked a search for her biological roots that led to a powerful reunion with her mother-who had lived just blocks away during her childhood-and a lasting relationship that continues today.
Show more...
2 months ago
1 hour 3 minutes 21 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Katherine: A Trauma Therapist Shares Her Insights
Katherine Allen McNally is an adoptee and a licensed therapist who specializes in working with adoptees and their adoptive families. She transitioned from a career in graphic design and advertising to pursue this path, driven by a deep personal commitment to supporting this unique population. Over the course of her work, she has encountered a wide spectrum of adoption narratives, including various forms of conception, gestation, birth, relinquishment, adoption, and survival. These experiences...
Show more...
3 months ago
49 minutes 14 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Theresa: When Adoption Fails
Theresa Werba was born in 1962 in New York City to a 17-year-old former prostitute. She was given up for adoption at three months old. She was placed with a loving foster mother until she was 13 months old, when she was taken away for technical reasons and placed with an older couple with ties to a New Age religious cult. She endured a bizarre childhood of emotional and physical abuse and left home at the age of 15. She was disinherited by both adoptive parents upon their deaths. Theresa foun...
Show more...
3 months ago
54 minutes 31 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Don: For This Adoptee, Finding His Roots Led to Peace
Like many people who went through the foster care system, Don Anderson was really curious about his roots. He started doing some research and realized his biological aunt on his mother’s side was living less than three miles away. His wife convinced him to introduce himself. She immediately recognized him and told him he looked like his mother. From there, Anderson met his biological mother, then started the research for his biological father. He ended up tracing his roots for generations, an...
Show more...
3 months ago
1 hour 7 minutes 1 second

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Alejandra: For This Adoptee, Spirituality Was the Answer
Alejandra was adopted at five years old into a Mexican-American family. She had never sought her family of origin, but when they arrived unexpectedly, her inner strength was tested, and her spiritual growth began. I Just Can't Make This Sh!t Up: Overcoming Fear and Accepting My Spiritual Gifts by Alejandra G. Brady Season 11: Adoptee Memoirs - books in order: Practically Still a Virgin by Monica Hall You Can't Get Rid of Me by Jesse Scott and Keri Ault Unspoken by Liz Harvie Sign up fo...
Show more...
4 months ago
46 minutes 19 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Jacqueline: For This Adoptee, Acceptance Brought Compassion
Jacqueline, now 63 and living in Cape Town, South Africa, was born in Nairobi, Kenya, in 1962, following a relationship between her English-born biological mother, a professional actress on contract to a theatre company in Nairobi, and her Welsh and Irish biological father, a radio announcer in Nairobi. Following Jacqueline's birth, and the abandonment of her and her biological mother by her biological father, her biological mother followed him to Zimbabwe, but he refused involvement or respo...
Show more...
4 months ago
1 hour 2 minutes 22 seconds

Adoption: The Making of Me. An Oral History of Adoptee Stories
Two adult adoptees, Sarah Reinhardt and Louise Browne, delve into all things adoption - from their perspectives as adult adoptees. Each season Sarah and Louise recap a chapter from a book centered on adoption and then interview a guest. Sarah and Louise come out of the 'fog' in real-time through Seasons One and Two and are advocating for change in the adoption industry. They want to give voice to all adoptees. Adoptee stories are needed to reframe the narrative around adoption.Sarah and Louise, two former business partners who had a successful ice cream truck in Los Angeles, team up again - this time in frank and honest conversations about all things adoption from the adoptee perspective. Both were adopted shortly after birth, but they had very different experiences. These will be intimate conversations, but also fun - because Sarah and Louise know how to lighten things up and have a good time. They also have an uncanny ability to get to the heart of a subject with anyone who crosses their path - so conversations will take many turns.