By Laura Marie Scoggins A comment was made on the Surviving Adopted Facebook Page that I should change the title to Thriving Adopted because surviving has such a negative connotation. Here’s the difference: Thrive – grow or develop vigorously. to prosper and flourish. Survive – continue to live or exist in spite of danger or hardship, to remain alive, sustain oneself, pull through, hold on. I’m in the portion of…
By Laura Marie Scoggins I started playing piano at a young age. I think first grade. I’ve always loved music, and I think I would have been good at it except there was only one problem. My mother sitting on the couch next to the piano nagging, criticizing, nit picking, and yelling. Then I would start crying and refuse to practice anymore. That’s when the yard stick would come out….
By Laura Marie Scoggins Recently I scanned photos from family photo albums to digitize everything. They were photos from my parents childhoods all the way up to current day. One common theme I noticed was how miserable my mother looked in so many of those photos. What caused that look on her face? What demons was she fighting? What caused her to panic and obsessively worry about everything to the…
By Susie I previously posted about the Shorstein Advocacy Group and the filing of a class-action lawsuit against them. I was recently contacted and asked to help spread the word that they hope to file the lawsuit this summer. If you were defrauded by the promise of open adoption in the state of Florida since 1990, please join this class-action lawsuit. Here is the info I received: We have updated…
By Susie This is a re-post that was originally published on June 14, 2012: I stumbled onto the writing of Dabeshim a couple of days ago. One of his poemscaught me from the very first stanza. I again am amazed at how the words of someone adopted can be so meaningful to me as a mother of adoption loss. Below is the poem, interspersed with my own rambling thoughts brought…
By Mirah Riben Is it shocking that a “social worker will make sure that your entire home is baby-proofed before you bring [an adopted] baby home”? Alison Caporimo thinks so. Caporimo, who is fond of lists and has written them about staying safe while dating online, retro diners, and “17 Badass Ways Women Can Rock a Suit” now brings her Jill-of-all-trades approach to “17 Shocking Things Everyone Should Know About…
By Mirah Riben In March 2013 Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard issued a national apology for forced adoptions of the 20th century. The apology, which recognized the coercion and exploitation of mothers in order to obtain children to meet a demand for adoption, was viewed by the worldwide adoption community with admiration, appreciation and the hope that it signaled a major step forward against unethical adoption practices. When the apology…
By Mirah Riben “ “Adoption loss is the only trauma in the world where the victims are expected by the whole of society to be grateful.” The Reverend Keith C. Griffith, MBE Imagine sharing your feelings of missing your deceased father (or brother) and hearing: “Be glad you still have your mother (or sister)” as if your loved ones are interchangeable. Such a response would be off target, dismissive, and…
By Mirah Riben A couple identified as Allen and Cheryl was the latest to seek the help of Dr. Phil in dealing with an out of control child who has been terrorizing their family. Their son, nine-year-old Steve, was diagnosed with 18 mental illnesses. He was placed in three mental hospitals in the last year alone and takes multiple medications to control his behavior, but nothing helped for long. Home…
By Mirah Riben The Supreme Court case of Adopted Child Doe brings to a head the absurdity of amended “birth” certificates issued to adoptees. The 20-month-old known as Adopted Child Doe is Cooper Talmas-Vitale. Cooper was adopted by Joseph Vitale and Rob Talmas shortly after his birth in Ohio. The adoption is recognized in New York, where the two men are married and live with the toddler. But Ohio, the…
By Cassi Did you know my family is crazy? We’re dysfunctional. We make huge mistakes. We can be irritating and annoying. And we are so far from perfect or anything close to it. And yet, as one who was literally saved from becoming yet another “unplanned pregnancy” lost to adoption, I am so thankful for my family, all the good AND all the bad. We had another big family wedding…
By Cassi When my middle son was just a baby, I worked at a day care center that included infant care – it was all about the benefit of reduced child care costs and being able to work while still being near my baby. During my time there, I had an experience I will never forget. An experience that forever changed me. In the crib next to my son’s in…
By Cassi There is a story I could write today. One that will never go away. Will always break my heart a little bit more when I think of it. But after a lot of thought, I’ve decided to give this first year a moment of peace, for an innocent little girl and her natural family who lost so much more than anyone ever deserves. I can’t, though, let this…
The STORK MARKET: America’s Multi-Billion Dollar Unregulated Adoption Industry by Mirah Riben Foreword by Evelyn Robinson Projected Release Date: Feb 15, 2007 ORDER :http://www.AdocateP ublications. com/ <http://www.AdocateP ublications. com/> Stork mar·ket. (stôrk märkt) n. 1. an in-depth exposé of the corruption in the adoption industry; the fine line between black and gray market adoption; scams, coercion and exploitation. 2. an in-depth report on the international market where children are the…