Thriving Adoptees - Let's Thrive

Where are you living from? So many of us spend so much of our living from fear, worry and anxiety. How does this change? Listen in as adoptee Carmen shares her insights into living differently. Living from love.

Here's a bit about Carmen from her website:

Carmen is happily married for 40+ years. She is the mother of four and grandmother of six. She loves all things outdoors and anything related to water. Her passions are her work as a paraprofessional, writing, her faith and her family. She will always find a way to laugh at herself and find the bright side

More at

https://www.instagram.com/spaghetti.memior

https://spaghetti-memior.com/

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0G1LK9B9S

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

How much control do we have? How does humility help us see control more clearly? Adoptive mother and adoption professional Tina shares what she'd have done differently if she'd had a time machine including.. reading the Connected Child by Karyn Purvis.

https://lfcsmo.org/

https://www.facebook.com/LFCSMO/

https://www.instagram.com/lfcs.mo/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

Connection. We all want don't we? And we want our kids to feel connected to. How well are parents connected with us can influence how we connect with our kids. Listen in as adoptive mother of 4 Lenette talks about connection, raising kids with prenatal opioid and substance exposure and more...

Lenette Serlo is the Founder & CEO of Generation O, The National Organization for Opioid-Exposed Children, the first national movement dedicated to supporting families raising the half million children born with prenatal opioid exposure. A graduate of Michigan State University and an adoptive mother of 4 substance-exposed children, Lenette combines personal lived experience with a diverse professional background to advance both compassion and science in this emerging field.

Under her leadership, Generation O has become a growing voice for caregivers and a trusted source translating complex research into plain English. By spotlighting the long-term consequences of prenatal opioid exposure—including impacts on brain development, learning, and behavior—Lenette is raising awareness, building partnerships, and ensuring that the unique needs of these children are recognized in healthcare, education, and policy.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lenetteserlo/

https://www.facebook.com/lenetteserlo/

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61564529017720

https://generationo.org/

https://www.instagram.com/generation_o_org

https://www.linkedin.com/company/gen-o-nooec/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

So many of us adoptees start believing there's something wrong with us it's embedded deep in our psyche. Until it comes to the surface and starts to diminish - sometimes slowly, sometimes quickly - often on the back of getting hold of new information. Validation from fellow adoptees helps greatly. Turning our pain into something that helps others can be transformational too. Listen in as Sheila sheds light on key healing drivers, starting the Felix Organization with fellow adoptee Darryl and more...

The Felix Organization was founded in 2006 by Rock ’n Roll Hall of Famer, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels and Emmy Award-winning casting director, Sheila Jaffe after they connected through their shared experiences as adoptees and were inspired to share their good fortune with children who had not been “taken home” as they had.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/sheila-jaffe-26bb5554/

https://www.instagram.com/felixorganization/

https://www.facebook.com/felixorganization

https://www.thefelixorganization.org/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

Is unprocessed grief eating you up? It did for Neb. But how on earth can a 2 year old  handle the death of their mother? Neb's challenges continued...moving from home to a children's home and then a new home with an American family 9000 miles away from his homeland - Ethiopia. Neb blamed God, until he didn't. Listen in as he shares the epiphanies that got him back on the rails and thriving.

Connect with Neb here theethiopiancowboy11

More about Neb in the book by his mother https://www.amazon.com/Not-Forgotten-Wendi-Cross/dp/1637972210

Listen in to the interview with his mother https://thriving-adoptees.simplecast.com/episodes/faith-is-bigger-than-fear-with-wendi-cross

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

Do you feel grounded? All the time? Some of the time? Life tests our grounding daily. So what helps us hold our ground more often and find it more quickly when we've lost it? Listen in as mom and leader Jami talks grounding, faith and much more. Deep and profound. Empowering

Foster care and adoption were not part of Jami’s dreams for her life, but God changed her heart when He made her aware, and she is passionate about helping others become aware too. She and her husband Clint are parents to their eight children (five through adoption). Jami is filled up by her time with Jesus in the stillness of the early mornings, walks with Clint, connecting with her kids, and growing in relationship with others!

Find out more at:

https://theforgotteninitiative.org/

https://www.facebook.com/forgotteninitiative

https://www.instagram.com/theforgotteninitiative/

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamikaeb/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

What can we learn about from someone who advocates for us from within the system? What life is really like for today's young adoptees?  Listen in as Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central shares her insights and vital research.

The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Adoption and Permanence (APPGAP) was established in February 2019 and aims:

to amplify the voices and experiences of adoptees and those in other forms of permanence and their families, 
to inform parliamentarians,
to promote the development and implementation of effective policy and practice.

The APPGAP is chaired by Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central. Charities Adoption UK and Home for Good provide the secretariat for the group.

The group has conducted three inquiries since its inception.

The latest of these, Adoptee Voices (13 – 25) (link) focuses on the experiences of young adoptees in their teenage years and through the transition to adulthood. It spotlights key issues for young adoptees across the themes of identity, mental health and wellbeing; and education.

More info at:

https://appgap.info/

https://www.rachaelmaskell.com/

https://www.facebook.com/rachaelmaskell4york

https://www.instagram.com/rachael_maskell/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

What if we are whole despite all that's happened to us? How does connection help us heal? Listen in as Anna, Donna and I dive deep into two profound questions....

Here is Anna's first interview: https://thriving-adoptees.simplecast.com/episodes/anna-jinja

Anna used to spread hate about herself being adopted and did everything she could to avoid talking about it. Now she runs a podcast and discusses adoption all the time. So what changed? Listen in as we talk identity, transracial adoption and most of all, being authentic.

Anna Jinja Mather was adopted from Seoul, Korea, and grew up in Iowa. Her heart is filled with love for people and their stories. By sharing her adoption story and all that she is learning to help her navigate through personal and professional challenges, she hopes that this will lead us to believe, accept, and value the inherent worthiness of all people.

Anna invites you to join her learning adventure by listening to the people and creative content that makes her feel at home in this world.

https://www.annajinja.com/

Check out her book https://www.amazon.com/Adopting-Grace-Anna-Jinja-ebook/dp/B0DJZPQ44K

https://www.facebook.com/annajinjashow

https://www.instagram.com/annajinjashow/

https://x.com/annajinjashow

Here is Donna's first interview: https://thriving-adoptees.simplecast.com/episodes/purpose-in-the-pain-donna-pope

Are you suffering right now? It probably - or definitely - doesn't feel like it, but finding the purpose in that pain somehow makes it more bearable. The earlier we can see that purpose the sooner the pain can ease. Join Donna and I as we dive in life changing insights and shifts in perspective. Donna is an adoptive mother, executive director of an adoption agency and podcaster.

Here's a bit about Donna from her agency's website:

Donna is an irreplaceable member of our adoption agency, dedicated to aiding women who are contemplating placing their child for adoption. Helping women through an unexpected pregnancy has become her life’s journey. She is seldom “off duty.” On weekends she communicates with birth mothers to aid them with their financial concerns or traveling to a hospital to ensure they are receiving the best medical possible.

Her resolute dedication and heartfelt compassion make her an essential figure in supporting these women throughout their entire journey.

Donna ensures that every person who works at Heart to Heart Adoptions treats birth mothers and adoptive families with respect and compassion. She insists on a non-judgmental approach to every situation. She creates a safe and nurturing space for them to share their concerns, dreams, and worries. By approaching each individual with empathy and without judgment, Donna ensures that these exceptional women have the necessary guidance and resources to make well-informed decisions.

Donna’s expertise within the Utah Adoption Agency lies in her ability to find the perfect match between birth mothers and adoptive families, making her an invaluable asset to our agency.

Connect with her here:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/donna-pope-41652ba/

Explore her podcast here:

https://www.instagram.com/voicesof_adoption/reel/DLH-sYjJPf4/?__d=1

https://voicesofadoption.podup.com/

https://www.instagram.com/voicesof_adoption/

Find out more about her podcast here:

https://hearttoheartadopt.com/

https://www.facebook.com/HeartToHeartAdoption

https://www.instagram.com/hearttoheartadoptions/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

Unconditional Love. We only crave it because we don't feel it. Trauma gets in the way. Listen in as Jay, adopted from Costa Rica at 3 shares his journey to find it through therapy, soul searching and connection.

Here's a bit about Jay from his website

Jay Barbanel is a writer and creative based in Los Angeles.

Born in Costa Rica, raised somewhere in between.

His past didn’t arrive all at once.  It showed up in flashes.

In photos.  In names that didn’t fully belong to him yet.  So he followed it.  Across years, across countries, across versions of himself. 

Finding Tico is what happens when he stopped running from the questions and let them lead him somewhere real.

Finding Tico is his debut book find out more at:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GY6489HR

https://www.facebook.com/JayBarbanel

https://www.instagram.com/thatkidjay1/

https://www.findingtico.com/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.

What is Fundamental Wholeness? How does seeing it transform our lives for the better? Listen in as my friend and past guest Jude Hung interviews me about this fresh and hopeful paradigm.

https://www.facebook.com/simonjbenn

https://thrivingadoptees.com/

https://thrivingadoptees.com/

https://www.instagram.com/simonjbenn/

Guests and the host are not (unless mentioned) licensed pscyho-therapists and speak from their own opinion only. Seek qualified advice if you need help.