“Your birth mother’s words poured off the page as though she’d been waiting to tell this story for years. It was as if she couldn’t write fast enough.’ It was both heartbreaking and heartwarming at the same time.”

‘If you were MY kid and got that grade, I’d send you back to where you came from.’ My mother never waivered.’: Transracial adoptee finds identity, ‘I feel nothing but admiration and empathy for my birth mother’

‘I heard my phone ding and felt my breath catch. ‘A little boy was born last night. He’s in critical condition.’ Without a second thought, we said, ‘YES!’: Couple shares beautiful open adoption
“I was sure we would have heard by now. Not a minute after I let myself lose hope, my phone rang. A little boy had been born the night before. His birth had been traumatic. ‘Is there any reason we’d say no?’ We were sure he was meant to be our little boy.”

‘I’m sure it’s nothing.’ I came out of the bathroom, shaking. I was terrified to tell the father. I’d made such a mess of my life.’: Birth mom details open adoption journey, ‘Everything fell into place’
“How was I supposed to tell my mom before she died? I had a dream she was holding the baby as they stood in the clouds. ‘I’ll take care of him until he’s ready to enter the world.’ I clung to those words.”

‘The letter said, ‘I’m your daughter. Can you meet me?’ She’s the secret that ate away at me for 18 years.’: Birth mom reunites with daughter, shares healing journey
“This amazing human I had given birth to was a complete stranger.”

‘I’ve told you I’m a virgin a million times!’ She slammed on the brakes. ‘We need to find an adoption agency.’: 16-year-old birth mom pursues open adoption, ‘He deserved better than me’
“They would take him home and raise him in all the ways I couldn’t. It all seemed to happen really quickly. This is when regret and doubt in my decision came crashing down on me. He is mine. He was mine for 40 hours.”

‘While I was his mother, I was never meant to be his mom.’ Why this birth mom gave up her only child for adoption
“My child was not my own, and that was a beautiful moment.”