In this practical book, Michelle McColm takes the adoptee and birth parent carefully through the process of adoption reunion; drawing on extensive interviews and the experience of her own reunion.

The book describes the experiences that people have had when tracing their birth parents, as well as offering practical advice on how to go about searching and what to expect emotionally. Each section has an advice box which summarizes key points, notes issues to pay particular attention to, or offers draft letters that readers can adapt for their own needs. The appendix contains useful addresses and weblinks, and includes checklists for searching and for the reunion. Chapters include reunion with birth fathers and birth siblings, as well as with birth mothers, the relationship with the adoptive family and dealing with reunions that break down.

By comparing a group of adopted people who searched for birth relatives, with a group who did not, this is the first study to provide real answers to the fascinating subject of why adopted adults decide to search or not. Based on the experiences of 500 adopted people, the research exhaustively looked at all the possible influences on search decisions.

In this eye-opening, deeply affecting account, the authors reveal - through the words and experiences of adoptees, birthmothers, and birthfathers - that what reunion can accomplish is impressive, although its pangs are no less real than the pangs of birth

A unique book describing the coersion of pregnant women to surrender their babies to adoption, the personal holocaust suffered by them, and strategies for healing

A reunion between family members who have been separated by an adoption can be a very emotional event. This resource helps to explain that mixture of feelings and to increase understanding of the emotional dynamics of the reunion experience.

Evelyn Robinson, OAM, has written four books about adoption separation and reunion. This is her first book. What becomes of women who are separated from their children by adoption? Why do so many adopted people feel such a strong desire to seek out their families of origin? In what ways are families with adopted children different from other families? This book by Evelyn Robinson provides the answers to these questions and many others.'Adoption and Loss - The Hidden Grief' was first published in 2000. A revised edition was published in 2003 and the 21st Century edition was published in 2018.