Contents
Foreword. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . vii
Author’s Notes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix
Prologue: The Politics of Adoption
Chapter 2: Primal Wound: The First Trauma
Chapter 3: Age of Discovery: The Second Trauma
Chapter 5: Fracturing: The Third Trauma
Chapter 6: The Wreck Revisited
Chapter 7: Incomplete Crossing
Chapter 8: Limbo: The Purgatory of Not Knowing the Truth
Chapter 10: Triage: Treating the Primal Wound
Chapter 11: Really Talking About Adoption
Chapter 13: Preventing the Fracture
Chapter 14: Beginning to Build an Authentic Identity
Chapter 15: Taking Charge of Your Life, with and without Therapy
Part Three: Toward Healthier Adoptions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .105
Chapter 17: Choosing the Right Therapist
Chapter 18: From the Therapist’s Perspective
Chapter 19: Finding a Support Group
Part Five: The Challenge to Heal
Chapter 20: Healing the Inner Child: An Innovative Approach
Chapter 22: Visualization Techniques
Chapter 24: Mourning for Adoptees
Chapter 25: One Woman’s Journey
Chapter 26: The Respect We Never Got
Appendix A: What Adoptees Do Not Wish to Hear
Appendix B: What Natural Parents Do Not Wish to Hear...........................................162
Appendix C: What Adoptive Parents Do Not Wish to Hear
Appendix D: About Sealed Adoption Records
Appendix E: Loss in the Adoption Hand-Off
Appendix F: Things to Do with Your Inner Child
Appendix H: Resources and Readings
Epilogue. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
About the Author. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .190