Would you be a different person if you did not know your biological family? Or how would knowing your biological parents impact you? People who were placed for adoption in a closed adoption often have a void and want answers to questions about their biological family.
According to this guide, they are many reasons why people in the adoption triad would like a reunion or start a search. For the person who was adopted, many wonder what their biological parents look like. They wonder if they have biological siblings. They wonder about their medical history and why they were placed for adoption. For birth families, they search to see who their biological child has become and would like to assure them that they have were placed for adoption out of love and that they have always been loved.
It was because of this want, to let him know that he was always loved, that led Chris’ biological parents to start a search for him. According to this news article, Melissa Thompson and Troy Johansen dated in high school. Their first serious date was the Prom. When they found out they were pregnant at 17 years old, they decided to place their child for adoption. Melissa stated, “We made the best decision we could at the time and we did it out of love.”
They placed their newborn son for adoption and for the first five years received pictures and updates. The updates stopped and Melissa’s and Troy’s relationship ended. When they later started their search, they contacted many outside agencies and resources hoping to find information about their biological son, but to no avail.
Troy was ready to give up the search, but decided to try one last thing: posting pictures on Facebook. A short post in social media, and in less than a day, they were talking to Chris, their biological son, on the phone. Chris stated, “My heart was racing. But as soon as they answered the phone, as soon as the conversation kicked off – it just felt like it was as natural as can be . . . I feel like a complete person now.”
Reunions can be a very positive thing and answer many of the questions for those involved. It is a positive use of social media and technology that has a positive impact on people’s lives.
