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This is long, I apologize...
I'm having trouble finding stories of Adoptees petitioning Florida courts for their adoption information and original birth certificate. I understand I need to contact the county court (in this case Hillsborough) to receive the paperwork, but it's also my understanding these are generally denied. Would really love to hear your experiences with this.
Here's my situation: I have had no leads in the search for my birth family and have been applying to registries since I was 19 (12 years). Now that the internet is far more advanced and information on just about anyone alive is available, I've been doing a lot of backdoor searches based on non-ID information I've had since childhood. For example: my BM's sisters were fraternal twins so I've sought out information on twins that went to Florida high schools in the mid-seventies. For lack of a better word, this is getting ridiculous.
I'm ramping up the search now because I've had eosinophilia (elevated white blood cells) for over two years and last summer went through the grueling process of determining why. After $8000 (mostly covered by insurance, thank god) of countless blood tests, stool samples, trips to an Oncologist, a bone marrow biopsy/aspiration to determine if I had a rare form of leukemia, and a visit to an Allergist, it was deemed "idiopathic." In layman's terms that means "we have no idea what's wrong with you." The Oncologist-Hematologist literally said "I am baffled." A blood expert baffled by my blood...not very comforting. Every one of the doctors said that because I had no family history it would be nearly impossible to determine a cause without sending me to more specialists for even more expensive tests.
This is not an immediately life-threatening problem, but if it continues for years or the cells elevate more, I could run into heart problems. There is also a slim chance that I could develop hypereosinophilic syndrome or leukemia. Since I suffer from ADHD (most likely hereditary) and have to take stimulants daily to work and function normally, my heart is even more at risk.
To add even more fear to the equation, my birth grandfather died in his thirties from "heart disease." I don't know if that means "heart attack" in 1978-speak or if it means he suffered from another heart condition. The so-called medical information provided in my non-ID info is sparse and vague.
So I'm wondering if it would be likely that the great state of Florida- a state notorious for holding birth records under lock and key- would likely open my records. I am not now in imminent medical danger, but could possibly die before I'm fifty from a medical problem that remains unexplained and is most likely hereditary.
I would appreciate any knowledge, expertise, or stories you could provide.
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