An interview with Davis Peticolas who shares his story about coming out of the adoption fog when he was fifty years old. Davis outlines some of his deeply personal struggles that can be traced back to adoption trauma as the root cause.

Show Notes

Full episode transcript here.

Topics We Discussed

Born in 1941, adopted privately
An older brother who was biological
Coming 'out of the fog' at age 50
Receiving his original birth certificate (for medical issues)
Finding his birth parents, both were already deceased
Relationship with half brothers
Adoptee issues that he struggles with
Dissasociating from his pain, learning how to connect his body back with his feelings
A lifetime of skin peeling issues, resolved once he faced his adoptee issues
The Primal Wound (Nancy Verrier), Body Keeps Score by Bessel van der Kock
Finding a therapist who understands adoptee issues; 'training' a therapist who doesn't
Paul Sunderland Lecture "Adoption & Addiction, Remembered Not Recalled"
The difficulty explaining adoptee issues to those who aren't adopted
What can trigger coming 'out of the fog': pregnancy, mid-life crisis
Healing and connecting feelings to his body, therapy and writing
Power of writing and sharing/speaking our stories out loud
Importance of adoptee/adoption support groups

Recommended Resources

Adoption at the Movies
Connect with other adoptees!
Healing Developmental Trauma: How Early Trauma Affects Self-Regulation, Self-Image, and the Capacity for Relationship by Laurence Heller, PhD & Aline LaPierre PsyD