April 26, 2015…my new birthday
“Estimated relationship: Half-brother.”
Four little words are all it took to change my entire life that night. It was the night I discovered my Dad was not my biological father.
It was April 26, 2015. My husband Fred was sleeping next to me. I was sitting up in our bed with my iPad learning my way around the 23andMe website. I had submitted my DNA sample a year earlier, but I was finally circling back to do a deep dive to learn more about DNA overall.
I’ve never written publicly about my DNA journey and the trauma and grief that has gone along with it. I’ve written privately for my own self-healing and I’ve been a guest on a few podcasts, but the majority of the people who know me have no idea.
In the weeks and months to come, I’ll be sharing some of my journal entries that I wrote during the early discovery days and telling my NPE (Not Parent Expected) story. I want my daughters and family to understand it in a way I can’t quite verbalize but hopefully can write. I’ll be changing some names of people who are directly involved to protect their privacy.
I hope that anyone else who is going through something similar will read something that might help them know that they are not alone in this journey. NPE stories are all different, but so similar at the same time.
Congratulations on reaching this chapter in your healing. As a fellow NPE and someone who just wrote publicly about my NPE story a couple of weeks ago, I know that this is a big step for you. I look forward to learning more about your journey!
Hi Melissa, I found your blog https://www.boldandqueer.com/journal and I’m looking forward to reading your story! Thank you for your support. 🙂
Looking forward to reading your journey! Many of my clients have been shocked to learn the same. Not an easy discovery for sure. I’m sure your whole world was turned upside down. Glad you’re able to write about it as part of the healing process. 🙂
Thank you Diane for following me on my journey. 🙂