Relinquishee, Adoptee, MPE
Author, Speaker.

Episode 82: Parallel Universes

Parallel Universes: The Story of Rebirth is a new book, a recovery memoir written by David B. Bohl. Today, AA Agnostica published a review of the book written by Thomas B. while here at AA Beyond Belief, we are posting a podcast featuring a conversation with David. I won’t go into a lot of detail here about the book, you can read about that at AA Agnostica. Instead, I will introduce the podcast with a few words about David, and my thoughts upon reading the book and speaking with the author.

Read the book review at AA Agnostica

David was relinquished by his mother at birth and adopted by a loving family. His adopted parents were always open with him about the adoption, and it was something he considered entirely normal. When he was six years old, he shared his story with some friends, and their reaction to this disclosure wasn’t what he expected. They reacted as if there was something wrong with him. Suddenly, he felt apart from his friends and somehow different. He also felt betrayed by his parents for allowing him to believe that his adoption was normal and good when the reaction from his friends made it clear, at least in his mind that it wasn’t. This experience instilled within David a feeling of shame that he previously hadn’t known.

Shame and a longing for a connection with others were among the driving forces of David’s addiction to drugs and alcohol, and this book is his story of recovery from that experience. It’s not a book about finding closure, but instead, it’s about finding perspective and learning to place oneself within the context of one’s own story. It’s a coming together, learning to live as a whole person.

LISTEN and/or continue reading …

 

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