- Author: Robinson, Evelyn Burns
- Title: Adoption Reunion - Ecstasy or Agony?
- Language: English
- Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform
- Publication Date: November 23, 2018
■ About the Book A reunion between family members who have been separated by an adoption can be a very emotional event. For most people there is great joy and excitement, but for some there can be anger and disappointment. The ecstasy of adoption reunions probably needs no explanation and is often enthusiastically anticipated. However, agony can also be experienced and this is often unexpected and alarming. Many books have been produced which describe people’s experiences of adoption and reunion. However, Evelyn Robinson’s books successfully explain in a straightforward manner why those people feel the way they do. Her books help readers to put their feelings and experiences into a useful context. Evelyn’s approach is both personal and professional, but, above all, practical and informative. Evelyn Robinson has written four books about adoption. This is her third book. "Adoption Reunion – Ecstasy or Agony?" is partly an updated and condensed version of her first two books, with some new material added. In it she explains simply and concisely what it is about adoption separation and reunion which causes such intense and varied emotions. Evelyn has included a selection of her responses to some of the many questions she has been asked over the last twenty years. Evelyn’s answers are always gentle yet direct and exhibit the wisdom and knowledge she has gained throughout her wide-ranging experience of working with members of the adoption community and professionals in many locations around the world. "Adoption Reunion – Ecstasy or Agony?" was published in 2009 and updated in 2018.
■ About the Author I was born (in 1949) and raised in Scotland. I gave birth to my first child, Stephen, in 1970. Stephen was adopted soon after birth and I did not meet him again until he was 21 years old. By that time I had four more children and we were living in South Australia. Stephen and I continue to enjoy a close relationship and he has contributed to my books and presentations. I became involved with post-adoption support in 1989 and have worked as a volunteer in that area since then. I was employed for eleven years as a high school teacher and then, in 1996, I completed a post-graduate degree in social work. I then worked for seventeen years as a social worker/counsellor. For five of those years I was a post-adoption counsellor.
I became aware of the lack of understanding and awareness of adoption separation issues among professionals and the difficulties for those who were trying to achieve healing without appropriate assistance and so I wrote my first book, "Adoption and Loss - The Hidden Grief" in 1998 and self-published it in 2000. I travelled, at my own expense, around Australia, to New Zealand, the UK, Ireland, Canada and the US in 2001 to promote awareness of my work and I realised from all the interactions I had with members of the adoption community and professionals, that there was a great need for a book to help people to heal from the trauma of adoption separation. I wrote and published my second book, "Adoption and Recovery - Solving the mystery of reunion" in 2003. I travelled again in 2005 and met many more people whose lives had been affected by adoption separation. I was keynote speaker at a conference in Romania in 2006 on "The Rights of the Child". I have also presented several other conference papers on adoption-related topics and have had many journal articles published. I hear from people frequently through my web site (www.clovapublications.com) and many of them ask for advice on reunion issues. In 2009 I published my third book, "Adoption Reunion - Ecstasy or Agony?", which contains a selection from the many questions I have been asked about reunion over a period of almost thirty years. After so many years of travel and interaction with members of the adoption community around the world, I became aware of the similarities and differences in people's adoption experiences in different countries. In 2010 I published my fourth book, "Adoption Separation - Then and now", which is a collection of the experiences of parents who have lost children through adoption in Australia, Canada, England, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland and the United States.
In 2011 I was keynote speaker at a conference in the Republic of Korea on "Unwed Mothers, Adoption and Gender Law". I also advised our state government on the apology which they extended in 2012 to all those whose lives have been adversely affected by adoption separation. My son, Stephen, attended this momentous event with me. I also advised the Australian Federal Government on the apology which they tendered in 2013, to all those whose lives had been affected by adoption separation and after the apology I assisted the Australian Psychological Society to create a training programme for professionals who are working with family members who have been separated by adoption.
I wrote my books to assist those who have experienced adoption separation and to educate professionals and members of the community around adoption separation issues. I have taken a DIY (Do It Yourself) approach with my work. I have lived the adoption separation experience, I have worked as a professional counsellor and assisted many others who have had similar experiences and I have written and published my books and articles to share the insights I have gained with others.
Now, in 2018, I have released an updated, 21st century edition of my first book, "Adoption and Loss - The Hidden Grief". Over the last twenty years, significant changes have been taking place in Australia in relation to adoption. One of my main motivations for updating my first book is to show from the example that has been set by Australia that change is possible for people and for communities. In South Australia we have had success at helping those whose lives have already been affected by adoption separation and at reducing the number of people who will experience the impact of adoption separation in their lives in the future. I want to spread the news about how change occurred in South Australia to as many people as possible in the hope that others will be encouraged and inspired to bring about similar changes in their locations. I have also updated my other three books by adding new material from the updated version of 'Adoption and Loss'.
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