Reclaiming NAAM: How National Adoption Month Became National Adoptee Month

In this episode of The Empowered Adoptee Podcast, we explore the evolution of National Adoption Month (NAAM) and how adoptees across the world are reclaiming it as National Adoptee Month.

What began as a government initiative to promote adoption has transformed into a powerful movement led by adoptees, a movement rooted in truth-telling, healing, advocacy, and empowerment.

We break down the history of NAAM, how it was originally created, and why its messaging often centered adoptive parents and agencies rather than the lived experiences of adoptees. And most importantly, we talk about why adoptees today are flipping the script and reshaping the month into a space that reflects complexity, honesty, and the full emotional landscape of adoption.

In this episode, we discuss:

• The origins of National Adoption Month and its original purpose
• Why the traditional narrative felt incomplete and often silencing for adoptees
• The rise of #FlipTheScript, #AdopteeVoices, and the shift toward National Adoptee Month
• How centering adoptee truth brings more compassion, awareness, and integrity to the conversation
• The emotional impact NAAM can have on adoptees and how this reclamation offers healing
• Our personal reflections on how NAAM has changed for us over the years
• What this shift means for advocacy, identity, and community connection today

We hope this episode helps listeners understand how adoptees are expanding the narrative not to erase the joy or gratitude some feel, but to create space for the whole story: the loss, the grief, the resilience, the identity work, and the empowerment that comes from owning our truth.

If you're an adoptee, we see you.
 If you're reclaiming National Adoption Month in your own way, we honor you.

We would love to connect with you and hear from you! Please send us a text and share your story 💜

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