(Pictures of me as a 13 and 14 year old and with my friends) Do you remember everything being so dramatic when you were a teenager? Emotions are normal… except multiply that times a million! I don’t know about anyone else but I remember when I would be down about life because of friends or boy drama; I would always think about my birth mother. It’s not that my family wouldn’t have provided comfort but for some reason I wanted to feel sorry for myself and would think about this mysterious woman. Since I didn’t believe anyone else could possibly bring me back up, I would fantasize that she could. Does that make any sense to people who aren’t adopted? Probably not, but that is the dramatic emotion I would go through as a teenager! I used being adopted as an excuse for feeling extra down and out when really it was completely normal to feel that way. Whether or not you’re adopted has nothing to do with it. I was very lucky to have a loving family who was always there for me. Don’t cry about what you don’t have, smile and be grateful for what you do have. Don’t feel sorry for yourself, no matter how old you are because your happiness depends on only one person: YOU.