On Family Secrets with Dani Shapiro

On Health

Aviva Romm

Health & Fitness, Arts, Alternative Health, Medicine

4.8 • 1.4K Ratings

🗓️ 15 March 2023

⏱️ 76 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Imagine opening an email that contains a revelation that rocks your world to the core, forcing you to completely rethink your origin and your identity- this is exactly what happened to my guest on today's On Health Podcast episode, Dani Shapiro. Every family has secrets. Some are buried and never spoken about, some are maturely disclosed, and others are inconveniently discovered. These discoveries have the ability to shake us to the core and shatter our entire world, especially when related to something as serious as our identity. With the most recent advancements in at-home genetic testing kits like 23andMe and Ancestry.com, these earth-shaking stories are becoming the norm, and the reality of anonymous sperm donors and shady fertility clinics of the past are finally being exposed, creating a painful realization for those coming to learn the truth about who they really are. My guest today is no stranger to this particular kind of pain. With 11 critically acclaimed books under her belt and a hit podcast, Dani Shapiro has dedicated her entire adult life to the exploration of family secrets, weaving personal experience into her work and shining a light on what's been left in the dark. After a test result from a random at-home ancestry.com kit revealed the truth about her father, her entire world was turned upside down at the age of 54, and today, she’s sharing her story. Join us as we discuss: The truth of my own family secret and how it affected me as a young girl How increased access to DNA tests and ancestry kits is unraveling some deep mysteries and secrets for many but few were even looking for The history of assisted reproductive medicine and the shame around male infertility, especially in the 60s Dani's insights on healing and forgiveness, both how they can happen and when it just seems they can’t happen Healing the mother wound - even and especially if we have a rocky relationship with our own mothers Anonymous sperm donors and how it may be essential to our health to know where we come from The ultimate question- do family secrets need to be brought to light or can they remain secrets? and so much more! Thank you so much for taking the time to tune in to your body, yourself, and this podcast! Please share the love by sending this to someone in your life who could benefit from the kinds of things we talk about in this space. Make sure to follow your host on Instagram @dr.avivaromm and go to avivaromm.com to join the conversation. Follow Dani @daniwriter and grab a copy of her books at danishapiro.com

Transcript

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0:00.0	I was discovering that the person that I thought I was, the person looking back at me in
0:11.7	the mirror for 54 years, was a fundamentally different person with different data, with
0:18.9	different history, with different ancestors, then I knew myself to be.
0:26.0	And this stuff your mother never told you to the stuff your doctor never learned.
0:30.1	On health is what happens when a midwife, plus a Yale-trained MD, shares about all things
0:35.2	women's health.
0:36.5	From periods to menopause, sex to reproductive health politics, motherhood to mental health,
0:41.9	joined me for taboo-busting conversations that demystify and destigmatize our bodies,
0:47.6	all while bridging the gap between conventional medicine and wellness.
0:51.2	Along the way, we'll be exploring the science and wisdom of how our bodies work, what makes
0:55.7	us well, what gets in the way, and how we can live our best lives on our terms.
1:01.3	When it comes to women's health and well-being, there's nothing we won't talk about.
1:05.1	The new medicine for women is here.
1:06.9	I'm Dr. Aviv Aram, welcome to the podcast.
1:17.6	When I was a young girl, I spent a lot of time snooping around the small apartment in
1:22.5	New York City that I shared with my mother and brother.
1:25.1	I opened drawers and cabinets looking for something, though I didn't know what.
1:30.2	That would help me understand why I felt, though I was well-loved, that there was some
1:35.2	secret surrounding my mother's pregnancy with me.
1:38.6	Then one day, I found it.
1:40.4	Hidden in a brown cardboard box, both my birth announcement and my parents' engagement
1:45.6	party and wedding invitations.
	...

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