Sydney’s Story

Recap of “Because She’s Adopted” Sydney’s Story: A First Mother’s Courage, Loss and Relentless Advocacy

In this episode, Kristal sits down with Sydney Curtin, a mother of three, a business owner and a fierce advocate for ethical adoption reform. Sydney’s journey began at 21 years old, navigating pregnancy entirely on her own while under immense emotional pressure from family. Her story is one of survival, love, deep generational wounds and the fight to protect her daughter’s truth, even when her role as a first mother was minimized or erased.

Her voice is both raw and resolute. Sydney speaks openly about loss, coercion and the hidden realities that many parents experience inside the adoption industry. But she also speaks with conviction, clarity and compassion, determined that no other mother or child should endure what she has.

Sydney’s Early Story: Pressure, Isolation and the Loss of Choice

Sydney became pregnant at 21, young, vulnerable and without a supportive community. Her father, driven by fear and past trauma, insisted on adoption from the moment he learned she was expecting. What followed was emotional isolation, family estrangement and what Sydney describes as a “co-hosted decision,” rather than a real choice.

Despite the pressure, Sydney worked, paid rent and tried to navigate motherhood from inside a reality shaped by others’ expectations. Her prenatal appointments became counseling sessions rather than healthcare visits. Providers checked on her mental state more than anything else, the only place where someone asked, “How are you doing?”

Choosing an Adoptive Family: Hope, Red Flags and a Promise of Openness

Sydney was shown 12 adoptive family portfolios. What stood out wasn’t their hobbies or jobs, it was language.

Eleven said, “We can’t wait to welcome our baby.”
One said, “We can’t wait to welcome you and your child into our family.”

Sydney chose that family, believing that language revealed respect, partnership and shared commitment.

They exchanged numbers. They texted. They took maternity photos together. They exchanged gifts. They wrote heartfelt notes. They promised openness, connection and lifelong involvement.

And then, after placement, those promises began to unravel.

After Birth: The Beauty, the Break and the Beginning of Loss

Sydney describes her daughter’s birth as surreal and sacred. She stayed awake for nearly three days in the hospital, unwilling to waste one second of time with her baby. The adoptive mother sat beside her as she signed relinquishment papers, promising:

“It would be ungodly for me to ever take her from you.”

But once Sydney returned home, empty-armed, grieving, bleeding and alone, she knew her life had changed forever.

She created an email for her daughter that same week, writing letters, uploading photos and documenting her love and truth so nothing could ever be rewritten.

Then the contact slowly began to fade.

Missed visits. Withheld photos. Unanswered messages.

When Sydney became pregnant again, the adoptive parents reacted by cutting contact entirely for four months, calling Sydney’s pregnancy “added trauma” to their daughter.

It was the first major break, but not the last.

Open Adoption Breakdown: Control, Withdrawal and the Loss of Relationship

Despite a written agreement for six visits per year, updates, photos and shared involvement, the adoptive parents reduced visits, stopped communicating and eventually moved to France without honoring the visitation terms.

Sydney tried everything: compromise, mediation, education and vulnerability. She opened the door for honest conversation and asked how she could make the relationship healthier.

Instead, she received a formal letter stating she was “manipulative and dangerous,” revoking their openness agreement entirely and limiting her to two visits per year with the threat of losing even that if she contacted them outside their terms.

It was a devastating blow for a mother who had done nothing but love, respect and fight for her daughter.

Reform and Advocacy: Fighting for Every Mother, Every Child, Every Truth

Today, Sydney is part of a movement pushing for legal reformation in adoption, especially around:

• Enforceable open-adoption agreements
• Removal of profit incentives in adoption agencies
• Mandatory training and qualifications for adoption workers
• Protection for both adoptees and first parents
• Public education on ethical, trauma-informed adoption

She refuses to stop speaking. She refuses to be silenced. And she refuses to let future mothers walk into the same system blind.

Final Thoughts

Sydney’s honesty, courage and heartbreak illuminate the quiet corners of adoption that many never see. Her voice brings compassion, justice and clarity to a space deeply shaped by silence.

Her story is a reminder that adoption is not a moment, it is a lifetime.

And every voice in the adoption triad deserves to be heard.

Tune in to this episode to hear Sydney’s full story, her fire, her heartbreak and her hope.