I am a 72 year old Australian of British origin and I do not know who my father is/was. I was not adopted but I guess I am sort of a de facto adoptee because the person listed on my birth certificate was unaware that he was not my father until sometime after I was born.
I have been searching for many years now without success. I have already spent a substantial amount of time and money on my search. I have tested Y-DNA to 111 markers plus Family Finder with FTDNA and I have also done the Relative Finder test at 23andme. I have engaged researchers and I have paid subscriptions to a plethora of organisations such as www.ancestry.com, www.findmypast.com, www.findagrave.com, www.forcesreunited.co.uk, www.genealogywise.com, www.scotlandspeople.com, www.irishorigenes.com, www.193.com – plus many others. And I have spent more hours than I care to remember doing good old fashioned sleuthing. I have considered doing the test with www.ancestry.com but can’t make up my mind if it is worth it. I keep reading too many negative reports on it.
On two occasions, I thought I was close to succeeding in my search only to be thwarted at the 11th hour. But in both cases I do believe that many of the people I was in contact with on those two searches were more disappointed than I was in the end.
I am reading as much as I can on this subject and talking to as many people as will listen to me. But it is still confusing. I am in contact with a more than competent genealogist who believes I am placing too much faith in DNA testing and that the whole science is still a very blunt instrument although a good way of double checking hunches that I may already have.
I’m not sure why but I am not in agreement and at the moment I am trying as hard as I can to understand how to evaluate all the DNA data that I have accumulated. I am trying to utilise the methodology at www.dnaadoption.com but am not getting very far. I feel like I am on a four lane highway approaching a major junction with a choice of about eight roads ahead of me. I have chosen each road at least once and got lost, turned around and gone back to the 4 lane highway and tried again.
Being a retired IT Consultant, it frustrates me that I am having so much trouble coming to grips with this science. But there is a reason. I have always had a memory problem, in particular a short term memory problem. And as I get older, that short term memory issue is clearly worsening. I can read a document five or six times and still not fully understand what I am trying to come to grips with – makes it rather difficult.
I need someone to assist me in understanding how to use the methodology at www.dnaadoption.com and I am prepared to pay for this advice or consultation, as long as it doesn’t break my bank. Ideally if I could sit down for a session or two with a competent consultant and watched how he/she went through the process, then I would grasp it. My short term memory responds better to seeing something actually done as opposed to studying it from the written word. Even a decent video would be of help.