At the age of 21, Hope O. Baker made one of the hardest decisions a person can make: she placed her newborn son for adoption. “There was a day about 4 years ago where I looked in the mirror and said, ‘You have to tell your story. You have to speak up and share with others how you overcame your trauma.’ I’ve written several blogs, published my first book, Finding Hope: A Birthmothers Journey into the Light, and shared my story and life with the world.”Hope O. Baker On this episode of the Infant Adoption Guide Podcast, Hope shares her story of struggle, heartache, and the journey into the light. She lived with her son’s adoptive mother while she was pregnant and pursued an open adoption. After her son was born, Hope tried to resume her life. But the difficulty of letting her child go gnawed at her. It may have looked to others that she had it together on the outside as she graduated from college and her career was moving in the right direction, but on the inside she was battling a destructive cycle of depression and addiction. When everything seemed to be dark, Hope found her way back to the light. It’s a journey she is still on. In her book, Hope shows how messy and chaotically beautiful adoption can be. She shares the details of her incredible story. You will see how community can help you. You will see how important it is to find your voice and speak up for what you need when you find yourself in unexpected difficulties. Grab your own copy of her book right here Here’s what you’ll hear in this story: * How Hope learned about adoption and why she wanted to place her son. * Hear how and why Hope chose who would parent her son – and why she chose them with 100% certainty. * Find out how Hope learned about open adoption and how she came to learn more and more about what it is and why it is important for everyone involved. * Hear Hope explain what it was like to overcome her struggles through addiction she went through after her son was born. * Find out how she found and finally got into a much needed birthmother support community that has helped her tremendously.* Learn why Hope wrote her book about her adoption story called “Finding Hope: A Birthmother’s Journey Into The Light.”* Why you should get her book (HINT: to learn more about birthmothers) and why it is so important to read it TODAY. Links we talk about in this episode: * HopeOBaker.com – connect with Hope, check out her book Finding Hope: A Birthmother’s Journey Into The Light (read the first chapter FREE), read her blog, listen to her podcast and more. * Hope’s Amazon Store check out Hope’s fun store on Amazon. She shares her favorites things including books, home stuff, kids stuff and much more.* Follow Hope on Facebook and Instagram* FindMyAdoptionAgency.com – learn how you can find and choose the RIGHT adoption agency to serve you on the infant adoption journey. This is a my online step-by-step course that you can go at your own pace AND includes over 60 agencies in a spreadsheet for you to use along...