Sex, Lies & The Truth
A therapist and genealogical investigator narrate interviews with real people about their experiences with shocking DNA revelations like paternity fraud, Non-Paternal Events (NPE), donor conceptions and adoptions, whether discovered by a commercial DNA test or a known disclosure. Using a blend of humor, education and awe, these two friends make sense of one of the fastest growing segments of popular culture - the surprise DNA discovery. Hosted by Christina Bryan Fitzgibbons and Jodi Klugman-Rabb.
Episodes
39 episodes
Zach- And His New Dad
Zach did not have a good relationship with his father. So bad was it that Zach found himself fantasizing about having a new dad. Maybe that was some sort of intuition of what was to come when he finally took a commercial DNA test that proved th...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 3
•
24:49
Lynn – And The Swap
We have christened Lynn our first “crowded MPE”, there were that many people involved with her conception and cover up. Lynn talks about her unusual origin story, struggles with identity and family dynamics. And shares her one secre...
•
Season 7
•
Episode 2
•
31:39
Noah – And the Birthday Present
Raised knowing he was adopted, Noah didn’t know much about his ancestry, ethnicity or birth parents until a birthday present helped him put the pieces together, along with five siblings.
•
Season 7
•
Episode 1
•
24:41
Tamara- And The Fisherman
Tamara often felt she didn’t fit in with her family, which looked different than most since she was raised by her grandparents. A DNA test proved why she felt different and triggered a series of discoveries that changed her life both for the be...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 6
•
28:11
Ryan – Finding His Life Story
Ryan Anderson largely ignored his adoption until the pandemic forced him to face how poorly he had been dealing with it since he found out just before his 18 th birthday – what’s called a Late Discovery Adoptee (LDA). He jumped in with bo...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 5
•
20:53
Jennifer - I Think I'm Adopted!
Adoptions are part of the MPE universe, and set the stage for the non-paternal events to understand the process. Jennifer had an intuition about her sense of not belonging in her family since she was quite young. What happens when your in...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 4
•
34:57
Cassandra – And The Business of Secrecy
Cassandra Adams was raised Italian and Catholic and never expected to find anything surprising in her DNA test. What she found profoundly changed the direction of her life and fabric of her family relationships, not to mention identity an...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 3
•
36:04
Christine - And The Light-Skinned Dancer
Christine learned of her NPE by mistake as a child, but the secret lay at the surface because her parents had a different secret to focus on: the swinging lifestyle. For Christine the discovery didn’t just tell her she had a different father, s...
•
Season 6
•
Episode 2
•
31:27
Julie Ryan McGue - Twice A Daughter
Julie was raised in a nice Irish Catholic family and knew from an early age she was adopted. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there’s more to it than that, since our stories never end in the easy places.
•
Season 6
•
Episode 1
•
32:18
Linda Wagner - And The Second Chance
In a rare treat, we get to share an interview with a biological parent. It's rare for many reasons, but this is special because it's Allie's biological mother (previous episode). You'll get to hear another side of this amazing story...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 7
•
32:04
Alli - And The Christmas Present
We can’t wait for you to meet Alli. Her episode is told through the eyes of the adoptee, and will linger in your memory the way only a good story can. And stay tuned for the next episode, which includes an interview with her biologi...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 6
•
45:25
Damon - And The Librarian Part II
When we last left Damon, he had just decided to search for his biological father. He thought it would be as straight forward as finding Ann, but not much in the MPE, adoption world is straight forward. Just how many DNA tests...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 5
•
45:33
Damon - And The Librarian Part I
In this episode we meet Damon Davis, the former Director for the Health Data Initiative in the office of the Chief Technology Officer under the United States Department of Health & Human Services. Since holding that position, Damon has also...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 4
•
37:12
Laura - And The Closet Of Papers
Like many MPE’s Laura felt different, never quite feeling she fit into the family. And that was just the beginning of a strange and difficult journey, leading to a heartwarming ending. Laura’s adoption story was not so much told to her as...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 3
•
54:17
Da Rhonda - And The Hit And Run
Da Rhonda shares her incredible story of a childhood as one of three children with parents who were closely biologically related and not able to be the parents they should have been, resulting in more than just an MPE. Despite her struggl...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 2
•
18:31
Stacy - The Peacekeeper
At ten years old, Stacy found divorce paperwork that detailed the child support and some confusing NPE news regarding her sister. Divorces would become familiar experiences for Stacy’s mom as Stacy would gain fathers and lose them until t...
•
Season 5
•
Episode 1
•
29:10
Cory Goodrich - And The Mystery Man
Cory was the favorite in the family but always thought her stepfather was a bit odd. Then, more oddities began appearing when Cory realized there no pictures of herself over a period of time, as if she didn’t exist. She was taught n...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 6
•
30:07
Tiffany - And The Artist
Tiffany and the Artist:Fatherhood means many things, but usually not multiple men. Tiffany grew up with the ghost of her assumed, beloved father who died when she was at a tender age. Later adopted by a step-father, she grew ...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 5
•
52:55
Dinah - An Example Of Resilience
Born from an affair, Dinah understands the hardship of the MPE journey. She knew perseverance from living with a genetic disability so when biological family wouldn’t respond to her, she had some resilience already in place. Dinah teaches us ho...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 4
•
33:43
Lindsay - And Her Hundred Siblings
Donor conception gets a lot of press these days, particularly because of the prolific donations in the US resulting in tens, if not hundreds, of siblings in some cases. Lindsay is one such donor conceived person, who inconceivably has dec...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 3
•
31:55
Brad - A Late Discovery Adoptee
Every so often we hear a story that puts our mouths agape, which is saying something considering the nature of our podcast. You may find this true when you hear how Brad learned of his adoption. Family secrets occur for many reasons...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 2
•
35:25
Jodi - Part 2
Jodi’s story and candid conversation with Christina continues in this second part to the series. Not one to talk about herself often, Jodi opens up about trust issues she never knew she had and the effects of the discovery on family dynamics th...
•
Season 4
•
Episode 1
•
34:46
Tom Dreesen - A Comic's NPE Story
In the Season 3 finale, we are pleased to present actor, comic, motivational speaker, author and NPE, Tom Dreesen. Tom began his career as one half of the first black and white comedy duo with Tim Reid, went on to hold roles on tv and fil...
•
Season 3
•
Episode 6
•
31:32
