7 Whether you are a natural parent or an adoptee, file waivers of confidentiality. This is to reassure record keepers that if the persons you specify come looking for you, you WANT them to get your identifying info. There are no guarantees, but it may very well help. You want to file these with the agency, attorneys, but especially with the county court in which the adoption was finalized, which is usually the county the adoptive parents lived at the time of the adoption. If you are a natural parent and do not know what county your child was adopted to, you want to find this out so you file your waiver in the right court. You may be able to get this thru your agency if you just tell them why you need it -- to file the waiver. If not, you should be able to ask for it from the Bureau of Vital Statistics. To clarify: where an adoptee was relinquished and where the adoption was finalized are not the same thing necessarily. For example, I was born in Allegheny County but my adoption was finalized in Westmoreland County, where my adoptive parents lived.

8 Post your search on the internet mailing lists regularly- you never know who is reading, and where it could get forwarded to. Forward your search info to appropriate places. There really are people who just do tons of forwarding in the hopes your info gets under the right nose. Bless those angels! Be sure to include in your post permission to forward.

Post your info any and everywhere. Go to any search engine and do a search on "adoption registries" or similar words -- and start registering.

9 Adoptees should place an ad in the major newspaper(s) serving your birth city. Natural parents should place one in both adopted and birth cities as well. Pray that the right person sees it, or that someone who recognizes the info sees it and remembers their neighbor or classmate or cousin. It doesn't cost a lot. Take the long shots.

10 Post to this blog or the internet mailing lists any problems you run into on your way. it's likely someone could have found a way around it, have a letter that could help, or ideas. Ask for help.

11 If you are an adoptee and know the doc that delivered you, make an appointment to see him/her or write a letter. You may pay for an office visit, but you can thank the doc personally and see what you can get. Many doctors destroy records after the statute of limitations but some do not.