Adopted in Spain, Iván Gastañaga spent two decades searching for his birth family

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  Iván Gastañaga was adopted by a Spanish family in 1991, when he was a baby in Moscow.

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  He grew up in Spain and says he felt a strong need from a young age to find his birth family.

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  His search took two decades and led him to his biological mother, a younger brother, and information about his Armenian father.

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  Gastañaga describes his experience in a book that challenges romantic ideas about adoption and examines loss of identity and trauma.

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  He now lives in Chicago and works with other adopted people.

Who

Iván Gastañaga González, who was adopted by a Spanish family.

What

After a two-decade search, he found his biological mother and a younger brother. He also learned about his Armenian father, who was serving a sentence in a Russian prison.

When

He was adopted in 1991 and told his parents about his search in 2014.

Where

He was adopted in Moscow and raised in Spain; he later met his biological mother in Moscow. He now lives in Chicago.

Why

He says he felt a strong need to learn where he came from and who his birth parents were.

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