Hello, my name is Shane Bouel,

I’m a retired, qualified designer, lecturer & e-learning specialist seeking true connection.

I am an adoptee of forced adoption, living in Bali—a place that, like me, holds the weight of displacement and the echoes of histories rewritten. My journey is one of systematic erasure, existential severance, and, ultimately, reclamation.

Adoption is often seen as an act of love, a new beginning, a gift. But beneath that narrative lies a deeper, often unspoken truth—one of loss, identity fracture, and the struggle to exist in a world that does not recognise what has been taken.

I have spent years unravelling my own story, uncovering what was erased, and reclaiming the self that was meant to disappear. It has been a journey through grief, awakening, and profound transformation. And now, I invite you to walk that path with me.

From here, we embark on a journey together.

Let the unravelling begin.