Woman Feels She 'Doesn’t Fit in' with Her Family —Takes DNA Test Decades Later & Unveils Mother’s Cheating

For many years, a woman grew up with the gut feeling that she was different from the family she grew up in. She eventually reached a point where she couldn't resist that feeling and took an ancestry test. What happened next left her shocked and speechless.

Miki O'Brien spent a significant part of her life with a somewhat queer feeling—one she never dared to share with anyone in her family. The substitute teacher from Missouri admitted, "My whole life, I had a gut feeling that one of my parents wasn't biologically my parent," particularly, her father.

But the question was: why did she feel that way about the man who had raised her? It turned out that O'Brien had her reasons because neither her personality nor looks matched the rest of her family members, particularly her father.

For as long as she could remember, O'Brien went on with her life, never finding the strength to dig for details. But despite her best efforts, she couldn't shove away the unsettling feeling and wanted to know whether her hunch was right or wrong.

A few minutes later, her mother called again and said she always wondered but had never known with certainty.

Many years passed, and finally, in 2021, three years after her father's death, she decided to muster up the energy to do something. Soon afterward, she purchased a DNA test kit to discover the truth once and for all.

However, when the results arrived and O'Brien had a look at them, she was dumbfounded. What had previously been a gut feeling became a bitter reality—her biological father was not the man who had raised her—which shook O'Brien's whole existence.

What Made Miki O'Brien Think She Wasn't Related to Her Family?

O'Brien always saw herself as the odd one in her family's portrait. She bore no resemblance to her dad, who she said was six inches shorter than her. She also didn't have his "widow's peak," but her sister did, which had always baffled her.

Moreover, she didn't share her dad's and sister's perspectives on several matters, including politics. Despite her family's love and affection, O'Brien said she always felt she "didn't fit in" with her family because she was the weird child.

Even her dressing style and fashion sense varied from her family; while they preferred keeping things classy and neat, she painted her hair blue. Despite knowing something wasn't right, O'Brien said she was too fond of her parents to do anything.

Being a "daddy's girl" and having utmost love and admiration for her dad, O'Brien worried that taking an ancestry test would ruin everything. And she couldn't bring herself around to hurting her father and destroying their incredible bond.

Sadly, in 2018, O'Brien lost her beloved dad, which shattered her heart into a million pieces. Almost two years later, in December 2020, she was having dinner with her mother when she suddenly broached a topic that had occupied her mind for a long time.

"For some reason, all my life, I had always wondered if one of you were not my biological parent," asked O'Brien. With a confused facial expression that she quickly concealed, her mom dodged the question. But O'Brien said she could see the agitation on her mother's face.

Later that night, O'Brien ordered a DNA testing kit online and delayed using it for several months. Eventually, in June 2021, the then-43-year-old teacher pushed her fears aside and took the test. Nearly a month later, she received an early morning email containing the results.

Clutching her heart, she opened the email and started reading the results. O'Brien recalled looking closely at the report and only finding her mother's side of the family but nothing related to her dad or his relatives. By the time she was done reading all of it, she could tell something wasn't right.

Astonished by the results and wondering why none of her father's family members showed up in the report, O'Brien didn't know what to do. She couldn't stop thinking about the many unfamiliar names who showed up as her relatives.

After leaving her two boys at her ex-husband's house, O'Brien decided to talk to the one person who could help her understand the mind-boggling test results—her mom.

Talking To Her Mom & Connecting with Her New Family

O'Brien said she called her mom and told her she had taken an ancestry test and failed to find her dad's or grandmother's surnames in the results. A few minutes later, her mother called again and said she always wondered but had never known with certainty. She explained how she had a brief, one-time fling with a man while separated from her husband.

Per O'Brien, her mom didn't know anything because when she went to the doctor while pregnant, he misinterpreted the timespan and shared that her husband was the baby's father. In other words, O'Brien's mom didn't know that her husband wasn't her daughter's birth dad until the DNA test report arrived.

After explaining everything, the Missouri resident mentioned how her mom was reluctant to tell her about her biological dad and his whereabouts.

It turned out she knew her biological dad. Eventually, O'Brien learned that her birth father had two girls whose names sounded surprisingly familiar. Suddenly, everything made sense because O'Brien was childhood friends with the girls and had been to their house many times as a kid.

Despite not seeing them after age seven, she admitted having clear memories of their time together. Unfortunately, O'Brien's biological dad was no more; all she could remember about him as a kid was his kind and loving nature. However, she still had a chance to connect with her half-siblings.

After a brief identity crisis and struggling with her emotions, O'Brien decided to reach out to her newfound family. Sadly, not everyone understood her sentiments, and some of her relatives alleged that she had destroyed lives by taking the DNA test.

In the meantime, O'Brien also took another ancestry test and found her grandparents, uncles, and aunts. Since many of them lived all across the U.S., they planned to meet at a family gathering in the near future.

After almost a year of second-guessing, O'Brien contacted her half-sisters and told them they were related. She finally messaged them on Facebook in July 2022 and received a response within half an hour.

Fortunately, her half-siblings were delighted to hear from her and learn about their connection. With plans to meet in person, O'Brien recounted what one of her sisters told her: "[We are] surprised at how similar we are: we're both sarcastic, with dark humor but loving hearts."

Despite feeling odd about not having her dad's "widow's peak," O'Brien was finally relieved to know she had her family's nose. When she shared the new information with her teenage sons, they were reportedly unfazed.

While the discovery changed O'Brien's life completely, it didn't alter her love and appreciation for the man who brought her up and helped raise her sons. Nothing could change his place in her heart, and regardless of the DNA test, she would always consider him her dad.