For those of you who are aware of your status as a DCP, you may be searching for biological family. With this in mind, I'm grateful we live in the age of commercial DNA tests. Much has been printed about the privacy risks associated with these tests, and those factors are worth considering prior to testing. However, if you feel comfortable sending your DNA to a company, this is the best way to find genetic relatives. Below, I'll cover a few of the most popular tests available today.
Ancestry
I've personally tested with Ancestry and was please with the process. I paid $99, was sent a test kit within a few days, sent back a small vial of saliva, and waited for my results about six weeks. Result windows may vary, with the winter holidays taking the longest amount of time. In addition to testing DNA for an ethnicity estimate, Ancestry will also pair you with genetic matches and has a very useful family tree tool.
23andMe
For $199, users are sent a kit that will tell them both ethnicity information and health information. If you are a DCP and do not have a family health history for your biological parent, the health information component could be very useful.
Family Tree DNA
In addition to offering the autosomal test used by Ancestry and 23andMe, FTDNA still offers male-only Y DNA tests as well as mtDNA tests.
National Geographic's The Genographic Project Test
This test is also on the pricey side, and is intended to test deep, hominim ancestry (as in, when the human species left Africa.) I would personally like to take this test one day, but I wouldn't use it to conduct an initial genetic relative investigation.
My Heritage
My Heritage began selling DNA tests in 2016 and is the new kid on the block. As they have had some issues since they started selling DNA tests, I would wait awhile before considering them to find genetic relatives.
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