“My stepmom gave me an ultimatum. ‘Your belongings are in trash bags on the front porch.’ I was not allowed to call or see my father. What I thought was a trip to Grandma’s ended in me being locked in a religious cult for 5 years as I battled cancer.”
By Sophia San Filippo“The employees were kind and talked to me about their situation with tears in their eyes. My heart dropped to the floor. It opened my eyes to the difficulties so many go through.”
By Amanda Doulos“I must have pulled that pregnancy test out of the trash 16 times to make sure I wasn’t making it up. ‘I’m pregnant,’ I blurted to my husband. We sat speechless on the phone until he said, ‘Well, looks like we are bringing home siblings after all!'”
By Sonia Beltz“My baby was going to have to endure the unthinkable, and there was nothing I could do.”
By Sonia Beltz
‘I will never forget the moment I first saw him, the world seemed brighter. I told him, ‘You’re going to sleep, but in a few days we’ll pick you up. I found a note from him saying, ‘Always be happy no matter what.’”
By Devon Ledbetter
“I was told I don’t matter. When I saw their smiles, I immediately forgot about the rest of the world around me, because the only thing that mattered was making that person feel loved.”
By Sophia San Filippo
“I was taught, if you do what you’re supposed to and look how you’re supposed to look, you can and ‘deserve’ to drink, smoke, and vandalize when people aren’t looking.”
By Amanda Doulos
“I was only 6 years when cancer consumed my life. Some people try to erase their history of battling cancer; I choose to embrace it.”
By Sophia San Filippo
“I was born on January 25, 1995. The name on my birth certificate is recorded as Derek Sabado with the letter ‘M’ next to it. The year is 2021, and as I’m writing this, I have never felt more happy and proud of the woman I have become.”
By Sophia San Filippo
“I told my therapist, ‘We sit on opposite sofas in the living room, but I feel like we’re on opposite planets. There’s no intimacy, no passion.’ I chalked it up to being newlyweds while he battled multiple addictions behind closed doors. When I discovered the messages, I screenshotted them, planning to present them in divorce court.”
By Sophia San Filippo
“My parents pulled up with their pick-up truck and helped me flee. I left with $400, my cat, and my car. I’d been in an abusive relationship for 13 years… without even knowing it.”
By Sophia San Filippo
“I had to undergo surgery to give my babies a chance to survive. The procedures were TERRIFYING. But I would endure whatever it took!”
By Janai Smith
“I spilled my secrets to her. It became a fight and resulted in me dumping my stash of clothes. I vowed to never talk about it again.”
By Amanda Doulos
