Rebecca Balfe is a former editor for Love What Matters. She resides in NYC, owning and rescuing adorable cats. She is an avid Lupus fighter and advocate.
‘My ‘prince’ became a nightmare. ‘You’re too MANLY, lose weight.’ Then there were the other women.’: Woman breaks free of abusive relationship, finds ‘absolute DREAM’ husband
“The divorce left me with barely any dignity. Then I met Jim. We both knew what it was like to live with nothing, to sleep on couches, to have next to nothing to our names.”
‘Do you work for her?’ they’d ask. ‘I’m her daughter.’ My parents being deaf isn’t a thing to be SORRY for.’: Daughter of deaf parents describe joys of growing up, ‘Experiencing this is a gift’
“My mom experienced REPEATED rejection while searching for jobs, and was told she wasn’t a good communicator. It’s not an IMPAIRMENT, it’s something to be proud of.”
‘I’m allergic to WATER. People call me a ‘faker.’ I should’ve seen this coming. But I’m so GRATEFUL.’: Woman with EDS, POTS, and aquagenic urticaria says ‘I want to raise awareness’
“I remember being in a lot of pain and visiting the first aid room at school and being sent away, as it was most likely ‘growing pains.’ I have to accept I can’t get a role as physical as I’d like, but this is part of having a disability, learning what you can and can’t do.”
‘BOTH girls were diagnosed with cancer. They’re only 3. I created a way to celebrate their courageous lives.’: Mom of twin daughters battling cancer creates Etsy shop, ‘It will make us, and others, happy’
“All I want and strive for is happiness. I will fight and our twins will fight. They are my heroes.”
‘If he leaves one day, will he remember me?’ I’m not a babysitter or a caregiver. I’m a MOTHER.’: Foster mom reflects on journey, ‘I wouldn’t trade it for anything’
“It was Mother’s Day, and I thought, ‘Do I DESERVE to be celebrated today? Do I count as a mother?’ There is an uncertainty and lack of self-validation that you are, in fact, a mother.”
‘I got a message: ‘Thanks for the work you do.’ I didn’t think much of it, but two lives were forever changed.’: Woman starts company to help other divorcees, ‘You’re never too old for love’
“I received THOUSANDS of emails from divorcees who wanted to share their story or ask for help. I decided to stop dating and use all my time and energy for helping others. In doing so, I received the call that changed my life.”
‘Crying was NOT associated with boys. ‘It looks like you’re depressed.’ I had to be ‘man’ of the house.’: Man advocates for mental health, ‘I finally felt SEEN’
“Mom would rush my brother to the doctor. He was visibly ‘sick.’ I couldn’t convince her to bring me to the hospital for just being ‘sad.’ I failed to consider my brain was JUST as real as my brother’s heart.”
‘I want MORE than friendship.’ I was expecting a fun fling. It was as if someone punched me in the gut.’: Woman finds love after divorce, ‘I no longer see marriage as dreadful’
“My life felt like a sham. I lived trying to make OTHERS happy. After my divorce, this beautiful man with the kindest smile walked through the door of a bar, said hi, and changed my life forever.”
‘My small apartment was OVERFLOWING with garments, and my heart and spirit were overflowing with JOY.’: Man starts ‘Knit the Rainbow’ to help LGBTQ youth in need
“A STAGGERING number of youth are left subject to the brutal seasons in NYC. As a Black gay man, I was embarrassed I hadn’t known. THIS was the community I had to help.”
‘She said, ‘You’re the place I can be myself.’ If ONE conversation changed her summer, I wanted to help change someone’s LIFE.’: Foster care advocate urges ‘step up and make a difference’
“What if they want nothing to do with me? What if I can’t help? The first day I met the children I was SO nervous.”