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.
‘I was told to ‘man up’ after being thrown into a dumpster. I believed I was an abomination.’: Trans woman believed she’d ‘go to hell’ for transitioning, now feels ‘worthy of happiness’
“’Can you leave? We are having girl chat.’ I left and sat alone in the field. Teachers would laugh when I’d tell them I was being bullied. I cried and prayed to God, ‘Please let me wake up and be a girl.’ This is me. I am a woman.”
‘I’ve read your letter. Don’t worry, we’ll get through this.’ It actually meant, we’ll try to ‘fix’ you.’: Young trans man finds ‘strength’ and ‘identity’ while transitioning from female to male
“‘I am upset I won’t be able to walk my daughter down the aisle like I’d always hoped.’ They asked, ‘Why can’t you just be a butch lesbian?’ My great grandmother’s response when I walked in was, ‘Oh isn’t he handsome!’ All she wanted was to make sure I was happy. I can’t tell you how much that meant to me.”
‘Prepare to say goodbye to at least 1 of your children.’ It’s inconceivable.’: Twin mom feels both ‘joy’ and ‘pain’ after 1 twin dies and the other survives
“It was the only time we had with her. We were able to hold her and see her sweet face, it was beautiful. ‘Everything happens for a reason. At least you have one.’ They are poking the wound. The gravity of what happened to us is too hard for people to imagine.”
‘We need to get out now!’ A woman was beating on the chest of a body. ‘It’s too late, he’s gone.’: Security officer describes scene of Las Vegas mass shooting ‘utterly shocking, surreal’
“BANG! ‘This is actually happening!’ I realized at that moment, this is a real. He started to target where we were hiding. People were screaming. One woman in a cocktail dress asked, ‘Where can I use the restroom?’ as bullets flew over our head. Suddenly, it all got quiet. Deafening silence. I couldn’t call my fiancé to tell her I loved her one last time.”
‘I wouldn’t have taken you out if I knew how big you were.’ I wanted to hide, from myself and everyone else’: Young woman undergoes weight loss transformation, ‘I’ve finally found myself’
“If I didn’t make a major change, I was going to kill myself — one bite of food at a time. I’d tried everything short of having an eating disorder and had no hope. ‘How was your surgery? Oh, you lost weight, how did you do it? You took the EASY way out.’ That last comment is one that hurts me. It hurt me then and it hurts me now.”
‘Your body is my worst nightmare. Make your account private, you trigger me.’: Young woman describes ‘feelings of doubt’ while recovering publicly from anorexia
“At 8 years old, my pediatrician said, ‘You need to eat more salad.’ My eating disorder started to spin out of control. ‘I’m sorry my body terrifies you, it’s healthy. I refuse to hide because I’m larger than you’d like.'”
‘The baby is going to suffer. We can take care of this right now.’ They told me to abort him.’: Mom says she came to ‘peace’ with her son’s Down Syndrome diagnosis, he became a ‘warrior’
“’I don’t know what’s wrong, but please fix him!’ She was treating my son like a mole that could simply be removed and thrown in the trash. I knew I had to protect him. Handing him over to the surgeons knowing I may never see my baby boy again was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. We are better people because of Eli.”
‘Addie will never walk,’ they said. She took 4 steps at a time. ‘She is WALKING!’: Mom says her daughter is an ‘incredible miracle’ with a ‘fighting spirit’ despite Hydrocephalus diagnosis
“You don’t know God! You don’t know what He can do!’ I know doctors have knowledge, but maybe, just maybe, God has other plans. And they were wrong! I am proud of Addie and her fighting attitude.”
‘What drugs did you take while pregnant?’ I locked us indoors and REFUSED to bring her out.’: Mom describes daughter with limb difference as ‘devastating’ at first, then ‘her biggest joy’
“’What a freak. Stay away from that little weird girl.’ People can be cruel. But my husband said, ‘Look at her. You have a beautiful daughter.’ She gives her siblings a run for her money. She is different, not less.”
‘YES! Could this actually be true? One sister the surrogate, the other sister an egg donor!’: Gay dads reveal ‘blessed’ surrogacy journey with sisters, the ‘most fabulous aunties imaginable’ to their son
“‘We aren’t going to be daddies.’ I couldn’t see any hope on the horizon. Then, in the most amazing twist of events, she asked if we’d consider her sister as our surrogate. ‘YES!’ We were blown away. I was jumping. We all sat around the table, and voila! TWO LINES. I shouted, ‘You’re pregnant!’ We did a huge group hug.”