Posts by: Colin Balfe

Colin Balfe is the Founder and Chief Content Officer of Love What Matters. Colin was inspired to start Love What Matters after his mother passed from Ovarian cancer. Through his grieving process, he saw the need to connect a like minded community around a deeply personal storytelling platform. He's proudest of the communities within LWM, strangers united by powerful and impactful experiences, underserved people connecting around mutual challenges, hopes and dreams. These communities include Adoption, Mental Health, Infertility, Addiction, Grief, Special Needs Parenting, LGBTQ+ and many more.

‘He thought I was drunk, but after hearing me slam my head several times due to seizing, he approached the stall and witnessed me convulsing on the floor.’

“I was rushed to the hospital with several Marines holding me down. My consciousness was fading. The first 4 hospitals turned me away. I awoke to a half-paralyzed body.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 22, 2019

‘I didn’t know who the father was. I continued to use drugs, until I received life-changing news. I was not expecting one baby, or two.’: Woman overcomes addiction, gives birth to triplets

“I began prostituting, and living out of hotels. When my daughter was 1-year-old, I left my 5th rehab facility and began getting sick. I assumed this was related to my hepatitis C. It wasn’t.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 21, 2019

‘The neck of my womb was open and was 100% effaced. I locked myself in my bathroom and refused to talk to my partner, the midwives or doctors.’

“My baby was struggling through contractions and distorting her head trying to get out. I screamed, cried, swore and kicked as I couldn’t understand what was going on.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 21, 2019

‘He said, ‘If I die. Nathan is the only person allowed to raise my daughter.’ What I didn’t know was how serious he took that statement.’

“I left the courtroom that day and did not see him for 9 months. He never showed up at the court ordered pick up. He never called. He had disappeared.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 18, 2019

‘Momma, your baby died?’ Cue my heart sinking into the earth. Bury me now. How do I explain this to my son? How. It was supposed to be quick, in and out in 10 minutes.’

“He grabbed me. He held me up as my body threatened to give out on me. I sobbed. Loudly. Unabashedly. In the middle of the parking lot. I climbed into the car, and after driving for a time, a little voice piped up.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 18, 2019

‘Less than 10 seconds changed everything. I was unable to get up, despite how hard I tried. Shock settled in. I overheard the words of some hospital tech, ‘SHATTERED!’ What did that mean?’

“I am not a fan of public restrooms but knew I would be on the road. That ‘smart’ decision changed my life forever.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 17, 2019

‘He was gentle, humble and funny. But he perfected deceit. The counselor urgently told me to take my kids and ‘get out while you still can.’

“I sat on the stairs thinking, ‘surely he will get sick of yelling at me at some point.’ He didn’t. So I locked myself in the bathroom. He broke the door down.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 17, 2019

‘I couldn’t walk without my body feeling like broken glass. How did this happen? All of a sudden I was a vegetable.’

“My head was spinning, my body was giving up on me, and the medications were slowly killing me. If I didn’t take my health into my own hands – I would be dead by now.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 17, 2019

‘It was only weeks since we’d said ‘I do.’ I don’t remember what the fight was about. His hand was wrapped in my hair, close to my scalp. Then he yanked. There I was, a pastor’s wife.’

“I was about to get in the shower when the phone rang. Surprised, as it was around 7:45 a.m., I stared at my mother-in-law’s name on the screen. My heart sank. He had left me a few voicemails a few days prior.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 16, 2019

‘My adoptive parents told me I was given up because my mother was too poor and couldn’t take care of me. Later on, I learned there was much more to the story.’

“She ended up getting remarried, and never told her husband about me. When she changed her mind, she met us in secret.”

Colin Balfe - Jan 16, 2019

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Colin Balfe

‘He thought I was drunk, but after hearing me slam my head several times due to seizing, he approached the stall and witnessed me convulsing on the floor.’

‘I didn’t know who the father was. I continued to use drugs, until I received life-changing news. I was not expecting one baby, or two.’: Woman overcomes addiction, gives birth to triplets

‘The neck of my womb was open and was 100% effaced. I locked myself in my bathroom and refused to talk to my partner, the midwives or doctors.’

‘He said, ‘If I die. Nathan is the only person allowed to raise my daughter.’ What I didn’t know was how serious he took that statement.’

‘Momma, your baby died?’ Cue my heart sinking into the earth. Bury me now. How do I explain this to my son? How. It was supposed to be quick, in and out in 10 minutes.’

‘Less than 10 seconds changed everything. I was unable to get up, despite how hard I tried. Shock settled in. I overheard the words of some hospital tech, ‘SHATTERED!’ What did that mean?’

‘He was gentle, humble and funny. But he perfected deceit. The counselor urgently told me to take my kids and ‘get out while you still can.’

‘I couldn’t walk without my body feeling like broken glass. How did this happen? All of a sudden I was a vegetable.’

‘It was only weeks since we’d said ‘I do.’ I don’t remember what the fight was about. His hand was wrapped in my hair, close to my scalp. Then he yanked. There I was, a pastor’s wife.’

‘My adoptive parents told me I was given up because my mother was too poor and couldn’t take care of me. Later on, I learned there was much more to the story.’

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