Emily Richey is a graduate of Pace University NYC. She has written and edited for multiple online platforms, including Love What Matters. She spends her free time petting stray cats.
‘My children BEGGED me to quit. I clung to my right to drink the trauma away. I woke to my pills missing.’: Mom of 2 overcomes alcoholism, ‘My kids celebrate my sobriety with me’
“I moved in with a handsome British banker after 8 months of dating. All the while, he was lying about having a wife. I didn’t see sobriety as anything but a death sentence.”
‘My doctor was disinterested in my health. ‘It’s a circus people disease. You don’t have it.’ I felt defeated.’: Woman diagnosed with Ehlers Danlos, ‘I’m thankful for those who’ve stood by me’’
“Overnight, I woke up ill. I was met with disbelief and put-downs. ‘Girls your age struggle with anxiety.’ I struggled to walk up stairs. I would wake up from a full night’s sleep and need to go back to bed an hour later.”
‘Is there more than one?’ He said, ‘It’s TRIPLETS!’ The worst was happening. I rode in the ambulance in fear.’: After multiple losses, family welcomes adopted son on ‘Double Rainbow Day’
“It was like a dark cloud was overhead. ‘Should we try one more time? Is it too dangerous?’ I started praying for a sign. And boy did I get one. We took a shaky step. Then another. And another.”
‘I was billed $7,600 to end a pregnancy I desperately wanted. I didn’t know I’d have to choose.’: After miscarriages, woman starts motherhood movement, ‘I found healing’
“The car stopped and I ran to the bathroom. I was greeted by the most unwelcome guest: an amount of bright red, to this day 5 years later, makes my heart stop to remember. I was angry at the world.”
‘His belly looks distended.’ Suddenly, he wasn’t fine. They had to run tests, but I just knew. I prayed a million prayers.’: Preemie saved by NICU nurse, ‘His personality shines’
“Things didn’t go as planned. Usually, when they call, they start by saying everything is fine. They did not say that. We had to learn how to touch him without causing him pain.”
‘The girls stood outside, waiting for me. My fat was a weakness. I called my mom, sobbing. I wouldn’t be the same.’: Bullied makeup artist on self-love journey goes viral, ‘Love yourself as is’
“School was a scary place to be. Kids called me fat. I told my mom, ‘I want to lose weight.’ I wasn’t deemed ‘Instagram-worthy. It became my weakness.”
‘Was I a mistake?’ I was terrified she didn’t love me. I kept trying to be the ‘perfect’ person.’: Korean American adoptee searches for birth mom, ‘I’m thankful she gave me life’
“My family was not ‘the norm’ and I feared being rejected. ‘Do you think about me?’ I was so scared she was angry. I felt incredibly confused, lost, and had a heavy sense of unrest.”
‘His intestines were twisted. ‘He likely won’t survive.’ He quickly added, ‘But miracles do happen.’: Miracle baby with Kabuki Syndrome defies 10% survival rate, ‘This is only the beginning’
“The medical team sat down with us, ‘We’re worried.’ They prepared us for the worst. We continued to watch Oliver gain fluid and wondered what would be.”
‘But the other children are doing well!’ I’d go anywhere for him. ‘Someone must have a solution!’: Mom loses son to heart defect, starts retreat for other child loss moms, ‘It’s our way forward’
“They wanted to do multiple surgeries. The words coming out of their mouths made me physically sick. I was left in a puddle of my own tears on the hospital bathroom floor. I told him if there was help on Mars, I’d buy a rocket ship.”
‘Dear God, please bring me a 4-year-old sister.’ Then came an email. ‘Let’s not get our hopes up.’ I wanted to protect her.’: Couple adopts 3 ‘unlikely siblings,’ ‘We are a family’
“I couldn’t shake this feeling. ‘I have this strong sense we have a child who is already alive.’ I whispered to my husband. ‘Nothing would surprise me at this point,’ he responded.”