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.
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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.
“At the end of the day, I just wanted to be told it would be okay. I just wanted to be told my baby is beautiful, rather than different.”
“My boyfriend wasn’t always faithful and being a scared, pregnant teenager wasn’t easy. My boyfriend and baby’s dad asked me, ‘Can you get an abortion?’ I often put on a happy face for everyone, but at home alone with a toddler, I would lay in bed for hours, not wanting to get up. I wouldn’t brush my hair. I wouldn’t clean my house. I didn’t recognize myself and the people around me.”
“When I first saw our boy after he was whisked away, it looked more like a NASA mission. He was hooked up to so many computers, wires were coming out of everywhere. It was terrifying. It’s wonderful what they can do to keep our tiniest little ones alive. It’s a community you never want to be a part of, but once you’re in it, you make friends for life.”
“I was known for my beautiful hair. It was one of my biggest ‘selling points.’ One day, I woke up and my hair started to fall out. ‘When you are almost bald, please come back and we will look at it again.’ Five days later, I was back. I went from having really beautiful hair to being a baldie with a wig.”
“Immediately after birth, he began growing rapidly. He grew almost 3 inches and 8 pounds in 7 weeks. We were told Joshua’s condition is ‘without a doubt rare and genetic.’ Everywhere we went, people stared. Josh just wants to be everyone’s friend.”
“Our brief phone call couldn’t have been longer than 5 minutes, yet it changed everything we knew or expected for our future. I had been hoping that they were wrong. Terrified of the unknown, I put off buying anything for our baby. I smiled throughout my baby shower I didn’t even want to attend.”
“My parents had shed too many tears over me, and I couldn’t bear it to break their hearts again. I felt ready to die, but knew it wasn’t my time. I was weak. I gave up the reigns and opted for inpatient treatment. I was frustrated, and I let this be known. I would shout and hit the walls. I would argue. But gradually, I came to life again. I am no longer held back by my demons.”
“Hattie had been born with a significant deletion of her first chromosome. We had no idea what this all meant. Hattie was one in a billion. We received a plethora of mail. ‘Dear parent or guardian of a child with special needs.’ Special needs? Hattie doesn’t have special needs, does she? As far as we knew, Hattie seemed completely normal to us! We have learned to avoid the CAN’Ts and focus on all the CANs.”
“I used to get changed in P.E. and look at all the other girls around me. My hips were wider, my legs were thicker, and my stomach had a ‘flab’ to it. I was already in a C cup by the time I turned 12. I couldn’t bear being naked in front of my boyfriend. I would wear baggy t-shirts during sex, and he wasn’t allowed to see my boobs without a bra–I had forbidden that! My ex-boyfriends would tell me if I just lost weight, I’d be ‘unreal.’”
“Hands pointed at me as they whispered to each other, ‘She is deaf.’ I feared my daughter would not understand me. I feared I would not hear my daughter. One day, when she was in 2nd grade, a boy made her upset by making fun of my accent. She said, ‘My mom is deaf!’ This was just the beginning for her to witness my challenges. I sobbed as soon as we got home. My daughter comforted me, cried with me.”