LJ Herman is a former editor at Love What Matters and lives in Colorado. LJ is a concert, ticket and technology enthusiast. He has seen the Dave Mathews Band over one hundred times and counting.
‘I was diagnosed with stage one cervical cancer at the age of 24. Because I was 24, I was not entitled to a free smear and the early cell changes in my cervix were not picked up.’
“I started bleeding between my periods and bleeding after sex. I went to see my General Practitioner and was told to come back when I was 25 for a smear. I thought that’s fine. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I had cancer.”
‘She makes it look easy.’ This picture was snapped by my boss in the middle of a work day at the office. I think more work places can be more flexible.’: Working mom advocates for babies in the workplace, ‘It can be done’
“I hope other employers will see this picture and see that it CAN be done.”
‘Picture 1 is at my grandmother’s funeral. Picture 2 is at my sister’s funeral. Wearing the exact same shirt, laying in the exact same kind of casket.’: Woman loses sister to addiction
“Little did I know when I took the first picture of my inappropriately hilarious, charismatic little sister, that it would end up having such a surreal meaning behind it just a few short months later…”
‘We are not a same-sex couple, but we do share a daughter.’: Dads celebrate co-parenting with impromptu photo shoot
“Not only did I gain a daughter, I gained a brother and a best friend.”
‘You know what’s crazy? Every time I leave the kids with my husband, I treat him like a babysitter. I make sure snacks are ready, I lay out pajamas, I ask him 3 times if he will be okay.’
“When he goes out, he says, ‘Okay babe, I’m going…’ and I say, ‘Okay’ and he leaves. THAT’S IT.”
‘My boyfriend closed-fist punched me in the face, knocking me off my feet. My 230-pound boyfriend split open my face. The past 6 months of my life have felt like a slow torture.’: Woman recalls escaping domestic abuse relationship
“My boyfriend of almost 2 years came home from a 7-month deployment. Two days after he had been back, I found out he had not been faithful. When I found out, I proceeded to ask him to leave. He refused.”
‘We gave her a hard time. She frowned at us. Then said, ‘We’re doing it.’ Reluctantly we gathered around, goofing off and teasing the entire time. She stood right next to me.’
“Suddenly, I desperately needed to see her face again. I scrambled through boxes and boxes of family photos but she wasn’t in any of them.”
‘As our children become teens, they tell us THEY WANT independence. That THEY NEED it. They tell us they are grown up. That we are suffocating them.’
“’We don’t want a baby who is too attached.’ So we spend those early years pushing our children towards independence. They don’t need us as much as they think they do. We tell them they are big boys or girls. And we push. And we push.”
‘Chris came with baggage, his mother. To put it bluntly, she was toxic. From the moment Erica got serious with Chris, his mother was mad.’: Mom promises to never punish or mistreat son’s partners
“When Erica didn’t act a certain way, she ‘punished’ her by showing favoritism to her other grandchildren and leaving Erica and Chris’ kids out.”
‘This was our secret. How do you tell people something this big, but also tell them in the same breath it’s not a thing anymore, and also that you have no answers or explanations? So, we didn’t.’
“He instructed me to go home, and come back in a week to find out. There are no words to describe what it is like to drive around, go to the grocery store, go to work, etc. and wonder if today will be the day.”