Sophia San Filippo

Managing Editor & SEO Lead

Based in New York City, Sophia San Filippo has worked with Love What Matters as a lead editor and content curator since early 2019 and has acted as Managing Editor since early 2021. She is a Summa Cum Laude graduate of Binghamton University who holds a Bachelor of Arts in English Literature, Creative Writing, and Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies. She is passionate about personal storytelling and creating a positive space in media to better the lives of others. On a typical day you can find her rocking out at her local concert venue, admiring nature, or baking her latest kitchen experiment.

We Were 2 Hopeless Drug Addicts Society Had Written Off—Now We’re Sober Together

“I came from a good home. I didn’t suffer physical or sexual abuse. I didn’t feel ‘less than.’ I was a 3-sport athlete, excellent student. But I found a new love: drinking and getting high. My friend’s parents let us get wasted in their houses. I’d wake up, teeth chattering from withdrawals. I remember thinking, ‘I’m a college graduate! How did this happen?!’ Addiction had me whipped, and bad.”

‘I blurted out, ‘Hey! Let’s leave our waitress a $50 tip!?’ The times we have nothing to give are the exact moments we need to.’: Couple erase $54,000 mountain of debt, give back to others for holiday season

“The pit in my stomach was always there. Every day. $54,000 of debt robbed me of a peaceful marriage and filled our lives with fear. We wanted to be the type of people who saved, paid in cash for things. Last week after Christmas shopping, I stopped for an unplanned lunch at a restaurant. Something funny happened when we began to be intentional with our money. I could feel our hearts changing.”

‘My boyfriend went into a depression over his ex’s miscarriage. Then, our pregnancy test came back positive. We were terrified.’: Couple in tears after ‘guardian angel’ emerges on rainbow baby ultrasound

“‘We can no longer detect the fetal heart rate.’ He couldn’t discuss the loss with anybody. After the months of unsaid words came out, we started discussing having a baby of our own. He was hesitant. He didn’t want me to go through the same pain. After the positive pregnancy test, we were both overjoyed and terrified.”

‘I was single, broken, and had no money. I didn’t plan on loving anybody. Then, I met ‘her.’ I froze.’: Man shares happy ending with wife after chance meeting, ‘she is my greatest gift’

“When I met her, I froze. I felt like I’d known her forever, how could I have? I was broken, with nothing to offer any woman. I prayed fervently, ‘Please, get her OUT of my life.’ I was afraid. Collectively, we drove over 50,000 miles to get to one another. I rented cars, took a bus, borrowed cars, and even tried to take the train. She chiseled me out of myself, out of my hurt, out of my fear.”

‘She gets no sleep at all. She has no time for herself. She intentionally loses herself in him so he knows he is loved.’: Husband pens sweet mom appreciation letter to ‘fierce’ wife

“Labor pains, breastfeeding, postpartum hormones. She looks at herself in the mirror, wondering if her body will ever look the same again. I thought I knew what motherhood entailed. Like most new dads, I only experienced it as an outsider. I saw my mother, sister, and friends do it. I got the gist of it. Or at least I thought I did. But what I didn’t know was how little I really knew.”

‘We won’t have a little voice waking us up Christmas morning, no opening presents. We put up lights, even though they can’t express their excitement.’: Special needs mom shares reality of Christmas season, ‘Our babies are the gift’

“Our Christmas is different than yours. We get no excited screams when they see what Santa brought. It’s struggling with gift ideas. What do you get a non-mobile, non-verbal child? It’s walking past all the cool toys at the front of every store, wishing our child could play with them. Our Christmas is different, but it’s still so magical.”

‘We can’t do anything else.’ I was 18 with a deceased baby. They pulled a drain tube out and her little belly filled with blood.’: Teen loses daughter to congenital heart disease, donates 455 oz. of breast milk to save sick NICU babies

“She had open heart surgery at just 1 day old. I was terrified. My little girl was on full life support. ‘Why would God give me a sick baby?’ She was bleeding out. I decided to turn something so painful into something beautiful. Even though I couldn’t save my baby, I decided I could save others.”

‘You’re too young to be so serious.’ ‘It won’t last.’ I ignored it all. I knew deep down it wasn’t just puppy love.’: Teen mom marries young, births 2 kids despite criticism, ‘When you meet the love of your life, you’ll know’

“I met and started dating my husband at 16. I was infatuated with this boy I met at the mall, with Justin Bieber hair. ‘You’re 16. It won’t last forever.’ ‘Be prepared to do this on your own. Babies are hard on couples, especially so young.’ ‘We’re very happy for you, but do you think this is a good idea? To get married? You’re too young.’ Whether you’re 15, or 50, when you meet the love of your life, you will know right away. I’m so glad I didn’t listen.”

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