“If your gut tells you something is wrong, go for a second, third, or even fourth opinion.”
‘You should lose weight before considering having a baby.’ This left me in tears.’: Woman battling PCOS, male factor infertility candidly shares journey to IVF
‘We see you as you look at the dark screen, tears running down your face, as we zoom in on her tiny heart.’: Nurse’s heart wrenching open-letter to moms of stillborn babies
“We see you as we drive home in silence, attempting to clear our mind, so when we walk through our door we can pretend we are okay.”
‘They tell us, ‘It’s like nothing you’ve ever known. Trust me.’ We smile politely and worry again about the fear of failing.’: New mom shares motherhood journey, ‘They were right’
“But one night, after sweat, tears, and pain, we are there. Experiencing the rush of our hearts separating from our bodies and arriving as a tiny human—suddenly free in this giant world. A piece of our souls, breathing the same air, thumping its own heart, but still needing us.”
‘I have babies to deliver. Yours is dying, so make it quick.’ She reached in, ripped her out.’: Mom opens up about horrifying medical malpractice causing severe disability, repeat stillbirths
“Had the nurse just called an emergency, had the doctor just put aside that she didn’t like our parental choices… we wouldn’t have to live with this unbearable pain.”
‘I remember not liking my thighs, thinking I should have a flatter stomach, being frustrated with my stretch marks. That’s insane.’: Mom urges others to accept their bodies as they are
“We are constantly bombarded with the idea that we are not enough. I won’t normalize what should not be normal.”
I Want To Conceive, But I Don’t Want To Keep Trying
“My body is exhausted, my mind feels lost, and my spirit has been continually crushed. Month after month we try so hard, but are still left with nothing more than a handful of negative tests. Yet, I still can’t get myself to give it all up and quit.”
‘Positive? How is that possible? Our youngest only 10 months old, I stared blankly at the pregnancy test.’: Mom candidly details journey with 3 under 3
“Oh, God. I was going to have 4 kids, 3 under age 3. How was I possibly going to handle two toddlers AND an infant while coaching our eldest through virtual learning? I called my friend of 20 years, shaking and sick to my stomach with the test in my hand: ‘I don’t think I can do it.’ She said simply, ‘You can. And you will.'”
‘My husband said, ‘It’s a girl!’ I was terrified. How could I connect with such a huge mother wound?’: Girl mom, child trauma survivor urges ‘you can break generational patterns’
“Finding out I was pregnant was an initial shock. I had vowed I would never have children. How could I mother children if I didn’t have a mother example to rely on? After the initial shock, I became ecstatic about the possibilities – until I realized I had a 50-50 chance of having a daughter!”
‘We live in one of the wealthiest nations in the world, but we’re leaving women behind in mass.’: Working mom advocates for paid maternity leave
“Because of paid leave, I didn’t have to make the hard choices thousands of parents have to make in this country. The choice between caring for myself and my child physically, or caring for us both financially. The choice between halting my career and having a child. The choice between staying or going while I looked a new little human in the eyes.”
‘Your aunt’s house burned to the ground last night. Andrew didn’t make it out.’ For the first time in my life, I felt free.’: Sexual abuse survivor shares healing journey through sobriety and motherhood
“I was six years old the first time it happened. He asked if I wanted to play a game called ‘Truth or Dare.’ By the time I was in middle school, I understood drinking. Suddenly, nothing seemed awful anymore.”