“A lot of people think it’s just a ‘tube’ of sorts transporting nutrients to their baby. But…it’s so much more intricately designed than that!”
‘I love inspecting the vessels in umbilical cords. My awe never ceases over how our bodies are so intricately woven in the womb. I love to share my excitement over what others consider ‘gross.’
‘My husband was fuming. I was BORN to be her mom. She is here to prove everyone wrong.’: Daughter diagnosed with ‘extremely rare condition’ Lissencephaly, family ‘cheering for her every step of the way’
“In the coldest bedside manner alive, the doctor said, ‘There is no cure. If she lives, she’ll stop mentally developing at 2 months old. Here’s some paperwork. Any questions?’ I stared at him, my body slowly over heating. I told my husband to get me out of there. I looked up at the sky and thought, ‘Well, here we go.’”
‘I spent hours searching, which told me my daughter had autism and was mentally impaired. I cried and cried for weeks, absolutely devastated my child was ‘not like the rest.’
“I started to notice she wasn’t ‘just like her sister’ around 9 months old. She still didn’t have her first teeth, and was barely babbling any words, let alone noises.”
‘I heard rumbling uncharacteristic of the bathroom. Shouting ensued. I burst in to discover my son had hurled a suitcase into the shower at his sister.’: Mom’s ‘wild’ and ‘unpredictable’ son
“I heard a frantic screaming from upstairs. My daughter had gone into the bathroom to use the toilet. This provoked the unbridled anger of her brother. Infuriated, he stood and peed on her in retribution.”
‘How could this be happening again? My body did not want to let go of my baby, and neither did I. Nothing prepares you for delivering your dead child.’
“The very cord that was meant to sustain her ended her life so abruptly.”
‘Hey, Grace. A baby girl was abandoned at the hospital. She doesn’t even have a name. Can you come pick her up in an hour?’: Couple adopt abandoned baby with special needs
“I open the fridge, over and over, to prove to children there is always food. I attend IEP meetings and I advocate for kids. But you know what else I do?”
‘We just don’t know right now. We will have to wait and see.’ WHAT?!? In less than 24 hours, my sweet, active, PERFECT baby boy was paralyzed from the neck down.’
“As the doctor was trying to tell me it was ‘just a virus,’ I looked at her and said, ‘But he can’t move.’ She suddenly stopped and looked at him a little closer. After prompting him, he still did not move. I saw the panic rush across her face. My entire world collapsed in front of me.”
‘Despite having 5 beautiful children, I still couldn’t shake the feeling our family was not complete. ‘Surely we have room for one more, right?’: Family of 9 shares adoption journeys, God’s answers to prayers
“At only 17 years old, while still a senior in high school, I vividly remember the intense fear I felt when I looked at that pregnancy test. What would become of me? I had always been the good girl – the one that got good grades and followed the rules.”
‘I was so skinny my ribs poked through my shirt. I was an easy target. I couldn’t fight back.’: Man battles ‘body dysmorphia’ after years of bullying, finds ‘confidence’ in new body
“I was pushed around, thrown, kicked until I passed out. I looked in the mirror and felt ashamed of how I looked. I didn’t tell anyone what was going on. Until one day I fell to the floor at my mom’s house and cried like I never had and talked about driving off a bridge. I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like for my mom to see her 6’8″ son breaking down in front of her, not knowing how to help.”
‘I was cleaning my wedding ring. I’m a ‘guys’ guy. My hands stay banged up and dirty. I work on cars, the yard, they get dirty. My ring bares the brunt.’
“Friends have asked why I take the time to clean it when it will get dirty and no one will notice a difference. ‘You’re the man, no one cares how pretty your ring is’. Here’s the thing. IT. DOES. MATTER. Why?”