“I had no time to digest this news, no time to research, no time to prepare. I went into early labor and delivered my daughter days later. More doctors, more scans, more blood work, all to be told my week-old daughter had stage III brain cancer. Terminal. ‘You can expect her to die soon.’ What was supposed to be the happiest few days of my life were the most painful and traumatic moments I’ll ever experience.”
“We went to Disneyland this week, and my son got 2nd degree burns on his hand and tummy. It was not from Disneyland, but it happened from being in the sun for long periods of time. 2nd degree burns. His hand is so swollen he can’t close it or use it.”
“The waiting room where now 6 times I have had to embarrassingly walk by other waiting patients, puffy, red and with mascara dripping down my cheeks.”
“Let me tell you all the things NOT to say to a mom about to have a C-section.”
“Looking at her reflection she is forced to blink to see clearly. Her gray hair is set in curlers. She is thinking about all the friends and family she has outlived. She considers bending down to fix her knee-high stocking, but instead, sighs deeply.
“I remember laying in my bed, crying, and asking God why He would make me if He was going to send me to Hell.”
“The first few weeks of motherhood felt very lonely. I felt so uncomfortable in my body and was searching for someone, anyone, to relate to. I saw other moms celebrating their postpartum bodies, but I could never find another plus size mother who was celebrated in the same way.”
“That’s how I knew he was the one: I didn’t care.”
“If she uses a Snapchat filter every time she takes a picture because it makes her feel pretty, let her do it. If she takes gym selfies to track her progress every day, let her do it. If she poses the same way in every picture because she likes that angle of her body the best, let her do it.”
“My husband, Jonas, began to look pale. We both chalked it up to jet lag and went on with the week. We had two small children and I was 14 weeks pregnant with our third, so being tired wasn’t out of the norm. Later that week, even picking up the kids’ toys would make him dizzy. Another week went by, all the while he continued to ride his bicycle over 20 miles a day. He came home that night after riding and had almost passed out while riding. ‘Enough is enough.’ I figured it couldn’t hurt to go to the doctor.”
