“My husband and I sat silently in the front seat of my car. ‘Your baby has Trisomy 21.’ For a moment, my heart stung. My husband deployed to the Middle East for 6 months. Our adventure continued.”
‘A tear of pride rolled down his cheek. ‘My son.’ Even if my husband was on the other side of the world, we were together.’: Military wife shares son’s journey with Down syndrome, ‘Focus on the good’
‘Can you adopt my baby?’ 6 weeks later, our world came crashing down. ‘How could this happen AGAIN?’: Couple battling infertility share foster care journey, ‘There’s purpose in the pain’
“All the puzzle pieces came together right before our eyes. ‘There’s no way we can experience any more loss.’ We received the most dreaded message… it didn’t feel real. I knew there were miracles to come.”
‘The nurse let out a huge gasp. ‘I’m sorry, we thought you were sleeping!’ I wasn’t supposed to hear. Heavily pregnant, all I could think was, ‘Is is true? Do I have it?’: Mom details battle with ovarian cancer, survivor’s guilt
“I woke up in a hospital room, my husband at my bedside and my dad across from me. All I remember saying was, ‘Is it true?’ Inside me was a tumor the size of a cantaloupe, and a baby the size of a plum.”
‘Do you tell the guy? Can you DATE?’ It came on SO fast. I’m preparing myself for the future, incurable or not.’: Woman diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, ‘It won’t stop me from living’
“I started tripping. People called me ‘clumsy.’ I thought it was normal because people trip over things, don’t they? It all happened unexpectedly. ‘I’m going blind. I’m really going blind.’ It came on SO fast.”
‘Everyone was staring. I’m quietly praying, ‘Please help us.’ Then I look over, and I’m FIGHTING back tears.’: Mom shares touching act of kindness with Walmart employee
“Ava screamed across the store. She was in distress…overstimulated by the lights and the many sounds. I was FRANTIC. I look over and Conner came over to hold her hand, while repeatedly telling us everything was going to be OK.”
‘If I sent you home now, I’d be ashamed to call myself a nurse.’ She held my hand, and advocated for me.’: Chronic illness warrior inspired to become nurse after act of kindness
“I relied on nurses for almost everything. Without hesitation, they lifted my spirits and held my hand. They allowed me to trust the health care system again and reclaim my passion. I knew I wanted to be part of that change.”
‘Why did you keep having kids if you weren’t happy?’ I was the ‘bad guy’ for breaking up my family.’: Single mom of 4 navigates life after divorce, ‘Happiness comes first’
“From the outside looking in, we were the perfect family. ‘Maybe if we just take this one vacation, everything will magically change.’ I felt worthless and unloved. My boys were the only thing that made life worthwhile.”
‘I have two toddlers that need a place to stay.’ He was nonverbal, drug-exposed, and had a brain lesion. We were terrified.’: Military family adopts brothers from foster care, ‘Miracles happen every day’
“We decided to put our YES out there and let God take care of the rest. The social workers started bringing in medical equipment, trash bags full of belongings. It was magical and heartbreaking all at the same time.”
‘What am I doing wrong?’ Our typically fun little boy seemed like a shell of himself. He didn’t like being touched or hugged. I blamed myself.’: Mom shares son’s autism diagnosis journey
“I always knew my son was different. He fixated on things that seemed odd. The way a hairbrush felt, tags on his clothes, the sound the dog’s collar made when he scratched it a certain way. I didn’t feel like I was doing a good job as his mom.”
‘The first 8 years of being a parent were rough. ‘It’s the after-baby blues. They’ll go away.’ I felt like a failure.’: Mom shares journey with postpartum depression, ‘The NOW is where I’m content’
“I hated watching my husband sleep when I was exhausted. I felt such emptiness. I was told, ’It’ll get better when you get out of the house more.’ I always responded, ‘Yeah, you’re probably right. But I knew it wasn’t the case. I was depressed again.”