“People will comment, ‘We don’t have allergies but…’ Honestly? We were given instructions to ‘avoid peanuts!’ Epi doesn’t solve the reaction. It’s a stopwatch giving you time to get to a hospital.”
‘He swiped a tiny nibble from his brother’s peanut butter sandwich. That day, our lives changed forever.’: Mom shares hard-won lessons from experience and allergy community
‘My 2-year-old became lethargic overnight. His balance was off and his features started to droop. I wanted to take back every decision.’: Mom details hearing impaired son’s journey with cochlear implant
“’Everything went perfectly! He’s done.’ If that sounds too good to be true, it’s because it was. His balance was off and his features drooped. Nothing could have prepared me. Our story was not the one I’d hoped for, but it was incredible to watch.”
‘Ethan screamed, ‘NO! How am I supposed to live without her?’ He hit the wall and ran out of the room. She’d gone too long without oxygen.’: Girl loses life to influenza, ‘We miss and love her so much’
“The doctor reassured, ‘Today is the sickest she’ll be. Once the anti-virals kick in, she’ll be on the mend.’ Around 3:00 a.m. I awoke and thought, ‘Finally! The medicine is working.’ I lay there a moment longer and got a sick gut feeling. I said her name and heard nothing. In the police car, there were no sirens. There was no rush to the hospital. ‘This is where I give you the if-this-was-my daughter speech. It’s time to let go.'”
‘I have 7 children. They do not give me purpose and meaning. My world does not revolve around them.’: Mom finds meaning beyond her children, ‘I will not burden them with being my universe’
“I didn’t want to be a mother. I knew I couldn’t do this. Parenting involves sacrifice. I have a purpose outside of them, passions and interests that aren’t dependent on them.”
‘I didn’t know that about you,’ said a patient at work. I was embarrassed to be placed in the same category.’: Widow shares why she carries late fiancé’s Narcotics Anonymous key chains
“My first reaction was to be defensive; my second was the opposite. The second reaction came when I realized why I carry these key chains. Jamie was 5 years sober when he bought a pill he didn’t know was fentanyl, and he died. Jamie was 29 years old. He was a dad to five kids.”
‘What’s your kid’s biological mom’s name?’ Our kids’ sister had been placed with my best friend. My heart leaped.’: Couple adopts 5 siblings from foster care, ‘There was a greater purpose in it all’
“I picked up my phone and thought to myself, ‘Hmm, I wonder what she’s up to.’ I saw an image I thought was a mistake. It was baby number 4. ’Somehow, someway, send that baby to her siblings.’ I knew in my heart we were going to experience this all over again.”
‘This isn’t normal behavior.’ His lip marks were all over the window. She saved me that night.’: Mother survives grief predator with daughter’s help, ‘There is hope’
“‘Just stop it! Act normal! I don’t even know this person you’re acting like!’ I was sitting firmly in the ‘acute sorrow, helplessness, hopelessness, depression, and despair’ section. I suffered greatly at the hands of this man, and so did my child.”
‘WHAT IF THEY TAKE MY KIDS?’ I dig around the house, opening boxes and leaving folders full of paper sprawled open like a tornado hit it.’: Mom shares ‘one hour in a life with anxiety’
“My brain is on hyperdrive. ‘They’ll probably arrest you, too. But is the gate closed? The dog can escape if the gate isn’t closed.’ Now, it’s 9:30 p.m. and I’m lying in bed having a panic attack because I can’t prove my kids are even mine. The only solution was to get out of bed.”
‘Did you get kicked in the face by a horse?’ In that moment, I saw red.’: Woman shares cleft lip and palate surgeries to give other parents hope
“To tell you I was hurt doesn’t do it justice. In that moment, I saw red. ‘No, I was born with a cleft lip and palate.”
‘I don’t want to die.’ Tears ran down his face as he held his little brother’s hand. I want to take away his pain.’: Mom says 7-year-old son with rare cancer is ‘a force to be reckoned with’
“He started wearing his winter coat throughout the day and complained he was cold. I noticed he had some swelling on his privates. In my gut, I had a bad feeling something just wasn’t right.”