“He asked, ‘Are you?’ Softly I said, ‘I am.’ I was shaking, crying, and hyperventilating. The baby I wasn’t sure I even WANTED, might not survive. All while thinking, ‘Life would be so much easier without being pregnant.’ I don’t swear much, but I definitely swore in that moment.”
“My flesh convinced me this was the time for me to be a patriot. I looked at her straight in the face and told her she was rude. I left. The same woman was standing there; I walked right up to her.”
“I’m certain I will end up in an ambulance, perhaps in another 7-11 parking lot as my husband dials 911. The panic will take over and I will feel death is imminent. I’ll be left wondering, once again, if I’m dying. This is my prison.”
“You’re happy about being pregnant, but also scared it could end. We know how swiftly things can go from life to death.”
“The doctor laid him on my chest and instant panic came over my face. He was a shade of blue. I had done this five times before. I knew what a newborn should look like. He began to throw up and for a newborn, it was a lot! Why was this happening?”
“I am watching my teacher friends talk about making wills. These are not the conversations we normally have in July. We are not healthcare workers or first responders. And for the love of God, do not give them fever reducers so you can send them to school.”
“She was a wreck, but the nurse came in with the news it was time for us to pack up and go. I urged the doctor to keep us there. ‘Insurance won’t pay.’ I can still feel the wind from doctors running past me, responding to the ‘code black.’ It haunts me.”
“My first stroke was at 11 weeks old. By the time I was 4, I had three open-heart surgeries. Once, I made a list of things I have tried over the years for my pain. It was three pages long. You name it, I’ve probably had it.”
“I needed to taste my mama’s pancakes. I just needed to feel my ‘home,’ and not through the blue light of a screen. I didn’t realize what a release it would be to just pull up in a familiar driveway, knock on a door, and have it open wide.”
“The doctor saw a spot on our baby’s brain that didn’t look quite right. Her brain had not completely divided into two complete hemispheres. We went from planning on welcoming a little girl into our family to planning a funeral.”
