“Band camp started. I was having trouble breathing and couldn’t walk to class. I was given an inhaler to use, but it didn’t help. One specialist said I would never get better.”
‘He told me, ‘It’s all in your head.’ I hoped something bad would happen to me so I’d be taken seriously.’: High schooler diagnosed with Pulmonary Hypertension undergoes open heart surgery, ‘I’m grateful for this second chance at life’
‘She told her daughter, ‘I’m sorry.’ She gave her a kiss and handed her to me. She left without her baby.’: Woman becomes close to birth mom during adoption, ‘There is no love without loss’
“Within a couple of days, she said, ‘If you want to choose me, I want to choose you.’ It became official. I was shaking. I’m not blind to the fact that in order to call her mine, there was a lot of hurt that had to take place.”
‘Today I sobbed in my car. He wanted to take her to a concert with matching shirts. Her daddy was the biggest undercover Swifty.’: Widow writes gratitude lists during grief journey, ‘I have to remind myself this is only temporary’
“My daughter has been playing Taylor Swift on repeat. Songs trigger things. Even angsty teenagey songs. While the rain poured down on my drive home alone, I sobbed. I would give anything to hear him say ‘Hey, Mama!’ to my mom again.”
‘With every contraction I felt a pit in my stomach. I didn’t want to have him, I wanted the nightmare to end.’: Expecting mom struggles with anxiety during COVID-19, ‘I had to learn to let go’
“Am I ready for the possibility of my son being swept out of my arms and placed on a ventilator? I was afraid of the arrival of our sweet innocent boy. I broke down on the bathroom floor.”
‘SURGERY? I’m not letting anyone cut me open.’ The doctor pointed out things protruding from my back.’: Woman endures 7-hour scoliosis surgery, ‘I’m happy to say I came out on top’
“I immediately started crying. Why would God decide to make my spine curvy and my back ugly and cause me to have to go through this? This could be my last backflip into the pool. This could be my last time flipping around at the trampoline park.”
‘Mom, your hair smells good.’ I wondered what in the world changed. In fact, I’m showering less than before COVID hit.’: Mom realizes this ‘time of stillness’ will remain in kids’ memories
“Had I changed dry shampoo? I didn’t think so. My face lotion was the same Mary Kay I had been using for months. Why were they suddenly enamored with my smell? Then, it hit me. We’ve never had this much time together before.”
‘Today a friend shared on social media that her medically complex son isn’t sleeping and she’s tired. ‘You should be grateful your son is alive.’: Special needs mom calls for end to ‘Gratefulness Shame Game’
“She was told, ‘You should be grateful your son is alive.’ As someone who sits through my own season of suffering, I’ll tell you: most of us know the Good. But it does not negate the suffering. They just co-exist.”
‘We usually tell women at this stage to complete their families.’ I was only 17. That wasn’t an option. I had no idea how unlucky I’d be.’: Woman battles stage 4 endometriosis, 2 miscarriages, and hysterectomy
“I was about to turn 25, recently separated. I had only been dating this guy for a month, and had told him I couldn’t get pregnant. Now, here I was, in my aunt’s bathroom, staring at this stick like it had just back-handed my momma. I scheduled my first OB appointment since my regular gynecologist/surgeon is not an OB. ‘I don’t see a baby,’ she said as nonchalantly as humanly possible.”
‘He was dying before my eyes. Doctors said, ‘He must be teething.’ He cried for 18 hours a day.’: Mom births baby with rare neurodegenerative disease, ‘Listen to your gut’
“The doctor glanced at my son’s chart, looked up at me, and said, ‘I’m going to go get you in to see the best pediatrician we have.’ I remember running into her arms saying, ‘Thank you. Thank you for finding something.’”
‘I used to avoid social gatherings because I was so scared to be seen in a swimsuit. I would sit outside the pool, fully clothed, as my kids begged me to have fun with them.’: Woman urges ‘you are more than what you look like in a swimsuit’
“I missed out on so much. I missed out on moments I can never get back. Finally, I realized enough is enough. My kids, my family, my (true) friends absolutely DO NOT care how I look in a swimsuit, and I will bet you my next paycheck yours don’t either.”