“Complete strangers would peer into her stroller and make comments about her everywhere we went. ‘Looks like she stuck her finger in the power socket,’ was a frequent comment.”
My Daughter Was Born With Uncombable Hair Syndrome (Yes, It’s A Real Thing)
‘I had to drop out of high school. My identity was being ripped from me.’: Young woman devastated after dropping out of school due to mental health problems, later graduates in adult education
“The one thing I was ‘known for’ was being taken from me. I vividly remember I’d have to hide in the bathroom before school started, practically unable to function, dragging myself to my classroom at the last minute. I felt entirely numb. I felt absolutely nothing. How could I not be graduating? It was my senior year!”
‘I’ve never seen him do that.’ I watched as he scratched his face in his sleep. It was a Hail Mary.’: Mom shocked by Celiac disease diagnosis after noticing ‘moody, volatile’ behavior in son
“I started seeing a shift. He was moody, had bouts of rage. He was volatile. Every moment felt like walking on eggshells. I felt constantly on edge, waiting on the next blow up. He was always tired. I mentioned all this to the pediatrician. Nothing fit. I was losing my sweetheart of a boy. Finally, I said, ‘What about Celiac?’”
‘Your son cut class today.’ I got the phone call no parent expects. ‘Excuse me?!?!’ I was LIVID.’: Mom comforts teen son battling depression, ‘We should treat mental illness the same as physical ailments’
“My first thought was, ‘They have the wrong boy.’ My son loves school! Frustrated, I yelled, grounded him. Then, the next morning, I heard it. Sobs coming from the shower. ‘Mom, I’m not feeling okay.’ He told me he felt extremely depressed. That it was so bad he contemplated killing himself and had skipped class to find a quiet space to cry alone and breathe. Instantly, I felt a pang in my heart.”
‘You’re so lucky to have the opportunity to be at home.’ So, I shut my mouth.’: Overwhelmed mom urges others ‘Don’t be quiet’ when feeling depressed, hurt, isolated
“No one mentions that you disappear into your own walls. A part of the furniture. Like an old armchair that’s jumped on all day and the last thing you want to do is talk to someone or be touched. We have to be grateful, so we shut our mouths. I’m in silence listening to others say, ‘I never felt like that, I loved it.’ Sinking deeper into our guilt.”
‘What’s going on, mom?’ Deep breath. I’ll never forget their little faces looking up at me.’: Wife suddenly loses husband to massive ruptured brain aneurysm during ‘hardest point in our relationship’
“‘The room looks good!,’ Eric peeked in. I didn’t smile. I didn’t say thank you. Instead, I was short with him. ‘Well, it’s done.’ We were hurting. ‘Come over here and give me a kiss,’ he smiled. I heard him say goodbye to the girls in the living room. He yelled, ‘love you’ and then the garage door slammed shut. Later, I heard my phone. It was a football coach’s number – not Eric’s. I pulled both of our blonde-headed girls to me. I wasn’t sure the words would escape me.”
‘What race are you guys?’: Woman appalled by grown adults who refused to sit near them in Buffalo Wild Wings
“This type of behavior should not be accepted.”
‘Walking through Target early this morning, I am overcome with emotions. Almost every customer were young moms.’: Mom of older children encourages ‘mamas of littles’ to enjoy every moment
“I allowed myself to be a momentary creeper. I just pulled back, parked my cart and watched all the sweet mamas. I wanted to say what all the elderly ladies used to say when they saw me in Target at 8 a.m. – ‘Enjoy it. It goes fast.’ But I resisted.”
‘A classmate tried to put a toy away. My daughter went ballistic, lashing out at the little girl, in hysterics.’: Mom ‘so mad’ at daughter’s ‘unfair’ autism diagnosis, ‘She’s viewed as weird, rude’
“I got a call from my daughter’s teacher. She said there had been a pretty catastrophic incident while cleaning up. I listened intently, but none of this was a surprise to me. I got off the phone and was so mad. That little girl would never ask her to play again; likely she’d run home and tell her parents about the bully in class.”
‘Birth control?!?!’ At 18, I was told I wouldn’t conceive. WELL, one little puck slipped past the goalie.’: Woman receives emergency hysterectomy at 23, ‘it still stings to think about’
“I was STRONGLY encouraged to wait for kids. My incision was paper thin. 3 months later, I was pregnant. My little baby was growing alongside fibroids the size of ORANGES. To make matters worse, he was sunny-side up. My life was in danger. In my foggy head, I heard, ‘Amber, we can’t get the bleeding to stop. Do you want your tubes tied?’ I woke up covered in blood.”