“Josh came home. He suggested we go for a walk, but when I told him to just take our daughter. He couldn’t understand why – and that’s when I lost it. I was screaming at everyone, ‘WHY AM I HERE? I DON’T UNDERSTAND. WHAT IS THE POINT.’”
‘I was pregnant. I was only 21. I started bleeding. ‘Maybe it’s for the best,’ one family member said. This was supposed to be the happiest time of my life. Instead, it was a nightmare.’
‘I was extremely nervous to tell her. Without missing a beat she replied, ‘That doesn’t change anything for me. I want to be with you.’
“I was so afraid of being found out and hospitalized, I hid my feelings. After a half hour of awkward stuttering, I finally spit it out by saying I understood if she didn’t want to continue this relationship.”
‘I took maternity photos in the dress I wore to my husband’s funeral.’: Mom-to-be didn’t know she was pregnant when husband died, ‘As I kissed his forehead goodbye, I had no idea I was carrying his son’
“I didn’t know I was pregnant on the day of the funeral. Clothes were strewn about in a panic as I rummaged through every drawer, hamper and closet 2 hours before I was supposed to meet the photographer. Then I saw it. Hanging quietly in the corner where it had remained for the last 7 months.”
‘You are a mother. We all are. No matter how different our journeys may be, we all cross paths at some point. We are all in this together.’
“You are part of a special group of women. You are a member of a very select tribe. You are never alone. You are seen. You are heard. You are valued.”
‘My husband called. I knew something was up. ‘She delivered a baby last night.’ I shook. I cried. He wouldn’t be the only brown face in our family.’
“A week later I received an email. I thought, ‘Leave me alone! I have a brand new baby I wasn’t expecting! Just give me a chance!’ When I clicked on the email, it wasn’t them reminding me to do my update. It was their birth mother.”
‘I just can’t do it.’ I was left at the altar. I caught him in a half-run and collapsed to the ground, sobbing.’: Woman left at altar on her wedding day
“Seconds later, the crowd was all standing. There was an eerie silence now. Someone said, ‘Well, someone go after him!’ I saw my mother rise up. ‘I AM GOING TO KILL HIM! Almost instantly, I shouted, ‘NO!’ My sister and my mother ran over, got on their knees, and held me.”
‘Are you sure you’re pregnant? You hide it so well,’ they said while I was 8 months pregnant.’: Single mom says ‘no one thought my body could handle childbirth’
“‘Guess what? It’s happened!’ I threw the pregnancy test to my 19-year-old boyfriend. During labor, I had no support from my partner. ‘This isn’t how it’s supposed to be. This 100% was not the plan.’ I ended my relationship. ‘Might as well be a single mom, I basically am one anyway.’”
‘Do you remember your name?,’ one nurse asked. My mouth felt like I was chewing cotton balls. ‘What year is it?’I responded with a weak, soft voice as tears roll down my face.’
“‘Bye Mom! See you later!’ I gave her tight hug, and left on dad’s motorcycle. I was in heaven, having the best time of my life. I turned my head for half of a second, and saw a big bus approaching us. That is all I remember.”
‘WHAT IS THAT?’: Expecting couple surprised to find girl-to-be is actually a boy at birth
“We sat there and just LAUGHED. All the pain, weakness, and desperation of the hours leading up to his birth vanished.”
‘He was gasping, pale and sweaty. I held him down so the nurses could get close. They wouldn’t come near him. Something was wrong.’: Woman loses husband to ‘pain attack’ after machinery accident
“He was operating a piece of machinery, like he did every day. But today. September 13. The entire slab of concrete popped out of the ground and caught his toe, pulling his foot and leg under 3,000 pounds of concrete. I remember shouting his name in his face, telling him to look at me. To breath. His head rolled to me. He wasn’t there in his eyes. ‘Can I see him? I just want to know he’s ok.’ The nurse came out and threatened to call security.”