“I knew I was dying. I was a shell of the woman who had had a baby 7 months prior. The tumor had grown to take over half of my breast and the pain was unbearable.”
‘I have cancer.’ But how?! I’m 27 years old. I just had a baby! She couldn’t grow up without me. I wouldn’t allow it.’: New mom battles rare, aggressive form of breast cancer
‘My child shouted, ‘Mama, don’t forget wine’ in the aisles of the grocery store. I thought it was funny.’: Widow and mom shares journey with alcoholism
“I didn’t her every memory to be of me tipsy with a drink in my hand. Feeling grief without alcohol was the hardest thing I’ve had to do, but I had to walk through it and I’m proud of that.”
My Reality As A Burnt Out Nurse
“This is nursing. This is why we are burned out. This is why nurses and CNA’s are leaving the profession.”
‘I was in heaven holding my baby, but my brain was spiraling. ‘We need to get you help.’ I thought I was crazy.’: New mom overcomes postpartum depression, ‘I can be the mom I’ve always wanted to be’
“I remembered all the times I heard, ‘When it’s all too much and you’re feeling like you could hurt yourself or your baby, put them in a safe place and walk away.’ I remember thinking it will never happen to me, then crying when I realized it was happening in that very moment. I had hit my breaking point.”
‘There is something on the scan.’ If I was a betting woman, I’d have put everything on my strong, determined husband beating this illness.’: Widow shares grief journey after losing husband to melanoma
“This diagnosis would relentlessly fight against every treatment we tried. It all started with those six little words.”
‘We should be married,’ he said to my mom. She explained to him they had been married for 50 years.’: Caregiver to dad with Alzheimer’s shares journey, ‘I won’t regret the time I spend with him’
“I felt like I had been hit with a bag of bricks. I was sad, angry, and felt very defeated. When you care for someone with Alzheimer’s, it’s a constant grieving process. You grieve at the diagnosis, you grieve at every ‘milestone.’ I was dealing with grief even though my dad is still alive.”
‘Like typical bible college kids, we got married young, and 9 months later we were pregnant.’: Mom shares journey to 6 biological and adopted children
“Here we were in a tiny town, in the middle of nowhere with very little support, a child with a new and scary diagnosis, and a baby who never stopped screaming. Just to be funny, I took a pregnancy test. It was positive.”
‘We should see a couple’s therapist.’ He wondered if he wanted to marry me after all. Then, he left.’: Woman goes on self discovery journey while grieving breakup
“I met a man I truly, deeply loved. My life seemed perfect; all of my dreams were coming true. But in those moments, glimpses of darkness flashed before my eyes.”
‘One year and ten months later, I’m still feeling overwhelmed by the pandemic.’: Woman shares 2022 reminder ‘in today’s day, our willingness to show up is enough’
“I’m carrying the weight of all things, feelin’ all the feels, crying all the cries, sighing all the sighs, and running the gamut of moods and emotions like I’m freakin’ Usain Bolt, praying my sanity is to be found at the finish line. And I should resolute. To improve upon my shoddiness. But instead, I’m not. I’m just not. Not this year. Not this girl.”
‘Breast is best.’ The lactation consultant took one look at my boobs and told me to go to the ER. It looked like I was growing boils out of my nipples.’: Mom shares harrowing breastfeeding journey, urges ‘fed is best’
“It wasn’t my baby I got to bond with. It was my breast pump. It wasn’t little cries waking me at night. It was my alarm. I’d sit alone in a dark corner of a room, hook myself up to a machine, and watch as liquid was forced out of my breasts while liquid flowed freely out of my eyes.”