“Without the pills, I was sick. I couldn’t afford to be in withdrawals and take care of a baby. On my first Mother’s Day, I tried heroin. The emptiness I felt was unbearable. I had to fight for our lives.”
‘That’s enough to knock out a horse.’ I sobbed, begging the nurses for help. I can’t blame them. I was pregnant junkie.’: Woman recovers from drug addiction, ‘There’s always hope’
‘When she opened her eyes, I knew something wasn’t normal. ‘She doesn’t look like I thought she would.’ The room got quiet.’: Mom gives birth to baby with Down syndrome, ‘She’s a DREAM’
“The doctor stitching me up stopped and very calmly said, ‘She might have some markers for Down syndrome.’ The nurse panicked. In my mind, I kept saying, ‘It’s okay. It’s okay.’”
‘Something’s off. I’m married to someone I love. I have a good job. I’m healthy. Things are good.’ Until they WEREN’T.’: Woman shares divorce, mental health journey, ‘Only YOU have control over your destiny’
“I woke up to the news my grandfather had passed away. And 3 hours later, I was signing my divorce papers. I decided I was done. I was done feeling sorry for myself.”
‘My doctors said, ‘This is enough.’ I knew they were right. My body was giving up on me. I was a prisoner of my own mind.’: Woman shares anorexia recovery journey, ‘I’m fighting for my future’
“My weight dropped dangerously low. Everything ached: my skin, my bones, my muscles. I destroyed myself. I’d never felt so weak, isolated, and depressed. I decided it was enough.”
‘Is there something we can do?’ We watched his heartbeat fade. We weren’t supposed to meet this way.’: Couple battling miscarriages welcome rainbow baby, ‘We’ll NEVER forget them’
“I told him, ‘I’m so sorry.’ It wasn’t supposed to happen like this. I hated that I failed him. I screamed at God, ‘Give me my baby back!’ This isn’t what I wanted for either of us.“
‘Don’t BUG me, I’m having the baby and it ends up where it ends up.’ Mom refused medical care. It was a waiting game.’: Parents foster-to-adopt siblings, ‘We can’t wait to see who comes next’
“‘It’s a girl! I don’t know where she is!’ I sent her a backpack full of food, toiletries, notes from our daughter, prenatal vitamins and clothes, yet she wouldn’t accept it.”
‘It’s rare and aggressive.’ I wanted to be aggressive right back. I wanted to survive.’: Breast cancer advocate celebrates 10 years cancer-free, ‘I’m right where I’m meant to be’
“They chipped off a piece of tumor. I thought, ‘I might be staring right at cancer.’ My world turned upside-down. Could this really be happening? I felt the urge to do something.”
‘I’m cutting ties with you, mom. This is not the life I want for my children. I’m setting myself free.’: Mother battling meth addiction 3 years sober after wake-up call goes viral
“‘I promise to help you raise them.’ While you were in jail, I cried for you as they prepped me for an emergency C-section at 16. Pregnant with twins. I desperately needed you there to hold my hand. My love could never keep you sober.”
‘I want to do one of those bikini shows.’ My ribs were visible and my face was sunken in. My body was dying.’: Former bodybuilder shares recovery journey, ‘You’re whole just as you are’
“My life revolved around food. I ripped apart eggs to only eat the whites, not the yolks. I ate the same amount of calories as a 3-year-old. My life was a train wreck.”
‘Let’s build it by hand!’ I didn’t know if we could do it. Now, I wouldn’t trade it for the world.’: Couple converts shuttle bus into ‘home on wheels,’ ‘It was built with so much love’
“Growing up, I heard adults hint, ‘Travel while you are young!’ We looked at plane tickets, but a week later, our flight was canceled. We agreed we needed a firm foundation to build on.”