“As we pack up our belongings and head to the car, my husband can tell something is off. The moment we get into the car, I break down. We had been faced with the unimaginable. Two of our children passed away.”
‘Our life came to a halt. Our son was gravely ill. Looks can be deceiving. I tell him how guilty I am. His eyes become glassy. ‘I’m OK. I have a son,’ he says with a smile. I begin to sob.’
‘My husband tucked her in. She whispered something. I knew what was coming. I wrenched out of bed. I was a sleep-deprived new mom with an overworked husband and no family nearby.’
“I walked into the living room. Her proud, dancing eyes locked onto mine. She always cried. It became my mantra, whispered to myself on the darkest of days when I desperately needed a light at the end of the tunnel.”
‘My boyfriend screwed the windows and doors shut while I was sleeping. I made a split-second decision to throw myself backwards out the window to get away.’: Woman escapes boyfriend in ‘meth-induced psychosis,’ gets clean in ‘trauma-based recovery’
“I woke up and realized something was wrong. I went out into the living room and the look on his face was that of a monster. I tried in vain to get away from him until I eventually found myself pinned between the bed and the wall. The police found him hours later with no recollection of what happened.”
‘She was HIV+ and we knew she was our daughter. She was absolutely perfect, but her oversized clothes hung loosely on her tiny, frail body.’: Couple adopt HIV+ daughter, now pregnant with ‘miracle’ baby
“We were looking for a child with HIV. When we learned she was positive, we KNEW she was the one. She was 2 years old and only weighed 15 pounds. I started seeing a trauma counselor. James learned how to breathe in public again, knowing no one was coming after us. Then BAM – Morning sickness!”
‘I got pregnant too early in my relationship. I went home on my lunch break, positive test in my pocket. I was terrified to hand it over to him, but knew I had to. What were we going to do?’
“I started feeling ‘off’. I burst into tears. Everyone insisted I was just anxious. All I could do was pray my blood pressure went down, and my placenta hung in there. 30 seconds into my scheduled ultrasound, my doctor told me she was taking me to the operating room.”
‘I love you. It’s not your fault,’ my mom said, crying. I screamed, trying to keep her awake until paramedics reached her.’: Daughter says losing mother to suicide was ‘the most painful experience I’ve ever gone through’
“A friend of my mom said, ‘Look, your mom came to make December beautiful again.’ It’s so true. My daughter is the light of my life. It’s emotional raising a daughter without my own mother alive, but I understand now I would not have the beautiful life I have today if she hadn’t passed.”
‘He should get his affairs in order.’ My heart stopped. WHAT? My biggest fear and worst nightmare had come true. ‘I don’t want to put you all through this,’ he said.’: Wife loses husband after his brain tumor returns
“I was at home when I got a call from my husband. He was at the hospital, and then he said the 4 words I never expected to hear. ‘The tumor came back.’ My heart pounded. ‘Okay, what now? What do we do?’ I was furiously texting my mother-in-law, ‘It’s not good.’ I just wanted it to stop. I couldn’t believe what was happening.”
‘I went to a play date at someone’s house. As I stepped through the front door, the mom giggled, ‘Mimosa time!’ My body froze up.’: Mom shares fear of judgement over sobriety, ‘Alcohol free shouldn’t require an explanation’
“I wasn’t prepared for this. I was so caught off guard, I probably looked like a deer in headlights.”
‘I received a random card with a note. ‘I pray for you every day.’ My job is very hard to do. Special education is a totally different ball game.’: Special Education teacher urges ‘teach your kids to celebrate differences’
“My students come into the classroom yelling, hitting, kicking, and screaming. Many people assume we do the work for our kids because they think they can’t do it themselves. Not everyone is cut out for this kind of classroom.”
‘I went into my son’s room to wake him. I could sense something wasn’t right. I remember the pallor of his face as I turned him over. Grey. Porcelain.’: Mom loses rainbow baby to SIDS, ‘The darkness is worth telling; without it, there would not be light’
“I screamed my husband’s name. ‘His stomach is warm!,’ I said out loud. I fell over my baby’s body. Air escaped his throat in a tiny wheeze that sounds like a coo. ‘He made a noise!’ Their faces fell. ‘It’s from the CPR.’ ‘It happens.’ They were trying not to fall apart.”