“He never stopped watching her face. In the middle of it all, he knew where his priorities were. The scratches, the teeth marks on his shoulder, all became battle scars.”
‘Her grip on the bed rails quickly moved over to him. Her nails sliced through his shirt, like butter. They were in this fight not just to win, but to grow together.’
‘There’s NO WAY I’m pregnant!’ In my mind, having a baby would save my marriage and fix EVERYTHING. I silently made an appointment with my OBGYN.’
“All alone in the bathroom at work, I felt my life was over. I was a failure. I couldn’t make my marriage work. I couldn’t carry a baby. Tie my tubes or just take everything out.”
‘I got a text from him saying, ‘What are you smiling at?’ And I froze. The hair on the back of my neck stood up.’: Woman escapes abusive relationship to find new love
“When I was 14-years-old I met and dated a 22-year-old man. I’ll just let that sink in for a moment. He would come visit me, all the while living another life, leaving his wife and family behind. He was addicted to porn. Then came THAT morning.”
‘Who the f*ck are you sneaking around with?,’ he screamed. Before I could answer, he threw the phone at my head. I had to hide my eyes from my son. ‘I can’t let him see me like this.’
“He bugged my bedroom to be able to hear everything I did, and every conversation I had. Eventually, he convinced me to move in with him. ‘I don’t want to lie to him.’ I would apologize with tears flowing down my face.”
The Moment I Realized My ‘Soul Mate’ Was A Narcissist Incapable Of Love
“Love shouldn’t hurt.”
‘I rushed to the hospital. ‘I’ve never seen anything like this,’ the surgeon said. Our pregnancy checkup had gone well. There was never a reason to believe something was wrong. Our excitement turned to disbelief.’
“Her skin was pulled so tightly that her eyelids had flipped inside out. We were informed her limbs could suddenly detach on their own. Every day, we faced a new challenge.”
‘He let out a wail. They received a report of suspicious bruising. Who is going to believe me? I took the boys out to do what we’d always done, now it’s going to cost us.’
“It was midweek when I received a voicemail from the Office of Child Protective Services, obligated to investigate possible abuse. What’s going to happen when a judge has to decide on custody in the divorce?”
‘So how many do you think?,’ I asked him. He thought there was only going to be 1. There were 4. ‘ARE YOU SERIOUS?!’
“I promised my husband I wouldn’t joke when I called him. As I laid on the table, the doctor looked at me and said, ‘Well Britt, we didn’t plan for this. THERE’S FOUR!’ We were going to be parents to quadruplets!!! Now came the fun part – I had to call Ryan.”
‘When our daughter was six months old, two black women approached us. One said, ‘Your baby’s hair is dry.’ I was taken aback, offended and embarrassed.’: Woman’s comment in Target helps mom provide for mixed-race children
“Around that same time, my husband and I sought a mentor for our daughters, realizing we, as white people, were not qualified to help our kids navigate certain situations.”
‘She lost her daddy to suicide a year ago. She watches TV, and then asks why movie characters can die and then be OK again. ‘Can daddy be OK again?’
“She tells anyone who she meets that her daddy died and is a star now. Even strangers. They look afraid to respond; sad for not knowing how to ease this little girl’s pain, and embarrassed how forthcoming she is with such delicate information.”