“They really don’t need judgment or hurled opinions. Your loved one needs community.”
To The Family And Friends Of A Chronically Ill Loved One: Come Sit With Us
‘Ready to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge, I heard someone yell, ‘Are you Jake? The veteran we’ve been looking for?’: Homeless veteran battling PTSD shares emotional 10,000-mile journey across America
“As I gently plucked at the soft nylon guitar strings, something came crashing and sent me flying through the wall. I shuffled in the debris to find a mangled heap of metal that used to be my car. No vehicle, no home, I bought a backpack and tent determined to walk across America.”
‘We’ve got to lift each other up, right?’ She squeezed my hand.’: Woman stresses importance of encouraging others
“I had no idea how in the hell I would ever walk again, let alone roll over or move at all. Sometimes, hope can come knocking when we feel our most vulnerable.”
‘They put Mia on my stomach. We saw her hand and foot were different before they took her away. It was the longest hour in my life.’: Mom to daughter with congenital limb difference vows ‘I wouldn’t have her any other way’
“Operations and prosthetics included, our daughter has been a dream since birth.”
‘He jumped out and screamed boo during hide and seek. She never turned around; she was still wondering where he went.’: Mom details her and daughter’s journey being hard of hearing
“She started to sign to me. ‘I don’t use sign language, I can hear and talk.’ I had unintentionally made a judgment about Deaf/HoH people, not realizing I’d judged myself in the process.”
‘I used to be a horrible friend. I was alone, lost.’: Woman overcomes insecurities and anxieties to be better friend
“If someone had something great, I instantly felt less than. I was sarcastic, pessimistic, and judgmental. It was the swiftest, most needed kick in the face.”
‘The doctor secretly put in my chart, ‘Borderline personalities due to dislike of multiple providers.’ I was down to 107 pounds, in constant pain. No one was willing to listen.’: Nurse, chronic illness warrior shares emotional journey to diagnosis
“I was ignored by providers during my cries for help. Friends stopped asking me to hang out. My long-term partner was emotionally unavailable. I had to learn to pursue the life I deserved despite the labels.”
‘I was 8, ‘dating’ everyone in my grade for validation. I was acting out to feel something, ANYTHING.’: Woman overcomes body image issues, finds online support community
“I posted a TikTok, and it skyrocketed from one view to one million views within hours. Then thousands of hate comments came in.”
6 Things You NEED To Know Before Adopting
“Despite being deemed competent and fit by my state of residence to adopt, I was ill-prepared for all that comes with bringing a child from another family into my home.”
‘Your mom left you with me to babysit and never returned.’ He was a young Marine, just back from the Vietnan war. He made the ultimate sacrifice.’: Adoptee shares journey to self-acceptance, motherhood
“‘Initially I found a babysitter for you, but I realized you needed stability, so I brought you home – and filed for adoption,’ he said. He was my first love, my first teacher, my first protector. He encouraged me to believe in myself.”