“I had less than $5 on me. I told him I didn’t have any cash, but I was going to get some and come back. I’m sure people say it all the time when they ask the price and either can’t or don’t want to pay what he says. But I couldn’t—something inside me needed to and was telling me to go back.”
‘I noticed a slender Black man standing on the corner. It was BEAUTIFUL. He said it was $15.’: Woman shares roadside encounter with kind stranger, ‘The world NEEDS art
‘I sat on the floor, my head in a toilet. My sister said, ‘I’m not doing this anymore.’ My favorite person was done. That was enough for me.’: Woman details sobriety and mental health journey
“As a child, I was scared of everything. I felt on edge about everything. When the effects of cheap vodka flooded over me, all of my fears washed away. I finally felt like I was enough. I felt invincible, and I loved it.”
‘I have a problem! This is serious and I can’t stop.’ My organs felt like heavy rocks in my body. I knew my time was coming.’: Woman shares sobriety journey, ‘I’m hopeful for a new way of life’
“I was on my way to a swollen liver. I had to stop drinking or I would die. I weaned myself into sobriety with boxed red wine. I was just starting to scratch the surface.”
‘You’re faking it for attention.’ THIS is why we’re afraid to ask for help. I put my energy into finding answers. I’m worth fighting for.’: Chronic illness warrior struggles for diagnosis, ‘It won’t stop me from achieving my dreams’
“I thought I was crazy. I KNEW something was wrong, but after being told it was ‘all in my head,’ I started to doubt myself because of the medical gaslighting. Now, I’m FINALLY getting help.”
‘He’ll have severe disabilities.’ Each smile is priceless. We have an even greater appreciation for the ‘little things.’: Mom advocates for son with undiagnosed condition, ‘He’s one of a kind’
“Our 6-week-old son lay in a hospital bed next to us, all hooked up. The prognosis was grim. Watching your child have seizure after seizure, knowing there’s nothing you can do, is gut-wrenching. He might not understand what’s happening, but he’s so strong.”
‘They told me, ‘It’s nothing to worry about. Every baby does this.’ She was turning BLUE. I knew this wasn’t normal.’: New mom births baby with congenital heart defect, ‘She makes me proud every day’
“I broke down crying, ‘Promise me she’s going to be okay.’ I didn’t think I’d be coming home with my daughter. I couldn’t understand how my 2-year-old was on life support. How I could breathe and she couldn’t?”
‘THIS is my wake up call. I took charge of my health once and for all. NO MORE dismissive doctors being the drivers of my journey.’: Chronic illness warrior advocates for herself, ‘I can only control my attitude’
“I never thought the ‘pesky problems’ would become an illness. I felt like I was going CRAZY. No one believed me! I can’t control my circumstances, but I CAN control how I handle them.”
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These are SO SWEET.
‘If you don’t like me because of my hands, your loss.’ Our differences make us unique. We’re enough just the way we are.’: Best friends advocate for limb differences, ‘You’re perfectly made’
“Never seeing anyone else like you can feel isolating. Most of my life, I’d carry a jacket over my arm, even in hot summer months. I didn’t want to acknowledge I was different. Now, I’m proud.”
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“I started to get nervous. ‘Do you think I need to help him get to the bar?’ I’d never dated a guy in a wheelchair before. After that, we were inseparable! He pulled out a ring box. ‘Of course!’ I screamed.”
‘I don’t want to be a man. And I don’t want to be a woman.’: Non-binary person shares self-discovery journey
“I’m finally at home in my body.”
‘When I think back to 2020, I’ll remember the anxiety and fear. But I’ll also remember the camaraderie of my coworkers and time spent with family.’: Nurse pens goodbye to 2020
“With every dark memory, there is light too. When masks and food were left at my doorstep. The way my sister never failed to include us in her grocery trips. The way our teachers persevered. There’s a silver lining to take away from it all.“
‘Where do YOU come from?’ I hated those questions. I was the ‘token brown girl.’ THIS is why representation matters.’: Adoptee finds strength in sharing story, ‘Families can look different’
“It wasn’t something I talked about. It made me feel different, what every child DOESN’T want. I only wanted to play with white dolls with blonde hair. I stopped telling people the truth. I had SO many questions about my identity.”
‘You were born from my heart. I went out into the world to find you.’ My heart raced with excitement. I had to uncover the truth.’: Adoptee shares search for biological family, ‘Family is defined by love’
“My mother was told I died after I was circumcised. She was 13. Lies, secrecy, and betrayal run rampant in the family line. I sat there, stunned. Could this be the link to my past I’d always dreamed of?”
‘My life is over and I’m only 28!’ How could I raise my son? He’d grow up learning to take care of me.’: Mom battles Multiple Sclerosis, ‘It’s about finding the silver linings’
“Would my son end up taking care of me? I went from moments of being emotionally sound to breaking down. It took MONTHS, but I finally understood my life was NOT over.”
‘You’re extremely complicated.’ My doctor apologized profusely. After a decade of being told it was in my head, my pain was real.’: Woman battles chronic illnesses, ‘I’m still here and still fighting’
“I was constantly told I was a hypochondriac. ’Just drink more water.’ But the pain didn’t go away. I looked in the mirror and realized just how sick I was. I barely recognized myself.”
‘I felt my throat closing. ‘Buddy, the monster’s back. We have to fight him again.’ He gave me a fist bump. ‘We got this, Mama.’: Mom shares son’s journey battling Ewing’s Sarcoma twice
“We went to Urgent Care 11 times in a month. They kept sending us home. ‘We don’t know why he’s in pain.’ I was a nervous wreck. When we found it, the tumor was the size of a softball in his tiny body.”
‘Would you consider all 3?’ I was now sole custodian of a 1, 2 and 3-year-old and three teens. We didn’t think twice.’: Woman becomes foster mom after losing son, ‘My babies saved me’
“We were asked to house the baby girl so she could be with her siblings. We were ADAMANT about the ‘temporary’ part. There were dressers in the living room, playpens, cribs and toys everywhere.”
‘This isn’t living. It’s merely surviving.’ I was totally bed-bound. I was a shadow of the person I used to be.’: Woman with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome says ‘I appreciate every single second’
“The apartment above mine had a leak. My bedroom was full of black mold. They ‘cleaned’ it by painting over it. I gave up. 2 months later, I couldn’t get out of bed. I desperately searched for answers.”
‘I looked back to see my friends. Then it happened. I was HIT. I couldn’t feel my body.’: Man with cystic fibrosis survives shooting, ‘I’ll fight as long as I’m breathing’
“While in the hospital, I was asked, ‘Are you a gang member?’ I was like, ‘OMG, no! I fought my whole life trying to stay alive!’ My heart was BROKEN.”
‘What’s wrong with her?’ I’d sit in the corner and draw for hours. I always knew something was different about me.’: Woman shares autism diagnosis journey, ‘Different is beautiful’
“People would say hello to me, and I’d ignore them. There’s a myth black girls don’t have autism, so they didn’t think to test me. I was called crazy, moody, shy, or a brat, but I was far from any of those things.”
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“Remember, you don’t have the power to get them sober. If you did, you would have cleaned them up a long time ago.”
‘Everything looked normal to the surgeon.’ I felt helpless. My fight to find what was wrong was nowhere near over.’: Woman finally diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease, ‘Be your own advocate’
“I woke up in the recovery room. ‘Did they find anything?’ My heart broke when the tests came back clear. I’d been relying on this surgery to give me answers. My body was struggling.”
‘They took away the light within me, and I had no support from my school.’: Teen bullying victim with autism shares heartbreaking plea for change
“The bullies made an album of inappropriate images and comments about me. Too embarrassed to show my parents, the school kept it a secret. We were told we had to be ‘tolerant towards other children.’ I just want to venture outdoors and live my dreams without being targeted.”
‘Our journey to become parents was heartbreaking. I seemed to find every pregnant woman on the planet. I had to save my sanity.’: Mom shares healing through meditation, ‘Find what brings you JOY’
“I threw myself into working, scouring the internet for infertility stories, scrolling Instagram mindlessly. I knew I needed help to bring myself out of the fog. But what I actually learned was to let go.”