“I was convinced I’d be judged based on my hands and feet. I made every effort to conceal my hands. I’d wear a cardigan to hide my scars. I wanted as little attention drawn to me as possible.”
‘You’ll never be able to write or even wear a ring.’ I’d pull my sleeves over my hands. I wanted to be ‘normal.’: Limb difference advocate shares her journey, ‘Celebrate your differences’
‘Drop everything and get to the hospital.’ The doctors were baffled. They couldn’t believe I was still standing.’: Woman diagnosed with Addison’s disease, ‘I’m alive by chance’
“Walking up the stairs was nearly impossible. I was always on the sofa, wishing the day away. My life completely changed overnight. In less than 24 hours, I went from dying to being more alive than I ever have.”
‘All the progress he made is gone. We’re back to square one.’: Mom to son with nonverbal autism discusses impact of COVID-19
“6 years of coaching, teaching, and planning went down the drain. When the world goes back to normal, we get to start all over again.”
‘He’s been born, and YOU were chosen!’ Only 4 pounds, I was scared to even TOUCH him.’: Couple adopt baby with Down syndrome after scare, ‘We were meant for this’
“We were told, ‘You’re crazy.’ In an instant, I knew we had to pursue him. I didn’t know joy and sorrow could coexist.”
‘You’re so deaf sometimes!’ My eyes started watering. I felt so alone and worthless. I decided to keep my deafness a secret.’: Woman advocates for deaf awareness, ‘I’m proud of myself’
“I was the quiet, deaf girl with no confidence. ‘Why is everyone looking at me?’ The closer we got to school, the tighter I grabbed my hair so my hearing aids wouldn’t be seen.”
‘Everything went black. ‘Did I pass out?’ I woke up with no memory. They had no idea what was happening to me.’: Woman describes struggles with Lyme Disease, ‘Every day is a gift’
“The stairs became my ‘Mount Everest.’ I lost consciousness 18 times. I woke up in the ER with an IV in my hand. The doctors found nothing wrong with me. We were grasping at straws.”
‘Come OOOONNN!’ I used to wonder why my mom was always the last one out of the house. Then I became a mom.’: Mom says ‘we take care of absolutely everyone and everything before ourselves’
“For the longest time, I didn’t get it. She had started at the same time we did! Then I became a mom.”
‘I only had sex once!’ I became a missing teen mom. Posters of me were up all over town.’: Woman escapes abusive relationship, graduates college as first-generation LGBT student
“‘Don’t even THINK about being with a woman!’ I kept my only ‘girl on girl’ relationship hush-hush. And then I met him. He convinced me to run away from home.”
‘He didn’t try to replace her dad. He came along, just when we thought we’d never feel joy again, and filled the unspeakable void in our hearts.’: Widow pens appreciation letter to bonus dad
“She didn’t have a dad anymore. A guy to love her no matter what, intimidate boys, or agree with her when mom was acting crazy. And then, just when I thought she was never going to feel joy again, along he came.”
‘I can only do so much.’ It’s just the two of us. One day, I won’t be here. Who will tell her I’m gone? Who will make sure she’s safe?’: Autism mom shares daughter’s journey, ‘I’ll let her lead the way’
“We were in survival mode. She kicked me in the face and dragged me across the kitchen floor. I got her in the car and drove straight to the hospital. I dropped to my knees, begging for someone to help my daughter.”
‘You can’t withstand this storm.’ I AM THE STORM. I’m determined, I pushed myself harder than I ever have in my life.’: Woman recovering from COVID-19 and complications details hospital experience, ‘I will always keep fighting’
“March 23rd. I start coughing up blood and it’s hard to breathe. My Apple Watch is saying my resting heart rate is 157. It’s never happened before, so obviously it’s concerning.”
‘You need to get away. You need a BREAK.’ So what did I do? YUP, I called my sister. Who else would do this for me?’: Woman writes story praising ‘superstar’ late sister, ‘She was my rock’
“She called from the hospital to let me know she would try to be well enough to make that trip down here. She had COVID. She helped in every way possible for me to navigate widowhood. She was on the ventilator eight days. The one I leaned on my whole life.”
‘Oh! Is this your sister?’ We have learned to answer, ‘We are friends’ because it’s true!’: Mom navigates co-parenting with bonus parents during holidays, ‘We work together for a common goal’
“Once Avery was born, I stayed with Zach and his girlfriend (now wife) Bailee. I still remember going to an appointment and Zach having to work, so Bailee came to the appointment with me. As we checked in the nurse said, ‘Oh! Is this your sister?'”
‘If you’re not excited, you’ll be a bad mom.’ Who decided this? What does THEIR life look like behind closed doors?’: Pregnant woman grieves ‘death’ of old self, urges ‘it’s okay to not be excited’
“I will never be the woman I was before the morning of July 4th, when we tried translating a Spanish pregnancy test in the morning light along the Mexican coast.”
‘You’re a survivor, not a victim.’ BOTH CAN BE TRUE. The mixed messages surrounding this are dizzying.’: Woman advocates for mental health awareness, ‘It took YEARS to rebuild my trust’
“Before Casey left the state with me, before he promised me forever and before we said ‘I do,’ I explained the mental weight I carried. Somehow I knew it would be an added challenge. I wasn’t wrong.”
‘I’m in a different boat. We’re terrified of losing our children. I’d never wish for any parent to be where I’ve been.’: Special needs mom begs ‘do your part, stay safe for us’
“For years, we’ve been sanitizing and wearing masks. Sitting on hospital bathroom floors, begging for our child to live. Seeing our child intubated and whispering, ‘Please be okay.’ It feels like you’re watching us sink.”
‘Hey my bro, can I have money for food and clothes?’ I decided to respond. ‘How about I take you out to lunch?’: Man discovers ‘unlikely friendship’ replying to stranger’s message
“Brian came jumping out of the door and smiled before bounding over and giving me a very enthusiastic handshake. ‘I didn’t think you’d actually come. Thank you so much.’ I knew I’d met a pretty special guy.”
‘The doctor leaned in. ‘Your body is not damaged. Stop the surgeries, stop the fertility treatments. Something is missing, and I’m going to find out what it is.’: Woman pregnant with rainbow baby thanks doctor’s kindness, ‘She spoke life into me’
“You have a 2% chance of ever conceiving a child.’ I didn’t know when or how it would happen, but I felt it deep within my soul.”
‘I did something wrong.’ He turned blue. I dropped to my knees. ‘Sorry, we can’t help you.’: Baby born with rare genetic condition, ‘We won’t give up if he doesn’t’
“‘Prepare yourself. I don’t know what’s happening with your baby.’ His size confused them. The moment we waited for finally arrived.”
‘Am I going to be able to do this forever?’ I wasn’t ME. I felt let down and abandoned. The anxiety was horrific.’: COVID-19 nurse encourages healthcare workers, ‘We’ll get through this’
“When I was a new nurse, I walked with a pep in my step. I had new scrubs, perfect pens, and a glow. I went from feeling calm to terrified. The pandemic rages on. The frontliners are still there, showing up, sacrificing their own safety.”
‘How is this so easy for some people?’ I’d sit in my car and cry before work. What if my dream was taken away?’: Nurse battles infertility, pregnant with IVF baby, ‘Don’t lose hope’
“I struggled going to work to take care of babies. All I ever wanted was to be a mom. ‘Are you okay, sweetie?’ I absolutely lost it. Infertility affected every aspect of my life.”
‘People yelled from their cars, ‘Fatty!’ It was clear I was the ‘fat one.’ I thought if I lost weight, the bullying would stop.’: Woman shares self-love journey, ‘I deserve love at any size’
“I saw myself in the mirror and started to cry. My stomach stuck out. My body jiggled. I was introduced to diet pills, skinny teas, calorie counting. It was more important to shrink myself than to be happy or healthy.”
‘I don’t want to do this anymore. It’s too hard!’ I coughed up blood. I knew I couldn’t survive another.’: Woman with Cystic Fibrosis welcomes two miracle babies, ‘Every year is a gift’
“I felt this desire for another baby. Without a doubt, I knew I couldn’t give birth to him. My brother’s wife said, ‘I could have a baby for you.’ I was dumbfounded.”
‘It’s just a clogged milk duct.’ My husband NEEDED more than a brush-off. I thought he was paranoid. There was no way I had it.’: Mom beats invasive breast cancer, ‘I’m thriving’
“There it was, a lump that certainly didn’t belong. It was only about the size of a pea. I kept telling myself, ‘It’s just a cyst.’ The lump continued to grow, and the pain never subsided.”
‘Both their parents died. I was a stay-at-home mom, barely used to life with 3 kids. The idea of adding 3 more was crazy.’: Couple adopt 3 siblings from orphanage, become ‘forever family’ of 8
“A newborn in my arms, logic and reason screamed no. Yet, here we sat, unable to deny any longer the way our hearts were pulled toward these children. All we had to do was say YES.”