“I missed out on so much. I missed out on moments I can never get back. Finally, I realized enough is enough. My kids, my family, my (true) friends absolutely DO NOT care how I look in a swimsuit, and I will bet you my next paycheck yours don’t either.”
‘I used to avoid social gatherings because I was so scared to be seen in a swimsuit. I would sit outside the pool, fully clothed, as my kids begged me to have fun with them.’: Woman urges ‘you are more than what you look like in a swimsuit’
‘My doctor called pregnancies at my age ‘geriatric.’ When the f*ck did 38 become geriatric? For the first time in my life, I felt older than I was.’: Woman recounts IVF struggle, ‘Turns out with age comes resilience’
“The only reason we sought IVF after all was due to my husband having a vasectomy. Our doctor sat us down and informed us moving forward at this point would be futile. Women my age seemed to be doing just fine, thank you. I was the problem. Me. I was only 38!”
I Woke Up To My Husband’s Dirty Dishes In The Sink, And I Felt A Rush Of Happiness
“Years ago, I would have looked at these dishes and got annoyed. I probably would have sent a text saying, ‘Really? You left these here?’ My mindset has changed, and it’s something I wish I had learned a long time ago.”
‘You may only have use of your eyes and voice.’ I was told, ‘You should live a less ambitious life.’: Woman with GNE Myopathy says ‘knowing my body is temporary has caused me to truly live’
“I’m told, ‘You will never see research being done because you’re too rare.’ I have lived my life with fear, against a silently ticking clock.”
‘I was in a wheelchair for 3 months, unable to walk or make a living. We were homeless. Friends donated furniture, filled our pantry, and clothed us.’: Family stays hopeful after ‘losing everything’ in fire
“We decided to build a small barn and live in it temporarily. Two weeks from being able to move in, I took a bad ladder fall down the side of the house. What little cash we had left now had to become living expenses. But, God!”
‘My husband died on a Saturday. Monday, we planned the funeral. Thursday, I started a new job. I thought if I stayed busy, it would fix the brokenness.’: Woman urges self care for fellow widows, ‘It’s a daily battle’
“What no one prepares you for is what happens after the last sympathy card is opened and people have moved on. I stuffed away every bad feeling. I am a broken person trying to piece my life back together.”
‘He drilled my boyfriends. He put a down payment on my first car. He comes over to check my car’s oil and fix things that break.’: Woman celebrates father figure, ‘What day celebrates the Gene’s?’
“My dad left when I was a baby. Gene has been in my life as long as I can remember. He wasn’t my dad. He wasn’t even technically my step-dad. He was Gene.”
‘I noticed a young black boy walking into our yard. Something was strange. Then, I realized he had his hands up.’: Man urges ‘we need to do better’ after heartbreaking encounter with boy
“We were sitting here having lunch when his ball had rolled into our yard. He looked nervous. He walked so slowly, looking straight ahead. Then I realized he had his hands up.”
‘Today I woke up from my fight with one pandemic, and turned on the news to be reminded of another pandemic entirely.’: Mom recovering from Covid-19 says ‘America has a RACISM PANDEMIC’
“I am weary. My heart is broken. Friends, America has a RACISM PANDEMIC that is claiming the lives of our black brothers and sisters at a horrifying rate. When a black child is stolen from us, EVERY mother’s heart should bleed.”
My Summer Body Will Not Be Measured By What I Lose, But By Everything I’ll Gain In My Summer Of ‘Yes’
“I don’t know about you, but it feels like all I see on social media this time of year is summer body this, summer body that. Those who want it. Those who are working on it. And those who are giving up. And it was driving me BONKERS, until I realized that I, too, want a summer body. But not the usual kind.”
‘Mommy, I want to go to a restaurant,’ my daughter interjected. Our favorite eateries may not make it.’: Mom of daughter with asthma says ‘one sniffle, one tiny cough sends me into a frenzy of worry’
“I wake up trembling from dreams of her in the hospital bed attached to IVs, helpless and vulnerable. A few days ago, the kids and I sat in the car and went out for a drive. We hadn’t been outside of our immediate neighborhood for over 8 weeks. Everything looked normal. I felt disappointed.”
‘The To-Do lists and upgrades will linger. Look around, soak it all in. It’ll never be perfect, but it’s perfect for you.’: Woman urges ‘love multiplies with or without all the things that shine’
“As you work on your house this weekend and throughout the summer, remember your house is a home. Fingerprints and chipped paint turn into memories of the good times. Look around and soak it all in for exactly where it is right now.”
‘We’re letting you go.’ I was too sick to work. They bullied me for months and couldn’t handle my illness.’: Woman fights for mystery illness diagnosis, ‘I am chronically strong’
“I was afraid the doctor would put me in the nuthouse if I told her everything. How many 32-year olds have a full page of symptoms? I quickly lost 20 pounds.”
‘Cookies are not breakfast!’ They’re all crying. One fights me for 10 minutes to allow me the pleasure of wiping poop off his arse.’: Dad hilariously says ‘I’ve had a huge slice of humble pie’ after first ‘paternity leave’
“I hide for a bit. They find me like they’re sniffer dogs and I’m selling pills at a festival. I clear up the crafts, wishing whoever created slime a slow, gruesome death. They’re all crying now. They scream, ‘Daddy we’re bored of this film!’ repeatedly and very loudly.”
‘My 10 and 7-year-old girls asked for belly shirts. My knee-jerk reaction was, ‘No, that’s inappropriate.’: Mom ponders balancing body positivity with modesty, ‘I worry about how they will be perceived’
“‘I don’t know, I need time to think about it.’ Allowing my daughters to run around half-naked won’t change the perversion of a depraved mind. Where do we draw the line? And so here I am, thinking out loud.”
‘YOU’RE going to run? Your boobs are going to hit your face.’ I went to see a plastic surgeon at 16.’: Woman overcomes years of negative self image, ‘If you’re not feeling good on the inside, you’ll never feel good on the outside’
“I was told by my boyfriend, ‘You need to stop being mean to everyone just because you’re in a bad mood.’ I moved out with no money, no job, and no dog. Everyone who said, ‘We’re still your friend and we love you no matter what,’ didn’t stick around.”
‘We received a little boy almost 3 years old. We didn’t have enough clothes or toys, but the joy on his face was the biggest blessing in the world.’: Mom shares important lesson about foster care, ‘When people say it takes a village, it does’
“I didn’t really think about the impact us being a foster family would have on our extended family and our friends. They stepped in and helped us in so many ways, I can’t even count them.”
‘Wait for the heartbeat. Don’t fall in love too quickly.’ But sweet baby, I just can’t help it.’: Mom says ‘no matter what happens, I’ll always be your mama’
“You’re as real to me if you make it to 4 weeks than if you make it 40 weeks and in my arms. My love for cannot be quantified by the number of days you’re alive. Because my little secret about you is, I’ve always loved you.”
‘Can I use your phone? I need to call the police.’ This woman found it ‘funny’ to scare little black boys, and I am heartbroken.’: Mom of black son says ‘images of 1950’s racism are on my 2020 TV’
“The people listening to her story worked in education, and most of them found this story funny. So, instead of cutting the story off, they laughed. I am heartbroken. This is my response.”
‘I am the woman who is constantly OK, even when I’m not OK. Yesterday, I stopped pretending.’: Woman struggling with mental health during pandemic says ‘I pretend because I feel guilty’
“The morning toast burned a little too dark, and there was a small child melting down because of it. The computer timed out and the school work had to be started all over. I am the woman who has it all together. I was done pretending.”
‘My kids missed two consecutive Zoom meetings. My daughter started getting snarky, and my son who is not a crier was crying.’: Mom says ‘we will not just survive this, we will endure with grace’
“My middle child began to isolate. School assignments I would classify as easy we’d been blowing through for weeks were suddenly overwhelming each day, and I couldn’t even articulate why. Their mental health was declining.”
‘I don’t want to hurt you. I just feel so much pain all the time.’ I had to pick up his gun.’: Woman mourns little brother to suicide, ‘We will always grieve the loss of the man who kept us laughing’
“I sat alone in my car and screamed. ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t save you, buddy.’ That was my job throughout his entire life. I WAS SUPPOSED TO SAVE HIM. When I came back to myself, I was a different person.”
‘I took out the trash to ‘investigate’ our new neighbors. We watched the dreaded moving truck from the second-story window.’: Two moms find new friendship during quarantine
“While I was loading my kids into our car, the other kids made eye contact. They stood there, silently staring like it was some sort of old western stare-off. The dreaded moving truck was parked outside. In a matter of a month, our children’s childhood changed for the better.”
‘When I feel frustrated with my children and need to reset, I fill my sink and wash their hands and feet.’: Mom urges ‘they just need a steady, loving hand’
“He often comes inside with scrapes and muddy feet. Even if I’m feeling irritated and ready to wrap up the day, this small act humbles me.”
‘My girl is nice, but if only I could have THAT! Why would anyone choose you?’: Woman pens self-love letter, ‘If you want love, you’ve got to love yourself first’
“‘Wow, she’s gained weight! She could use a little help. Is she even trying?’ You scroll through your feed and see SO MANY girls who are so much prettier than you. They have so many better options.”