‘15 years ago, my first daughter was born. She was our ‘princess.’ But 11 years ago, God gave me Princess.’: Woman shocked how sponsorship of little girl 11 years ago would change her life, ‘I am forever thankful’

“She wasn’t my first daughter, or my second, or my third. My first picture of her showed a scared, sad, little toddler. And for several years after, she still had a look of sadness on her face. Because she was so young, her mother wrote letters to me about Princess, and I’d write letters back. But in October, she wrote my favorite letter. My biggest prayer for her had been answered.”

‘I’m happy to see you prioritizing yourself for once.’ That sent the message of a controlling husband. It was really upsetting.’: Dad’s important message for ‘nosey, judgmental’ people who have ‘no idea how partnerships work’

“Last night I got asked if I wanted a medal for looking after my own kids. I was told I should let my wife go out more than once in a year. I got labeled as someone they’re ‘glad they’re not with’ because they get to go out every week on their own for ‘me time.’”

‘What do you mean we’re siblings?!’ We’d been dating for months, loved each other. We had NO IDEA.’: DNA test reveals couple adopted by separate families are related, now navigating ‘unique trauma’ together

“Me. Him. Same parents? That makes us…what? No. ABSOLUTELY NOT. Imagine having to break the news to your boyfriend that hey, I might be your sister. Actually, I am your sister. 100%. You know those awful bio parents of ours that totally kicked us to the curb? Yeah. They’re actually the same ones! We went from strangers, to lovers, to siblings, to strangers.”

‘I’m a dominatrix.’ I was in shock. ‘Did you have sex with my husband?!’ My legs got weak.’: Woman overcomes husband’s affairs, urges others ‘you have the courage, strength to move forward’

“He was nowhere to be found. I grabbed the house phone and realized the telephone cable was pulled from the jack. I started to get worried. He finally called, he was on his way home. ‘My friend needed to borrow some money. I went to the bank to withdraw $200 for him.’ Something wasn’t right. I checked the last 5 numbers dialed. One of them I didn’t recognize, so I called it back. It was a woman.”

‘I am tired of being in pain.’ He started to cry. I was so oblivious to it. I thought he was better.’: Air Force husband overdoses on pain pills after suffering PTSD, ‘I’m too young to be a widow, I’m only 26’

“Gavin came home from work complaining he wasn’t feeling well. I brushed it off thinking he had the flu. ‘I want to go lay down.’ He then called my name. ‘I think I need to go to the hospital and get checked out.’ I started down the hallway with him in front of me when he passed out. My mind raced the whole way to the hospital. I knew this was serious. After the doctor’s questioned him, he finally confessed. As soon as they walked out, I knew it wasn’t good. ‘We’re so sorry. His body was too weak.’”

‘At the nail salon, I felt a heavy substance drop onto my underwear. ‘No!’ I tightened my legs.’: Woman miscarries baby in nail salon ‘horror scene,’ vows to always ‘honor my little one’

“The ultrasound tech went silent. ‘Will I be getting my pictures today?’ I asked. I was in such a good mood. ‘No. If there was anything there, I would’ve shown you. There’s nothing.’ She was so heartless, her tone dry. I felt dizzy. I held my husband close, tears rolling down my face. He convinced me to get my nails done to distract my mind.”

‘Ding dong, my loans are dead.’ I was DONE. I made a decision. I’d become debt-free by 30.’: 28-year-old woman remarkably pays off $102K in student loans, ‘I finally killed them’

“I cut my budget and lived off of less than a third of my monthly salary. (Turns out, packing lunches and not taking Ubers can save you a ton.) I worked multiple jobs at once, my day job and then side hustles. I walked dogs until my feet literally bled. In the cold. In the rain. In the heat. Nothing was beneath me. I babysat. I cat sat. I stayed up for 24 hours straight.”

‘I am meant to be a heroin addict forever.’ I truly believed it. ‘What happened to me?’ That damn needle.’: Woman overcomes opioid addiction, fulfills childhood dream of becoming pro wrestler, ‘I’m living my wildest dreams’

“Senior year of high school. I felt sick. It spiraled completely out of control. I’m sniffing heroin and smoking crack cocaine like it’s going to get me into Harvard or something. I looked at my father and told him, ‘I need help.’ My dad wanted nothing to do with me, he was done. That really hurt.”

‘I have only 38 more months left of school.’ ‘What?’ I went for my coffee. ‘It’s 6:30 a.m. I can’t deal with this right now.’: Mom wishes she had known each time would’ve been ‘the last time’ with her kids

“This morning I was running around like a chicken without her head. ‘Peter is it really only 38 more months?’ A sadness came over me, but my mom brain was busy ticking off my daily to do list, thinking his bus really does pick him up ridiculously early for a school day that doesn’t start till 7:55.”

‘This is the mask of a Type 1 Diabetic caregiver. You’ll find us at 3 a.m. just trying to keep our child alive.’: Mom to son with Type 1 Diabetes claims ‘we are the strongest mothers you will ever meet’

“We are supported to teach our kids to dream. But their dream is a cure. Firefighter, pilot. ‘Too risky,’ we tell them. The anxiety of death is real. Instead, we train them to get a job with ‘good benefits,’ a conversation no parent should be having with an 11 year old. You’ll find us at 3 a.m., wide awake, just trying to keep our child alive.”

‘You won’t ‘get over it.’ And you shouldn’t. My grandma still gets choked up about her angel baby.’: Woman suffers twin miscarriage, ‘I talk to our babies every day’

“I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen my grandma emotional. 50 years after she lost her baby, she sat across from her two granddaughters and bravely told the story through teary eyes. Her face was glowing, every emotion so pronounced. 50 years later, and my ferociously strong and stubborn grandma is still grieving. You and I will grieve our babies forever, too.”

‘Can I see my boy for one more goodbye?’ A nurse gave him his first and only haircut. He was truly perfect.’: Couple loses son to stillbirth, anxious about new pregnancy, ‘My first is in heaven, I’ll meet him there someday’

“We rushed into the emergency room. I was bleeding so badly I thought I was going to die right there in the hospital alone. My husband was stuck checking me in for what seemed like forever. The events that happened next took place so fast, but as I look back on it now, the initial care I was given makes me so mad and sad. Once she finally realized the severity of what was happening, she ran for back up. I wanted to follow him right up to heaven. I begged God to take me too.”

‘I want to help him.’ I’ll never forget his boss’ words to me. I didn’t want people to know.’: Family struggles with husband’s alcohol addiction, ‘We were broken’

“When I walked in, he looked at me. I could see the fear in his eyes. He whispered through his tears, ‘I’m scared, I don’t want to go.’ Everything in me wanted to protect him, to hug him and tell him he could stay. That we could figure this out together. With tears streaming down my face and a strength I never knew I had, I said, ‘You have to go.’”

‘A bartender who doesn’t drink? You can’t be good at this.’ These bottles nearly killed me.’: Confessions of a sober bartender after she almost lost her life to alcoholism

“Customers get offended when I politely decline a shot. I normally get an eye roll with a response like, ‘I don’t trust a bartender who doesn’t drink.’ Here is my answer. Alcohol nearly killed me. I was a ‘drink til I fall off my barstool’ type of drinker. Hell, I could be taking a tequila shower and I still wouldn’t change my mind.”

‘I didn’t want to be a single mom. Sadly, that choice was taken away from me. I could hardly eat, sleep, or go about my day.’: Teen mom loses boyfriend in car crash months before birth, graduates with 4.0

“At first, I saw just a blob on the screen. I didn’t think much of it until the ultrasound tech zoomed in. I saw arms, legs, eyes, fingers…this was a real freaking baby in me! I didn’t know whether to cry or laugh, be happy or sad. I never felt a connection to this thing inside of me until I saw it. As time went by, I was counting down the days until I could meet my son. He was the only thing that kept me going.”

‘His scheme to butter me up to lose his virginity worked. ‘Wow, he really cares about me.’: Domestic violence survivor reveals she’s been ‘scared to speak my truth’ for years, but finally realizes ‘I’m stronger for what I’ve been through’

“I was sitting in my room doing homework. His ex-girlfriend called. He was caught red handed. He drove to my house with flowers and sobbed. ‘I’m so sorry. I’m just so insecure because you’re so out of my league – I got nervous and cheated.’ I was so angry. My relationship was destroying my family. Nevertheless, I went to Disney with him anyway. I stood in the middle of Magic Kingdom crying, alone and terrified.”

‘They’d remind me, ‘You’re doing everything right, it gets better!’ But the words haunted my soul’: Mom ‘angry’ over urgency to breast feed, says son ‘became a baby I did not yet know’ after formula

“I felt disgusted with myself. Why couldn’t I just put the pump down? I knew this decision would allow me more time to hold my baby, yet I was still holding on to this expectation of myself. I didn’t want to be strapped to a machine that was yielding no results…. Yet here I was.”

‘MOM!!! Get back in the car!’ I’m at the drop off in undies that have a LITERAL HOUSE for penis and balls!’: Mom hilariously shares ultimate ‘dysfunctional parent’ moment

“Y’all. Things got worse. ‘MOM! The basement is leaking!’ In that 3.5 seconds, my doorbell rings. I run down because my pea-sized BRAIN forgets to process ‘put on pants.’ It’s the plumber I completely forgot I called. Steve goes downstairs. I have 15 minutes. Guess who is wrong? Yup. Me again. Steve done come BACK into the house while I’m laying down a quick colombian hot sloppy in the bathroom.”

‘I’m so sorry I can’t take this away.’ He looked up at me with absolute perfect clarity. ‘It’s okay.’: Parents ‘astonished’ by infant son’s miraculous response, lose him days later to rare brain tumor

“We stood in astonishment. Prior to this, he’d only known how to say one word: ‘Dog.’ My wife and I leaned in to tell him we loved him. He looked up again and said, ‘I love you.’ We held his little hand, his little frail body in my arms, and begged him to visit us. I asked him to watch over his siblings. We put him in the black Suburban, and watched them drive away.”

‘I’m single, and I haven’t had sex with anyone, but I’m pregnant.’: Single-by-choice mom births son with Down syndrome, ‘I thought I chose Matthew, but he chose me’

“‘You can be a Mom. You don’t need a husband.’ I couldn’t ignore how her words resonated with the deepest part of my heart. ‘Can I really do this?’ I asked the nurse, ‘is everything okay?’ She shook her head and said, ‘no.’ I was disoriented. ‘What are you saying?’ This pulled a strength out of me I never knew I had.”

‘I can’t decide if I want a baby! I’ll ruin my career,’ my friend messaged. I was brutally honest.’: Woman ‘mourns’ loss of life pre-motherhood, ‘I gave up a lot, but I gained so much more’

“The last thing I want is a friend crying to me over the phone, holding her newborn, telling me she’s not cut out for this. So, I told her the truth. That most nights I sleep 4 hours. My relationship suffered, my body changed, and I got the baby blues. That I’m still mourning the carefree girl I was before, who loved not knowing what tomorrow would bring. I’m still letting her go.”