“Life is strange. I didn’t simply wake up one morning thinking caring for dying babies would be a good idea. But know what? We wouldn’t have it any other way.”
‘A baby boy thought to have Down syndrome has been dumped in the bushes. Do you want him?’: Social worker becomes foster mom to abandoned babies with end-of-life needs
‘Every time I gave birth, I awoke the dormant beasts inside me.’: Mom of 3 shares journey to Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, Lupus diagnoses
“I started wearing sunglasses indoors. My hair was falling out in chunks, my gums bleeding. Sounds hurt. The very smell of air made me sick. I was a shell of myself, withering away, barely hanging on. But then I thought of my little girl. She was so small, not even talking yet. How would she remember me? Who would teach her to do her hair? I had to stop planning my goodbyes, and start fighting.”
‘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.”
We Need To Love ALL Addicts The Same Way We Love Famous Ones
“Substance abuse isn’t just a celebrity problem.”
‘If I had a do-over, I would have reminded him, ‘I love you,’ just in case he didn’t know. I pray I will see him again.’: Mom urges ‘addiction is a disease, not a disgrace’ after losing son to 10-year battle
“A year ago yesterday, this box was an empty Amazon delivery box waiting to be recycled. You were loved by all that knew you, but somehow didn’t love yourself. I pray I will see you again.”
‘I see blood on me, but from where?! It’s 2:15 a.m. now, and I’m crying in the bathroom. I don’t like hurting out loud. What was this doing to us?’: Woman struggles with ‘mental hurricane’ during undiagnosed illness
“I’m scared.’ I shook and started crying from the sharp pains. My hand cramped up; I couldn’t open it anymore. ‘I’m here, and I got this, and I got you.'”
‘She tapped a stranger’s shoulder, ‘Um, excuse me, sir.’ Without any pauses she said, ‘We need to make a game plan for you guys.’: Woman experiences unexpected kindness on flight, ‘We can do these things for other people’
“I see a flight attendant lock eyes and head our way, I freeze a bit. Since it feels like exactly zero people are ready to fly, I feel like this is a safe space to finally unpack this. It was the last flight of a very long travel day.”
‘She said, ‘It’s your dad. There’s something wrong. The cops said they found him on the ground.’ We still had so many questions.’: Woman details life with drug-addicted father, ‘I’m not mad at you’
“‘You need to stop what you’re doing or you’ll end up dead.’ I’d see him drive by with another woman. When my mom decided to divorce him, he didn’t show up. We stood at the court house and looked out the window from the top floor. The doctor approached my brother and I. ‘You have to make a decision to let him off the machines.’ We still had so many questions.”
‘I slid onto the floor as I heard the doctor speak. ‘Why do I have to have cancer again, Mama?’ Time seemed to freeze.’: Girl battles neuroblastoma, ‘Izzy continued to fight and the rest of the world just kept going’
“The call came just like it does in the movies. I sat in a rocking chair in her room and slid onto the floor as I heard the doctor speak. I stared at this little play clock. I can still see it so vividly — its tiny yellow hands stood still on its pink face. Time seemed to freeze in those moments. I would remember it as the day our life stopped.”
‘Who are you? I don’t know you and I’m really scared,’ she said, shaking. She was crying now. I was her baby, her best friend.’: Woman shares painful Alzheimer’s journey, ‘Nothing prepares your heart for the day your mom doesn’t know you’
“That morning, I picked up my mom for a routine dental cleaning. As usual, she was happy to see me. Nothing stood out as odd. She joked with the receptionist about me and walked out the door with a smile. As soon as the sunlight hit her face, she turned to me. ‘You never told me.’ ‘Told you what?’ I asked. ‘Who you were.’ All in a couple of seconds, I realized this was very real. She was terrified and begged, ‘Take me home.’ I soon realized ‘home’ was her childhood house. My mind was racing.”
