“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.”
‘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’
‘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 tipped over, slamming my head. ‘I can’t see anything!’ The doctor said, ‘Your life will be less fulfilling now.’: Multiple Sclerosis warrior recounts journey, support from husband
“She asked me to read the top line with the largest print. I told her, ‘I can’t see it.’ I could hardly mutter the words as tears filled my eyes and streamed down my face. My internal panic set in.”
‘You’re the parent who tries everything and gets nowhere, but still doesn’t give up.’: Woman pens ode to parents of children battling mental illness
“The waitlists for qualified providers are years long. Others who have no idea what it’s like to sit in an ER for days waiting for a psych bed to open insist your child’s symptoms of mental illness are a result of ‘bad parenting.’ Or worse, your child just being ‘bad.'”
‘My doctor said, ‘It’s just part of being a woman. You have a lower pain tolerance.’ I was nicknamed ‘drama queen.’: Young woman diagnosed with endometriosis after 7 years of pain
“I always looked 6 months pregnant. My friendships dissolved instantaneously. My stomach was filled all the way from my bowels to my intestines, reaching close to my heart. ‘If you went on any longer, you could have died.’ Still, no one believed my pain.”
‘PLEASE take her with you. I can’t watch her go through this.’ She vomited and lost weight. We watched helplessly.’: Parents of special needs daughter forced to leave US, ‘We hold on to hope’
“Her medical team was alarmed and upset. ‘You CAN’T leave. She needs to be here. I’ll write to whomever I need to for her to stay.’ We watched as she regressed.”
‘That doctor ended up saving me twice in that hospital — first with a life-saving surgery, then again with a simple business card.’: After ectopic pregnancy, woman credits doctor with helping her ‘mental recovery’
“She handed me the business card and said, ‘I feel like you may need this.’ I started to talk, but the words couldn’t find a way out. I wanted to tell her I was fine and give the card back. Yet I knew, somewhere in my soul, I would need that card.”
‘I kept getting UTIs. My male doctor said, ‘Do you think the pain might be ALL IN YOUR HEAD?’ I was mortified.’: Woman with chronic urinary tract infections urges ‘you are not alone’
“I’d receive a 3-day course of antibiotics and be sent on my way. It would clear up, but come back with vengeance. I was told it was ‘just because I was WITH my boyfriend.’ Fair enough, sex can be a cause, but what did other people do? Stay single for the rest of their life? I was at a loss. All the doctors suggested I was exaggerating.”
‘You recently ‘re-homed’ your adopted son after discovering he had autism and needs ‘you weren’t told about.’: Mom pens open letter to Myka Stauffer, ‘You tapped out right before the big pay day’
“I like pretty pictures too. This feels familiar to me. I know this because I’ve experienced both firsthand. I am not here to cast stones, nor empathize. I just want to talk, mother to mother.”
‘She anonymously set up a safety net of basics for a single mother. The seed blossomed and sprouted into another.’: Woman teaches the importance of ‘planting good’ during pandemic
“My friend shared that she was inspired on her way home from her essential job one day. She emphasized she used the word ‘inspired’ intentionally because the train of thought just appeared to her like a gift.”
