“I started to master the fake smile and the ‘I’m fine’ answer to people’s questions. My body needed a break. And then the cutting began. Kitchen scissors were used.”
‘A car of teenage boys drove past and yelled out, ‘Ugly, bald b***h.’ I pushed myself back to work. I didn’t want to let anyone down.’
‘That’s strange. Why is she lying backwards on her bed?’ She looked peaceful, like she was in a deep sleep. I rocked her. She rolled on her back, lifeless.’: Woman loses identical twin to Addison’s disease, gets winks from heaven
“We were identical twins that spent out lives together. I knocked on the door. No answer. I tried to go in, but the door was locked. Frantic, I searched for a key and opened it myself. Molly, our dog who usually bolts into Courtney’s room was now hiding in her cage.”
‘One thing that’s become apparent throughout my chronic illness is, as a society, we’ve become so conditioned to view disabled people to be ‘an inspiration.”
“For many people, this stage of uncertainty is where they have remained for years. They’ve been diagnosed and discharged, sometimes decades ago, and haven’t been able to leave their homes, or even their beds, ever since.”
‘She looked like Cinderella, but lives like Sleeping Beauty. We feel guilty for fussing at her, but we had no clue.’: 16-year-old sleeps ‘more than 20 hours a day’ in comas due to severe epilepsy
“People have said she is ‘too pretty’ to be as sick as she is. They simply don’t believe us. This has even happened with doctors because she is dressed nicely and, if she’s well enough for me to prop her up, then I’ll put her makeup on. Her brain misfires more than 80% of her life. She’s been hospitalized hundreds of times, has stopped breathing, her heart has stopped and she’s had to be resuscitated.”
‘She became limp and stopped breathing’: Mom’s dire warning about popular teething product
“She turned blue. I grabbed her and put her against my body, hitting her back trying to wake her up, but no response.”
