“It’s not RUDE to say no.”
‘Do you ever feel GUILTY for saying no?’: Woman urges ‘don’t put all you have into others’
‘I’d been on my phone. I might have judged another mom, had I seen her doing the same thing.’: Mom reminds others not to judge
“I couldn’t process what I’d heard. I still haven’t.”
‘As a bereaved mother of a medically-fragile, premature twin, I can finally say I’ve met my ‘people.’ And the funny thing is, I’ve never actually met any of them.’: Mom thanks ‘Insta-Village’ for ‘being my source of strength’
“I turned to Instagram. Right before my eyes was a ready-made group of soulmates. Women who advocate with such ferocity for their children, who live on 3 hours of sleep, who know reference numbers and caloric values and fio2 conversions off the top of their heads. My people.”
‘One day, you’ll need a transplant.’ I was DEVASTATED. I never really accepted this, until I had no other option.’: Man with autoimmune hepatitis undergoes liver transplant, ‘It’s my second chance’
“I lost 30 pounds, began sleeping 14 hours a day, and suffered terrible stomach pains. It was raining when I received the call. When I hung up, I watched the raindrops fall down the window in streaks. I was preparing to take my hands off the wheel and hand it to my doctors.”
‘Four years ago, I met a woman and her child at a public park. We became friends on Facebook and never saw each other again. Until last fall, when they joined us for Thanksgiving.’: Mom shares story of ‘friends who feel like family’
“As she chased behind her new friend, her mother and I struck up a conversation, and at some point she mentioned her daughter’s autism. My daughter was two at the time. I was at the beginning of my suspicions she shared that same diagnosis. This stranger—this mom—was the first person I told.”
‘I left in the middle of a conversation. It’s OKAY to protect your heart. Get out and DON’T look back.’: Woman pushes ‘unfollow’ mentality, ‘Be careful what you give your energy to’
“One of those weird arguments that happen in online groups of humans brought together by a common sport, a school, or neighborhood. It had nothing to do with the other people and had everything to do with my heart.”
‘You’re the girl who feels like she is never enough. Dear girl, you ARE enough. Why? Because no one else is YOU.’: Woman writes touching note to others struggling, ‘We don’t break, we bend’
“The girl who is forever going out of her way. Who feels like nothing she does ever measures up. Who can’t do or be what everyone expects of her. That is your power.”
‘This crying thing is a daily occurrence. But I’m fine. No, really, I AM FINE.’: Mom urges others ‘remind any mom you know you’re there for her’
“It is truly just that hard to be everything to everyone all at once. I’d be lying to you if I said I haven’t cried a whole h*ll of a lot.”
‘I’m the girl who is dating to marry in a generation focused on ‘talking’ and hooking up.’: Young woman says ‘I’m a rare breed, and that’s OK’
“The ‘talking’ stage leaves so many holes and room for error and miscommunication. Call me old school, but I don’t want to know quick facts, I want to get to know each other deep down.”
‘There were 10 two-year-olds in my living room, awkwardly avoiding eye contact. ‘Why are you kids acting weird? TELL ME THE TRUTH.’: Mom discovers why ‘kids are strange social beings’
“I was trying to act normal with Amelie’s mom, knowing full well it was her daughter who bit my daughter the week before. One says hello. My kids, their kids, they all act like a bunch of strangers. My son was the first one to fess up.”
