“I was oozing and bleeding. My co-worker said, ‘Are you doing something about it?’ I said, ‘Yes, I’m getting it treated once I finish our deadline first.’ She spoke the words I knew in my heart: ‘If I were you, I would go now. Health should be your priority.’ I left my rising career in a prestigious design firm in San Francisco.”
‘That looks intolerable. I can’t stand it.’ It looked like I’d been burnt in a fire. I quickly pulled my shirt sleeve down.’: Woman puts career on hold to heal psoriasis, find self-love
‘You’re too intense.’ My heart beat out of my chest; there wasn’t enough air. I became addicted to the relief of self-harm.’: Young woman diagnosed with OCD after years, ‘I learned so much about myself’
“Someone honked their horn. Was I just involved in a hit-and-run and didn’t even know? I had hallucinations of objects flashing before me.”
‘Is today the day?’ It was like she knew something we didn’t. She just wants to be a kid again.’: Parents share reality of 9-year-old daughter’s battle with brain cancer, ‘Her faith is high’
“She told us she felt useless. It broke our hearts. ‘I’m tired of being stared at for having a wheelchair.’ She is going to fight until it’s gone.”
‘I found myself sniffing men’s deodorant in aisle 11, holding back tears. I’m trying not to forget his smell, but it’s fading.’: Widow candidly shares ‘gut-wrenching’ grief journey
“She said, ‘It’s good to see you’re moving on.’ It’s been two years since my husband died. No matter how much time keeps adding onto that calendar day when I last saw him, I’ll never get over it.”
‘I left my husband. This wasn’t the man I married at 24. In the emotional turmoil, we got pregnant again.’: Divorcee urges ‘your future is so much bigger than current circumstance’
“I accidentally found out about his secret relationship when inquiring about our wills. Dating someone behind my back is singlehandedly the best gift he’s ever given me. I’m not the person I was 6 months ago.”
‘The house is too big for 2 people!’ I had to tell him, and soon. They showed up with nothing but a paper bag.’: Couple adopt 3 siblings, ‘We instantly loved them’
“He was looking to place these 3 children. ‘We think y’all could handle it, and we want to keep them together.’ They were like wild colts and would just run off. We didn’t know how they might react.”
‘Suck it up. You’re fine.’ She took a bad fall. I was too traumatized to step foot in a hospital.’: Young widow has realization about ‘grief management’ after daughter crashes bike
“My daughter head-slammed to the ground. It happened when I was in the deepest pain of my life, betrayed and hurt by the one person I thought I could count on after my husband died. I panicked.”
‘Where are you right now? If you’re still there, you need to get out! You need to tell your mom.’: Woman finds happiness after years of abuse, neglect
“We went from talking almost every night to talking almost every month. ‘Shelainea, you need to tell your mom.’ The divorce took a toll. She changed for the worst. ‘You shouldn’t be going through my phone!’ I couldn’t believe she was doing this to me.”
‘I was billed $7,600 to end a pregnancy I desperately wanted. I didn’t know I’d have to choose.’: After miscarriages, woman starts motherhood movement, ‘I found healing’
“The car stopped and I ran to the bathroom. I was greeted by the most unwelcome guest: an amount of bright red, to this day 5 years later, makes my heart stop to remember. I was angry at the world.”
‘My parents broke the news. ‘You were adopted at age 2.’ For the first time, I understood my parents had left me behind, forever.’: Adoptee overcomes addiction, ‘I needed to fall in love with myself again’
“I felt unloved. I tried to prove my worth and acted out to get attention from loved ones. At 14, I started experimenting with drugs. I continued on a rampage until I found heroin at age 15 with the help of an older boyfriend. ‘Please let me come home,’ I begged. I tried to stop many times. Then, one day, I found out I was pregnant. That little heartbeat was the sound of a chapter of my life closing forever.”
