“When I say her name, I don’t imagine a hospital bed and a funeral. No, I imagine her great, big smile that lit up an entire room. I imagine her laugh, her soft hands and perfect pixie nose. I imagine her holding a flower crown on her head, the wind softly blowing her hair.”
‘The night I found out, I circled the kitchen island, repeating, ‘God! I PRAYED for her!’ I was SO angry.’: Woman describes healing after little sister’s suicide
‘I woke up to my mom sobbing. ‘Your father passed away from drug abuse.’ A part of me knew it would happen.’: Woman dedicates life to healing others from ‘father wounds’
“I felt cheated from having a good father who’d watch me grow up, dance with me at my wedding. Father’s Day may be extremely hard to get through, but you’re complete with or without. You are enough.”
‘Someone up there really wants you to be a mom. There are THREE heartbeats here.’: Mom welcomes rainbow triplets
“I found myself in the bathroom, peering down at that familiar stick. There it was. That blue line. That crippling fear history will repeat itself. I didn’t know if I could survive this again.”
‘He died in his sleep. I HAD to take care of myself in order to take care of my kids.’: Widow creates ‘encouraging’ self-care subscription box for others battling grief
“It’s like when you’re flying on a plane and they tell you to put the oxygen mask on before assisting your child with theirs. I knew I couldn’t help my kids process their grief if I wasn’t dealing with my own.”
‘With a huge grin, my mom said, ‘Your daughter is an honor student? Well, mine’s a lesbian!’ She was so proud.’: LGBTQ mom shares what Pride means to her
“I felt as if my face was about to melt off. ‘Mom, I’m gay and I have a girlfriend. I think I love her.’ She started howling, deep belly laughing.”
‘Dad’s not waking up.’ I saw him lying in bed, blood coming from one nostril.’: Woman raises awareness for intergenerational trauma
“I went to grab his shoulders to shake him awake, but my hand touched something hard. It took a second for my eyes to make out what I was holding. It was the handgun.”
‘Days before his 24th birthday, we received messages. ‘Jake has not shown up for work or class.’ His roommates hadn’t seen him the night before.’: Woman details navigating grief after losing brother to suicide, sister and nieces to car accident
“Exactly 2 months later, my sister and two beautiful nieces were killed in a car accident. I heard phrases like ‘everything happens for a reason’ more times than I can count. I was told my sadness was a result of my lack of gratitude and my focusing on the negative. I was encouraged to move on, to forget, to focus on the positive and live in gratitude with love.”
‘I just want to be normal.’ In a moment of weakness, he used a drug he never had before.’: Woman widowed by addiction urges ‘end the stigma’
“All he wanted was to be the best father, husband, and provider he could be. I refuse to let addiction be his legacy.”
‘People kept saying, ‘You’re so strong.’ On the inside I was yelling, ‘Not strong enough to bring my mom back!’: Woman shares grief of losing mom as teen
“After my mom died, my stepdad simply left. Survival mode kicked in. For the next 3 years, my 19-year-old brother did whatever he could to help. Being strong was truly my only choice.”
‘Who’s going to be my dad?’ I didn’t even get to say goodbye. He was already gone.’: Woman shares grief of losing father at age 9, ‘He was my first true love’
“I entered the hospital room to see my dad lying lifeless, his feet cold. I felt sick to my stomach. In everything I’ve done in life, he was always missing.”
