“Bring a meal, but don’t go in. They just had a baby, they need food. They don’t need to put on a bra, clean the house, or entertain.”
‘Let me know if you need anything.’ But a new mom never will.’: Woman’s candid advice on how to help a new mom so they don’t ‘shoulder it alone’
‘I was scared she’d die. They said it’s ‘new mom jitters.’ I didn’t want to be the ‘depressed, baby-less mom’: Mother experiences postpartum depression, PTSD after first son born still, ‘I was hiding it well’
“I was losing clumps of hair. I assumed it was stress because we just moved for my husband’s job. My doctor asked about my children. She was the first doctor who actually had a conversation with me. Then she dropped a bomb. ‘I’m prescribing you an anti depressant.’ I left the appointment bawling. ‘Who does she think she is!? She didn’t know everything I’ve been through!'”
‘If you date a girl, you’re going to hell.’ I broke her heart the instant the words escaped my lips.’: 14-year-old takes in cousin’s daughter as her own, helps her through homosexuality, self-harm, ‘We were always meant to be a family’
“She caught me by surprise. ‘What would you do if I dated a girl?’ I immediately told her, ‘If you date a girl, you’re going to hell.’ The instant the words escaped my lips, something else hit me harder than the fear of my child in hell. I broke her heart. I never thought my child would be gay. I began noticing small cuts on her arms. I was losing her. I would have risked anything for her to find herself and be happy.”
‘I felt trapped. I got pregnant at 17. She gently rubbed my hand. ‘Everything will be alright.’: Mother of 10 overcomes suicide attempt, PTSD, trauma to learn to ‘conquer love’ for her children
“While camping, we came across a family with 4 boys. You could tell they weren’t camping – they lived there. I told my husband as we laid in our tent, ‘I have this weird feeling I know them. They are meant to be in my life.’ Later at church, a member asked if we’d take in 4 boys. My husband just got laid off. ‘Absolutely NOT.’ I was exhausted. When I then learned who the 4 boys were, my heart began to beating so fast.”
‘You’re so lucky to have the opportunity to be at home.’ So, I shut my mouth.’: Overwhelmed mom urges others ‘Don’t be quiet’ when feeling depressed, hurt, isolated
“No one mentions that you disappear into your own walls. A part of the furniture. Like an old armchair that’s jumped on all day and the last thing you want to do is talk to someone or be touched. We have to be grateful, so we shut our mouths. I’m in silence listening to others say, ‘I never felt like that, I loved it.’ Sinking deeper into our guilt.”
‘Sweetheart, you were dead. Your lips were blue. CPR didn’t bring you back. Please don’t get high again.’: Woman battles heroin addiction alongside her mother, gets clean after surprise pregnancy in jail, ‘my son is a daily reminder to do the right thing’
“The nurse at the jail came in with a serious look on her face. ‘Hunny, when was the last time you had sex?!’ I nonchalantly answered, ‘this morning.’ She then asks me, ‘Well, have you been sexually active a lot lately?!’ My fiancé had just gotten home from jail a month ago. ‘Your pregnancy test is positive.’ I broke down in tears, called my fiancé. ‘This is good Brianna. This is your chance to get clean and do the right thing. I finally get to be a dad, please don’t cry.’”
‘It’s ALS.’ I spent the year watching my dad die. I ended my marriage to a man who never loved me.’: Woman finally finds life ‘worth living’ after surviving postpartum depression, losing father to ALS, marriage ending
“’You need help. You’re not ok.’ I got an email from my dad simply saying, ‘I love you.’ In the heartache of letting him go, I also was letting go of my 7 year marriage to a man I realized never loved me. Time didn’t stop like I desperately wanted it to. My daughter needed me, so I put one foot in front of the other. I started praying again, because I’d forgotten how.”
‘Since you’re 30 weeks, we do a mental health evaluation,’ she said matter-of-factly. I hesitated. ‘Uhhh. Okay.’: Mom shocked to be diagnosed with antepartum depression, depression during pregnancy, after nurse midwife surprised her with ‘mental health evaluation’
“Immediately, the nurse midwife started asking me questions. ‘In the last 2 weeks, have you had thoughts of harming yourself or taking your own life most days, some days, or not at all?’ Me: ‘Most days.’ My throat became dry and tight. I couldn’t hide it anymore.”
‘You’ll ruin my life if you have this baby.’ I said, ‘Fine, I’ll do it alone.’ And I did.’: Single mom school bus driver with no maternity leave takes newborn on route with her, ‘This job saved me’
“I was scared. My job as a school bus driver doesn’t offer maternity leave, I had no savings (hello, single mom!) and I couldn’t afford to just not work. I was due 3 weeks before school started. Her father wasn’t in the operating room for her birth. ‘You robbed me of a great moment, never contact me again.’ He moved across the country without even seeing her. It was official. There would be no co-parenting, I was once again a single mom. I had to make this work.”
‘Are you having twins? You’re HUGE!’ The comments hurt. It blew me away.’: Pregnant mom shocked by rude strangers’ comments, ‘I was no longer a person with feelings’
“Waking up to a surgeon showing me pictures of my ovaries was shocking. I remember the tears falling down my face, feeling sick at the sight of them. My husband slept in a chair by my bed until the nurses finally sent him home. ‘It’s time to push!’ they said. I felt nothing from my waist down. This is not how I wanted it to happen.”
