“He had blood-soaked gauze around his head. ‘Is that a bone sticking out of his arm?’ Sean had been in a motorcycle accident. I sat beside his bed listening to the ventilator push air through his body. I need you. Your boys need you. I know you’re in there, but you have to show these doctors that. I’m going to go home. When I get back in the morning, you need to wake up.'”
‘If you’re there, I need you to wake up. Your boys need you. Tell God you’re not ready.’ His eyelids fluttered. I blinked back tears.’: Woman says her husband is ‘truly is a walking miracle’ after motorcycle accident
‘Why would you do this to yourself? This is just bizarre.’ It’s hard to look in the mirror and see the damage I’ve done.’: Woman shares her history of self-mutilation and bulimia
“Sometimes I’d hit a vein and the blood would shoot out in an arc, creating stripes across the mirror and pouring into the sink. I was cutting away everything seemingly imperfect. Pulling out little threads which turned out to be nerves, partially paralyzing my lower lip and bits of my chin. I still didn’t stop.”
‘No one else has the guts to tell you this, but you look like a crack addict.’ I was starving, and horrified.’: Woman beats long battle with eating disorder, ‘I get up every day and FIGHT FOR MY LIFE’
“For 9 years, I didn’t tell anyone my secret. On the morning of my grandma’s funeral, I went full detox. As we sat in the pews, I kept telling myself, ‘Don’t be selfish. Don’t cause a scene.’ I started convulsing. Completely paralyzed, I couldn’t move. I was so angry and embarrassed. My mother wouldn’t let me out of the car at the cemetery. I sat in our SUV and watched my family, huddled around her grave, from afar. It was like watching them gathered around my own coffin. I knew I was next.”
‘I woke up with a large man on top of me. ‘Had I been assaulted, or was it my fault?’ I left the room, grabbed my baby.’: Woman quits drinking for her daughter, ‘I was able to love in a healthy way and be the best mom I could be’
“I went to a party up the street. I somehow made it home, brought a guy with me, and my body became an object. I remember my mom coming down and demanding the guy leave, and as it was happening, the house was getting robbed. I played the victim. I went to work while my family was left to deal with the mess. I had a beautiful baby girl and still, this did not stop me. I was physically taking care of my baby and bathing, feeding, and caring for her. But did I really care? Those words are haunting.”
‘I keep telling them to give up on you. I don’t know why they won’t listen.’ The officer grabbed my black and blue arms. I was a walking zombie.’: Former addict transforms her life, ‘I was never hopeless. I was never unworthy.’
“The electricity had been turned off. I was enrolled in Cosmetology school, but hadn’t gone in weeks. I was so tired. My grandparents were on vacation, so I thought I’d go to their house and shower. My intentions were good. I sat in their shower for what felt like an eternity. I remember each individual drop of water hitting my body as I cried out to die. I was fighting the demons, doomed to lose. I lost that day. I didn’t go to school. Instead, I stole $7,000 worth of jewelry from my grandmother.”
‘I mouthed, ‘I can breathe.’ Dark voices started whispering inside my head. ‘I am scared to be a mother.’: Young woman survives near-fatal wreck, beats all odds, ‘My journey isn’t over but I’m starting to feel like ME again’
“I was in a medically induced coma for 17 days. I awakened to some very dark news. The doctors said, ‘You will probably never move more than 2 fingers.’ I am hearing this, but I can’t respond. I could not talk. I wondered why I was still alive. Prior to the wreck, I had long thick hair. They started washing it. Nurses were pulling out glass and other debris. I begged them not to cut it, as it was all I had left of my previous self.”
‘I wouldn’t use Chapstick. I was afraid I might lick my lips and accidentally swallow some of it, convinced it would make me fat.’: Woman suffering eating disorder is admitted to recovery center, ‘We aren’t treated like people. We were treated like patients’
“All doors were alarmed, and I was surrounded by strangers. My identical twin made me a blanket to take to treatment. She wanted me to feel at home. The staff wouldn’t allow me to have it. Since I was still on Red level, I wasn’t allowed into my bedroom. I sat on the floor in the hallway by my room and cried to my mom on the phone, begging her to bring me home. As I cried on the floor, a patient walked up to me and handed me a little slip of paper. He had written ‘You can do this’ on a scrap of paper. I sobbed. I still have his note.”
‘My birth mom did cocaine while pregnant. I was hooked before I was even born. ‘Don’t stop,’ my boyfriend told me. I listened.’: Woman overcomes life-long battle with addiction, ‘Sober is sexy!’
“I knew they would reject me if I said no. ‘Sure, I’ll try it.’ I made a fool of myself. My ‘friends’ loved it. They bragged about me at school, about how cool I was. It was a thrill to be accepted for once. I didn’t know it was for the wrong reasons. It got to the point where I was homeless, using drugs to try to overdose. But it never worked. Every morning, I would wake up, cry, and tell myself it was the last time I was going to take drugs. But every night I would use again, trying to kill myself. Every day, and every night.”
‘I made a mistake. My ex found out. ‘I should’ve known better,’ he said. I thought I deserved it. I wasn’t faithful.’: Woman overcomes abusive relationship to find the man of her dreams, ‘I feel like a damn warrior!’
“He burnt my grandma’s table in a bonfire and emailed me pictures. At 2 a.m., he was yelling outside my house, banging on all the doors and windows. I was hidden behind the couch dialing 911. He keyed my car. I woke up with 100+ missed calls. My family finally convinced me the police needed to be involved. I brought so much proof, I thought they’d have to arrest him, but nope. Their ‘hands were tied’ and ‘boys will be boys.’”
‘We’re right here, Lauren. You’re okay.’ I didn’t want to die. My sisters clasped my hands tightly as tears rolled down my cheeks.’: Woman finds inner peace after lifelong battle with anorexia, alcoholism
“‘You’re not leaving this table until you finish what is on your plate! Do you hear me?’ My parents begged, pleaded, and demanded me to eat. But my disease was much bigger than them. At 5’11” and 86 pounds, I was admitted to a hospital away from my school, my family, my friends – everything I knew. I’ll never forget the absolute horror of having to be pried off of my parents, not knowing when I would see them again.”
