“I remember every text I sent him that day, with no reply. I’ll never forget the terrible gut feeling I had when I found out 3 American soldiers had been killed. It was windy and the trees were blowing, as if Ben was giving me a sign. ‘It can’t be him, it’s finally our turn.’ I remember trying to go to sleep that night, but was tossing and turning. And then came the pounding on the door at 1 a.m.”
‘It can’t be him. My life can’t go on without him.’ It was 10 days before his return from deployment.’: Marine wife mourns fallen hero fiancé on what would’ve been their wedding day, ‘I will stay strong for you, carry on your legacy’
‘You accused me of infidelity. I did not recognize this man screaming at me.’: Woman tries to heal family after husband’s suicide
“You were sending me strange text messages. I returned home to you acting even stranger. The paranoia set in. I fell to the front porch screaming. Why would you do that?! Why would you leave me?! Our sons!!! My neighbors heard my screams and came rushing to my side.”
‘I told her, ‘I’m looking for a ‘suit.’ He’s an ex-felon, an addict, covered in ink, going through a divorce, currently unemployed. Yeah, No!’ We married just 3 months later.’
“I clicked into his profile. ‘Hi.’ His response was, ‘Who is this?’ He would disappear for long periods of time – sometimes years – and no one knew if he was alive or dead. Just 6 days after meeting him, I was on pins and needles. I finally called. When he answered, I could hear the difference in his voice. I’m telling you, he was magic.”
‘He didn’t show up to work.’ My stomach dropped. I hadn’t spoken to my husband in 48 hours.’: Marine spouse’s husband dies ‘in his sleep,’ urges us to ‘never take a second for granted’
“As my teaching day ended, I heard my phone ding. I read a message offering condolences to my family, referring to my husband in past tense. I burst into tears. ‘What does this mean? He is just missing. He isn’t gone.’ I realized I needed to get home. I needed to be with my daughter. Two men in uniform showed up at my door. I looked at my mom and I said, ‘They’re coming. The Marines are coming.'”
‘He thought I was drunk, but after hearing me slam my head several times due to seizing, he approached the stall and witnessed me convulsing on the floor.’
“I was rushed to the hospital with several Marines holding me down. My consciousness was fading. The first 4 hospitals turned me away. I awoke to a half-paralyzed body.”
‘It stopped my heart. I landed on a glass I was carrying, and a chunk of it punctured my jugular. A voice came to me and told me I was dying. Oh God no! I didn’t want to die.’: Woman collapses after too much caffiene
“I suddenly felt nauseous. I was standing at the kitchen counter – and my next memory is opening my eyes, and I’m lying on something red. I felt shattered glass falling from my face. I ran my hand down my chin, where I felt something snag my finger.”
‘I’ve been hiding our family’s ‘secret’ for years. I have been silent. Masking our smiles. Faking OK. A complete nightmare. I am so sick of living in fear.’
“The officer had actually committed suicide and faked his own murder. This brought out things in Ty I had never seen before. Our family has been in nonstop crisis.”
‘Marry that boy. Make him happy.’ I would wear makeup to cover the bruises on my cheek.’: Woman’s husband suffers from PTSD, traumatic brain injury post-military, ‘Never give up on their love’
“I thought he was just angry and stressed out. When he slowed down, his brain would wander. He blacked out while driving us down the highway and started to scream. ‘If you don’t get help, I’m taking the baby and leaving.’ It’s like losing the person you fell in love with and not being able to mourn.”
‘Oh God. I am about to puke.’ All of a sudden, I see a white van and someone whispers, ‘There he is.’
“I couldn’t wait any longer so I drove myself to the hospital. They told me there was nothing they could do to stop this baby from coming today. Alex was set to leave for deployment in 17 days.”
‘We ran away and married in secret. I fell in love before I knew her name. Right then, I confessed, ‘I’d marry you in a heartbeat.’: Veteran recounts whirlwind romance, ‘We were meant to be’
“It was love at first sight. Every time she entered the room, it felt like the world stopped turning. Life had different plans for us, and it wasn’t quite our time. I was deployed and we lost touch. After returning from Iraq alive, I had a fresh perspective on life. There was an instant bond between us.”
