“There she is, taking up too much space with her laughter, her curves, her honesty, her sexuality. Oh, that too much woman, with her belly laughs and fiery passion. The one who loves too hard, feels too deeply, asks too often, desires too much. Her presence is as tall as a tree, as wide as a mountain. Her energy occupies every crevice of the room.”
‘I am the Too Much woman. The one who takes up too much space. I’m too loud, too vibrant, too sensitive, too honest. And still, I rise.’: Woman urges ‘your too much-ness is a gift’
‘Everyone wants a Prince Charming. That’s what I thought I found. I was head over heels and got pregnant within a few months. I ignored the warning signs.’
“Things started to change very rapidly. My possessions were stolen, our new baby gifts pawned, my hard-earned money taken. I only knew he was alive when I would see him post Craigslist ads seeking drugs. There was no turning back.”
‘My doctors discharged me early so I could chase behind the ambulance that held my tiniest love inside. My biggest fear is living in a world without her.’
“I spent years praying for a baby and now my only child was being diagnosed with a life-threatening condition. You can only imagine the feelings I had. Like most people who have questions, I took to Google.”
‘I was worried about falling asleep the night before I turned 10. The doctor said I wouldn’t live past 10. I always carried ‘expiration dates’ with me. It wasn’t the last time I was told I had this amount of time to live.’
“Mrs. Chase, I don’t think you need to worry about how many sick days Leah has, or if she is held back because of it because she will not live past 10-years-old.”
‘The nurse checked if my skin was salty to confirm her suspicions. She was right. I came out of the hospital and immediately changed my job.’: Woman diagnosed with ‘life-threatening’ Cystic Fibrosis, ‘I couldn’t be more alive’
“I was rushed to the hospital into intensive care. I was not expected to survive, but luck seemed to be on my side. The nurse who was caring for me suspected what it was – her daughter also had it.”
‘I remember waking up and wondering why Mike and my mother were talking about something random and not the baby. What happened to the baby?’
“They told us many times that our best option was to take his breathing tube out and he would either pass in my arms or thrive.”
‘I ‘couldn’t’ have kids and my husband was ‘infertile’. When I got pregnant, my baby had ‘no chance of survival.’ Yet, she made it.’: Premature baby ‘the size of a coke can’ thrives despite all odds
“The specialist I saw said there was less than 20% chance of survival. He also continued to tell me I was young and healthy, and I needed to try again. My heart fell to the floor. I wanted to scream and cry. ‘Why would we be blessed with this baby girl only for her to die?’ I grew angry. That anger soon turned to determination. I wasn’t giving up! I had already had several negative pregnancy tests! To our surprise, there was a little heartbeat.”
