“Ermes and I met online. He noticed quickly something was wrong. When he saw there was hope, he met me halfway. A week or so later, he proposed to me. Hope.”
‘String cheese and pistachios, that’s it.’ I cut my chicken and slid it into my napkin. He noticed something was wrong.’: Partner helps woman recover from anorexia, ‘He met me halfway’
‘It’s nobody’s business!’ I’d tell myself. I was in survival mode. I dropped to 75 pounds. I thought I’d never wake up..’: Woman shares recovery journey from eating disorder, ‘I chose a life of fullness’
“I had to navigate the chaos alone. When I finally got to see my fiancé, he was hurt and confused. I was 75 pounds.”
‘I don’t look like your stereotypical pregnant woman. I won’t have that little bump. This isn’t the body I envisioned myself carrying in, but it so worthy.’: Expecting mom ‘thankful’ for unplanned pregnancy, ‘My weight stopped me from happiness’
“I used to think I would allow myself to get pregnant once I had lost all this weight. I blackmailed myself against the one thing I truly wanted in life. All my life, I’ve written off happiness because I wasn’t the ‘correct’ size.”
‘I stumbled upon a Facebook post from a former high school classmate. ‘I’m in Stage 4 Kidney Failure.’ A voice in the back of my mind screamed, ‘It’s you…’: Woman loses 150 pounds to donate kidney, liver, ‘Our lives are forever changed’
“My phone rang. ‘You’re a match!’ I stopped breathing for a brief moment. My BMI was still too high to donate. I tipped the scales at 297 pounds. The surgeon told me, ‘You need to lose more weight.’ I’d been searching for my ‘why’ for months. She needed me, and I needed her. Someone else’s life was now in my hands. I was called to save her.”
‘I was caught kissing a boy. ‘Come to the station. We’ll have fun with you. Clearly that’s what you like.’: Man shares coming out story, ‘I cared too much about fitting in’
“I’m a child of an Officer in the Indian Navy. I assumed only white men were gay. I pretended to have a crush with a female celebrity, lining my bedroom with her posters, while hiding a collection of pictures of men in their underwear under my mattress.”
‘Mom said, ‘You aren’t coming home.’ My sexuality was a sin. I was punished for making eye contact. The chance I’d pull through was slim.’: Woman survives accident, cancer, ‘I’m ALIVE for the first time’
“I was topping the scales at over 650 pounds. I pulled up and asked him if he was okay. A rush of cars started coming and they weren’t slowing down. Then I heard brakes screeching, the glass breaking. I flew through the air. I’d have to have my entire tongue removed.”
‘I needed to relapse just ‘one more time’ so everyone would like me. The verbal abuse continued.’: Woman battles 7-year eating disorder, ‘I decided to put myself first’
“I needed to lose weight. I would have a ton of friends and finally be brave enough to go to the pool in a bikini. I would root for other people and tell them to eat abundantly, but would never do that myself without ‘getting rid of it’ afterward.”
‘Starved for love, I made disastrous decisions. Eventually, I turned to food. I weighed in at 391 pounds, my body just as unhealthy as my soul.’: Survivor details battle with demons, ‘I am a beautiful disaster’
“Frozen in fear, you lay in your bed with that twisted knot in your stomach. There is always the question: who protected the little girl with the big, brown eyes? The answer? A resounding no one. I was a little girl.”
‘I was sleeping 16 hours a day. I felt someone squeezing my lungs every time I took a breath. ‘You’re fine, just go home and rest.’: Woman battling Lupus urges ‘you’re capable of crushing every obstacle in your path’
“A group of doctors huddled at the end of my bed. I overheard them say, ‘She’s so incredibly sick, we just can’t figure out what’s wrong. She isn’t going to make it.’ I spiked a 104 fever. I was writhing in pain, grunting, moaning, begging for it to stop.”
‘Hey sister, wear the shorts. You see dimples, cellulite. I see a woman who deserves to feel beautiful in whatever she chooses.’: Woman urges ‘confidence looks beautiful on you’
“Confidence looks beautiful on you, sis. Wear it proudly.”
