“She wanted me to come into the office as soon as I could. I didn’t make it to that appointment, though. The bleeding started a day later. The rest was a blur.”
‘I heard the words no momma wants to hear, ‘We couldn’t find a heartbeat.’ It felt like too much to bear.’: Woman suffers miscarriage, gives birth to rainbow baby, ‘The future is bright’
‘The results came back 90% positive.’ My world crumbled. This wasn’t our plan. This wasn’t how we envisioned our family.’: Mom shares Down syndrome acceptance journey, ‘We’re LUCKY’
“You’ll grieve the life you thought your child would live. You’ll wonder why this happened to you and your family and your baby. You’ll wonder if you did something to deserve this. And all those thoughts are okay. That’s how you get to the other side.”
‘I grabbed my stomach. ‘Call the doctor!’ The nurses whispered over my charts. I couldn’t wrap my mind around it.’: Mom births rainbow baby after stillbirth, ‘Find beauty through ashes’
“’Really? Haven’t I been through enough?’ I stared at him blankly. The flashing lights and the cold temperature of the metal board my body was put on led me to a profound peacefulness.”
‘If I get deployed, do you want to get married?’ I was married to the military. I was constantly lost, never sure what would happen next.’: Military spouse encourages ‘love your own dreams again’
“I was alone for 6 months. Nick was in the military and I wasn’t prepared. You love him, but you’ve both changed. ‘What is wrong with us?’ It hit me. I didn’t need to give up my own dreams to be a military spouse.”
‘I begged for a miscarriage. ‘I don’t want this. I’m not going to be good at this.’ I was in SUCH a dark place.’: New mom shares pregnancy acceptance journey, ‘It’s okay if it feels scary’
“I peed on that little stick. ‘One line…. phew. Oh, wait, another line is forming. Holy smokes, that line is AGGRESSIVELY dark. Can these things be wrong?’ Immediately, I just started sobbing.”
‘Uh, excuse me? What are you doing?’ I noticed my husband taking an empty milk cup out of the dishwasher. It sparked a fight that resulted in days of angry feelings.’: Woman urges ‘never stop trying to understand your partner, the kids are watching’
“I am so glad we had this argument over the milk cup. It wasn’t about the cup of milk.”
‘Your best course of action is IVF.’ Surely this wasn’t real. I didn’t know anyone who had gone through this. We told everyone.’: Couple advocates for infertility awareness, ‘I never lost hope’
“I cried so much. Why would people put themselves through this? Hope. Desperation. Longing. I realized this wasn’t something people wanted to share or talk about. Surely I wasn’t the only person going through this?”
‘I’ll do it, but just this once.’ Famous last words. My body NEEDED them. I HAD to get high every 6 hours.’: Recovering addict shares sobriety journey, ‘All you have to do is SHOW UP’
“If I didn’t get high within an hour, I’d start throwing up. I’d sit in the bathroom for hours trying to hit. My veins were ruined. My probation officer was calling everyone I knew, threatening to send me to prison. I was at an all-time low.”
‘Can I go camping with my friend?’ Where did this fear come from? Mother Bear instincts? I HAVE to give her the chance to spread her wings.’: Mom details struggles with anxiety, ‘The fear never truly goes away’
“I see a narrow spot on the road and suddenly I see myself losing control and our vehicle rolling over and over. I wonder if we would survive or if I would have to live with causing an accident that took my children’s lives. It keeps me up at night, makes me a wreck all day.”
‘I heard her voice and knew our lives would change forever. ‘Nic, you need someone to drive you to the hospital.’ I looked at my daughter and saw her eyes well with fear. ‘Momma, what happened to Daddy?’: Mom recounts near-loss of husband, stresses importance of ‘telling kids the truth’
“He said, ‘Ma’am, we have an unidentified man with head trauma coming in, I’m sure it is your husband.’ At that moment, I was escorted by a solemn social worker to a small, littered room. A room meant to allow family members to react to what they would tell me in private. I went downstairs to hold our daughter when she woke up. I told her in an age-appropriate manner what had happened to Daddy, and what our next step would be. She held me and calmly said, ‘I know Daddy will be okay.’ Your kids DESERVE the TRUTH.”
