“I couldn’t walk like most kids or use my arms. The doctor tried to scare my parents, ‘She won’t survive.’ My mom was frightened when she heard this. She didn’t know if I would have a future or what would become of me.”

‘She won’t have a normal life.’ I realized things needed to change. We shouldn’t be ashamed of our disabilities.’: Woman details journey with Cerebral Palsy, ‘Love yourself always’

‘That’s just the coke talking!’ I shook 5 Ambien into my hand. It had become a full-blown dragon.’: Former addict celebrates 20 years of sobriety. ‘I made the mess into a lesson’
“I didn’t think of prescription drugs as ‘drugs.’ I washed pills down with Amstel Light. I thought I was doing what I needed to do to sleep.”

‘I’ve never been a confident person, you know that all too well. That’s why you chose me to be your next victim that fateful night.’: Woman pens letter to her eating disorder, ‘I’m not keeping you a secret anymore’
“You’ve never really listened to me before, so maybe telling you all of this stuff is pointless. Maybe you’re not even listening now. Even if you are, it’s not like you’re going to feel sorry for me after everything you’ve put me through.”

‘I’ve had my accounts hacked. I’ve had my words twisted and changed to reflect me as a horrible person. I feel stronger.’: Woman who was hacked says ‘never give up’
“A boyfriend of years left me for another girl. I grabbed my phone and I wrote while my baby gnawed on my nipples.”

‘You’re too intense.’ My heart beat out of my chest; there wasn’t enough air. I became addicted to the relief of self-harm.’: Young woman diagnosed with OCD after years, ‘I learned so much about myself’
“Someone honked their horn. Was I just involved in a hit-and-run and didn’t even know? I had hallucinations of objects flashing before me.”

‘It’s safe to say I lived. But I never lived the way he did. How could I hate him for flying without me?’: Woman says lost love ‘made me stronger despite the hurt’
“The moment I met him, I felt like I was living my life too. Truly living. Maybe he did what he had to do. I had no control. I had no hand to play. Sometimes you lose, like I did when he ended the game.”

‘Mom, I’m out of diapers. Please read my report.’ THIS WAS WRITTEN ON MY SON IN MARKER.’: Daycare worker fired after mom discovers message written on child’s stomach
“I’ve scrubbed it with several baby wipes and it’s not coming off. I had plans to take them to the beach to play, and now I can’t because my son has writing all over him. Am I over exaggerating? Help.”

‘John has hit his head. We’re on the way to pick you up,’ he said. ‘HIS HEAD?’ The room suddenly felt different, as if the air was being sucked out. Oh God no. ‘Maryanne, are you there?’
“My husband had responded to a break and enter complaint and was searching for an intruder. I raced to his side and grabbed his hand. ‘I love you,’ I whispered in his ear. No response. ‘I love you, John.’ And then, it happened again.”

‘My husband and I were in the Dominican Republic. We took a private horseback riding tour around the island. It was everything you’d think it would be.’
“So, I made a comment just like that to our guide, about his luck to live in such paradise. But what he said in response really struck me.”