“‘Everything happens for a reason.’ I would be single and alone forever. ‘Who will want me if I have HIV?’ A friend from the choir said, ‘I am HIV positive, too, I can help you out.’”
‘Someone told me, you must find a way to love the virus.’ I was close to telling him to f*ck off.’: HIV positive man focuses on his health and self-love, ‘I face the future with much more love than fear.’
‘I went from a 3,000 square-foot house to a little hotel room with nothing. I found out the hard way.’: Mom learns to live in minimalism after house fire forces her to realize what’s important
“The single lone hair tie. You baby it. You put it back on your arm after you get out of the shower. You make sure it’s with you when you head to yoga class. That hair tie is your entire freaking life. Then I threw my – should have washed it yesterday – hair into a quick ponytail and a light went off.”
‘Hey, you look swollen by your collarbone,’ my coworker stopped me. I groaned. I had a huge trip planned. The pain skyrocketed.’: Young woman lives with a chronic desmoid tumor, advocates so her ‘struggles can become guidance for someone else’
“My diagnosis began in a yoga studio. I noticed something was wrong when I couldn’t hold my balance easily. I developed a tight pinching and dull ache in my right shoulder. As I came out from anesthesia, my mom asked the doctor how it went. ‘Well, confusing,’ he replied. ‘The cause of your swelling and pain remains a mystery.’ I was stunned. I ended up in a surgeon’s office. ‘This is suspicious for a sarcoma.’ I had to interrupt. ‘I’m sorry, you said sarcoma? Do you mean I have cancer?’ I stammered in disbelief.”
‘My mom told me my dad was ‘gone.’ I fell to my knees. A nurse asked me to be ‘quiet.’: Daughter sells everything, lives nomadic life in search of ‘peace’ after father’s death to terminal cancer
“I woke up to a call from my brother. ‘Dad is really sick. He has cancer.’ Time stood still. ‘What am I supposed to do?’ In less than 2 months, he passed. My lifestyle has brought concern to others. ‘What do you mean you’re selling everything?’ ‘How are you going to live?’ ‘What about your careers?’ I was in the midst of a breakdown.”
‘Why are you still nursing her? Isn’t she too OLD for that?’ Mom shamed for breastfeeding 1-year-old daughter
“People are constantly telling you how you should feed your kids. When does it all stop? I felt the need to please everyone, all the time. I became a pleaser. For the fear of letting anyone down, I did whatever I could to make everyone happy. Meanwhile, I was losing myself.”
‘My phone rings. ‘I don’t have time for this. I need to get my kids.’ Then my mouth dropped. We were greeted by 2 officers as we drove down the long gravel driveway.’
“I had already popped a bunch of pills and drank a bunch of Vodka. ‘I want to see him!’ I screamed, shaking profusely. My mom said, ‘No, you don’t. He shot and killed himself with a 12-gauge shotgun in his mouth.’ I look at my phone. It reads, ‘I love you.’ 6:24 pm.”
‘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.”
‘At 7 months pregnant, I found messages online to a dozen women, telling them he wished I was dead.’: Woman ‘destroyed’ by abusive man, finds ‘confidence’ traveling the world with baby
“The biological father was someone I barely knew. He wanted to marry me, but I knew in my heart he was not the one. Over the next 7 months of pregnancy, I told his parents he was cheating on me with dozens of women. They blamed me for his actions. The veil was lifted. I was being manipulated and abused on all fronts.”
‘My friends invited me for a weekend getaway. I got a few itchy bites. ‘Are you pregnant?’ ‘Maybe it’s bacterial?’ This was a disease I had never heard of. There is NO cure for it.’
“I assumed it was the flu. I drank plenty of fluids and stayed in bed. But I wasn’t getting better. I had shooting pains all the way up my spine, as if someone was sawing me open. I went back to the doctor. ‘I think it’s food poisoning.’ ‘Maybe cancer.’ ‘HIV.’ ‘Is it possible you’re pregnant?’ No.”
‘There’s a problem in our relationship.’ My father stopped the car. I had an instant sick feeling. In a blink, my hero was gone.’: Woman overcomes abandoment issues, sexual trauma, ‘I can finally stand tall after 36 years’
“At age 13, I fell into a relationship with an older man. He carefully groomed me and became the father figure I was missing. He showered me in gifts and affection. But there was a price to pay. He would follow my school bus and watch me get off. He controlled my every move. Every week, I prayed I’d be the long-lost child reunited with her daddy.”
