“Loneliness hurts – both literally and figuratively. I began losing my hair and was diagnosed with adrenal fatigue. I cried daily. Suicidal ideation creeped in, first shocking, and then regularly.”
‘My heart crumpled under the weight of yet another frozen shoulder. I knew our marriage was terminal.’: Divorcee embarks on self love journey, shares lessons learned about loneliness
‘I remember thinking, ‘Why is my body doing this to itself?’ I was so angry at my immune system for failing me.’: Woman shares life with stoma after Chronic Colitis diagnosis
“I will never stop talking about it – to challenge the stigma so no one has to feel embarrassment and shame.”
Be Kind To Her, She Is Pushing As Hard As She Can
“She’s told herself she should do more, but she’s stuck sitting on her kitchen floor. Come see her and bring her a tea, remind her of what she cannot see. Sit beside her and be a friend. Tell her that this is not the end.”
I Am 37, And I Have No Freaking Clue What I Want To Do With My Life
“I wanted to be a doctor since the very first time I met my Pediatrician, Dr. Peeden, and worked tirelessly to reach that goal. But what happens when you reach your goals and find that you are completely miserable and lost so much along the way?”
‘Your baby girl isn’t growing properly.’ My daughter doesn’t need changing. This world does.’: Mom to daughter with dwarfism advocates for inclusion
“Without much explanation, the doctor headed back to her office to look over the measurements, leaving me to delve into Google. Without enough info, full of fear and armed with nothing but shock and anxiety, I stumbled upon scary statistics, a lack of information and words that seemed jumbled on the page.”
It’s Time We Start Assuming The Best Of Mothers
“If you truly want to help her, hold back the little remarks that probably make her feel criticized. She needs time to be a person… and she needs to feel seen and heard.”
‘I heard the word ‘defect’ among whispers. Tears flowed, but her worth remained unchanged.’: Mom shares daughter’s journey with Down Syndrome, heart diagnoses
“I had my 20-week anatomy scan. This is always my favorite appointment, where the sonographer details every portion of the growing baby, and I go home to put a perfect sonogram photo on the fridge. This appointment was different.”
‘I took three pregnancy tests, and all of them showed positive. ‘I’m going to be fired.’ I cried over my shame all the time.’: Single mom shares journey, urges ‘leave all the shame behind’
“‘If what I did was a mistake, I would make that mistake ten times over again to get this kid.’ There should be no shame in that.”
‘They told my mom, ‘I don’t think she will survive.’ All of my family came to say goodbye.’: Woman shares 24-year journey to rare Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome diagnosis, interabled love story
“The girl in the hospital bed who could barely walk across the room wouldn’t believe she’d be walking her baby in a stroller, with her trusty poodle by her side, taking care of a home, husband, and a baby all while working full time.”
‘I told my doctor I was starting to hate my husband. I said things to him and my son that will always haunt me.’: Young mom shares healing journey through postpartum anxiety, rage
“My husband and son felt like they always had to walk on eggshells around me to prevent one of them from triggering me.”