“I was so afraid of being ‘crazy’ I couldn’t admit I needed help when I was literally in the hospital for psych evaluation. Today, I’m healthier than I’ve ever been in my life. But it came at a price. I lost my best friend. My soul sister. I live every day in fear of the monster who lives within me.”
‘Something happened,’ I sobbed. ‘We had a fight and she called the police. I’m going to the hospital.’ I was convinced my boyfriend would break up with me on the spot.’: Woman with Bipolar Disorder details eye-opening journey to acceptance
‘In my left hand, I held a gun. In the other was a beer. My first Christmas as a single mom without my kids was soul-wrenching.’: Woman shares grief journey, ‘Life is messy and beautiful’
“I walked up to the cashier with a plunger and a six-pack of beer. ‘Merry Christmas!’ she beamed. I’m not sure I even said anything, but it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to see I wasn’t feeling the spirit. This wasn’t how I intended to spend Christmas Day.”
‘You need to tie your hair up.’ I ran home in tears. My hair was my shield. Without it, I felt lost and defenseless.’: Woman with hearing loss becomes advocate, ‘I no longer want to hide’
“I deliberately chose brown hearing aids to match my hair. ‘I want them to be invisible to everyone.’ I made sure my hair was always covering my ears. This became the perfect disguise.”
‘I have to report you to CPS.’ I was hysterical. All I could think of were police coming to rip my son away. I knew I needed help.’: Single mom shares sobriety journey, ‘You’re not your past’
“Both my grandparents died within 9 months. I showed up to both funerals buzzed. I felt so abandoned by everyone that alcohol became my best friend. It was there for me when I was sad, anxious, even happy. Alcohol was the answer to my problems.”
‘The moment she was in my arms, I whispered, ‘I’m your mommy.’ We were CALLED to this. She’s the star of our story.’: Family adopts baby with Down syndrome, ‘Worth isn’t defined by chromosomes’
“She stared into my eyes as I stroked her hair, telling her she was beautiful. It was over 8 months until we saw our baby girl again. 8 excruciating months, separated by a pandemic, on opposite sides of the world. It was GUT-WRENCHING.”
‘The funeral paper you read? It’s about your mom.’ This is how I found out at age 9. No one asked me how I felt.’: Daughter pens letter to late mom lost to cancer, ‘We heal by lifting others’
“I learned of mom’s death by coincidence after reading her name on a funeral paper. I asked several times, ‘Is it true?’ I wasn’t allowed to express my feelings.”
‘But my daughter needs me!’ I clung to walls and couldn’t focus my vision. ‘Something is VERY wrong.’: Brain cancer survivor discovers purpose, ‘I was fueled by my daughter’s love’’
“The doctor called .’You need to get treated immediately.’ My daughter was only 9. I couldn’t shake the feeling I was in trouble.”
‘Why didn’t you abort her?’ I wanted to put her back in my tummy, where’d she be safe. She had IMMEDIATE surgery.’: Mom loses daughter to heart defect, ‘She shaped our lives’
“They told me, ‘Take her home and let her heart give out.’ I kept going because SHE kept going. It was moment by moment.”
‘Is Nicole going to die?’ It started with a twitch. Then she turned blue. It was like an arrow to the heart.’: Sisters diagnosed with ‘ultra-rare’ Batten Disease, ‘We’ll never stop fighting for them’
“I felt like the life had been sucked from me. ‘What are we going to do?’ I’ve never felt so helpless. We thought it was impossible for our hearts to break any further, but they did.”
‘He failed both of his hearing tests. ‘It’s just fluid.’ I could tell something wasn’t right. All of my hopes for him were RUINED.’: Mom advocates for son with hearing loss, ‘Trust your gut’
“I had no clue about hearing loss and had never even met a deaf person. I left that appointment in shambles, feeling so bad for my baby. ‘Is this my fault? Can it be reversed?’ I wanted Mason to experience waves crashing on the shore, crickets chirping at night, the giggles of his sisters. I wanted him to HEAR.”