“I now raised a finger signaling, ‘Yes.’ This was how I communicated. I felt like a burden to my friends. An injury twisted the fate of my entire life.”
‘It’s probably stress.’ My newly retired parents became full time caregivers. Waking up was worse than my nightmares.’: Man with chronic illness turns life around, ‘I turned pain into purpose’
‘Is it the right decision?’ They came to take her. I stood, paralyzed, and watched as she disappeared. There was debilitating fear.’: Girl with Down syndrome survives new heart surgery, ‘She’s one of the first to have it’
“I kept taking her picture, scared it could be the last one. I counted every eyelash, perfectly placed on her eyes. She would be the first on the West Coast to have this surgery. I didn’t want to let her go because then the decision would be final.”
‘My left foot hurts!’ He was so hot, his temperature was 103.6. But he’s so healthy. How could this happen? He’s only 4.’: Mom of Leukemia Warrior says, ‘I admire his spirit’
“Frankie woke up complaining about his stomach. We took his temperature, and you could feel the heat radiating. I kept thinking he had contracted the virus. I could feel my heart in my throat.”
‘I’ll never forget the comment she made: ‘You’re not you without your long, beautiful hair!’ I was deeply embarrassed.’: Bride with alopecia embraces baldness, ‘Hair does not define beauty’
“I was pitied and hid behind an uncomfortable wig every day, consumed with anxiety someone would find out my secret. One day, I decided I didn’t want to live in shame anymore. ‘Shave it all off,’ I told my husband. I wanted to live my truth.”
‘OH MY GOD! BOMB!’ An old lady was holding onto the banister for dear life. I had to leave her. All I could hear was sobbing.’: Mom recounts surviving 9/11 while pregnant, ‘I’m blessed to be alive’
“‘WHAT IS GOING ON?’ Everyone was screaming. My friend fell and was getting trampled. I worried for my unborn child. When the second plane hit, we ran.”
‘The principal came over the loudspeaker. ‘What’s going on?’ I panicked as we left. ‘They can’t find your Grandma Myrna.’: Woman remembers grandma lost on 9/11, ‘I still miss her laugh’
“She worked at the World Trade Center, and she’d shop on her lunch break. She ALWAYS had the most out-of-this-world clothing. She was constantly turning heads. ‘Do you think Grandma is gone?’ All I remember is the way she looked at me.”
‘I wasn’t there by accident.’: Documenting ground zero as tragedy striked Manhattan
“A police officer yelled into his two-way radio, ‘It’s gone. The World Trade Center is gone.’ God only knows what I inhaled that day. I wasn’t sure I’d survive.”
‘I explained my past. ‘The man took photographs. He was 57 years old.’ I hated myself and turned to drugs.’: Woman with BPD gets sober, changes life, ‘I love how far I’ve come’
“I struggled to talk to the therapist. I explained what I went through when I was 12. I encountered a child predator. Having my son pushed me to find the answers as to what happened.”
‘In between breaths, I sobbed, ‘Breathe, baby. Please. Please, breathe.’ They placed my tiny infant onto a gurney.’: Mom raises awareness about RSV, Kawasaki’s Disease after hospital scare
“For seven days, she was a medical mystery.”
‘My mother-in-law was texting me nonstop. ‘Can you meet me?’ She refused to tell me what happened. I got sick to my stomach.’: Young widow shares life after loss, raising late husband’s ‘clone’
“I called Mike’s phone. It went straight to voicemail. In that moment, the air was sucked from my world. All of this was happening while I had a room of 3rd graders. I couldn’t let on that something was seriously wrong.”