“We had absolutely no idea what was going on. His behavior was changing. He’d been in daycare since he was 12 weeks old and LOVED his school. Now he’d cling to us at drop off and require 15 hugs before we could – with him still screaming and crying- finally leave him. We assumed he was ‘going through a phase.’ I felt like we were ‘losing’ him.”
‘He would literally fling his arms out from his body over and over again from morning until night.’: Parents shocked to learn of son’s PANDAS diagnosis
‘There’s 1 thing NO ONE prepares you for as you enter parenthood. You feel like you’ve been pregnant 87 months. Next, that 7-pound baby you brought home is nowhere to be found.’
“The minutes creep by so slowly. You want to rush past the stage of night feedings, teething, and being so needed all the time. Then, before you know it, their childhood is slipping right through your fingers.”
‘I crashed the party my daughter was at. I rolled up to hear, ‘drink, drink!’ I had visions of my sweet girl suspended in the air as she gulped beer.’: Widow urges other parents ‘let them enjoy the beauty of just being a kid’
“I raced to the front porch, paralyzed. Do I swing open the door and just run in? Do I call the cops? As I stood with my hand up in the knocking position, the door opened.”
‘I lost one of my kids. As the crowd dispersed, two of my boys walked over to me, but my son was nowhere to be seen. I called his name, paralyzed in fear.’
“I hadn’t laid eyes on him for at least 10 minutes — or had it been 20? Immediately, everything around me swirled and blurred. The only thing in focus was the red flag flapping violently above the lifeguard station. The white-capped waves were deafening. Horrible scenarios flooded my mind.”
‘My stepdad always told me I was bad luck. I never fit into his picture-perfect family. To avoid fights, I’d lose myself in a book or math problem. School was my safe-haven.’: Woman determines what the ‘American Dream’ means for her family
“I didn’t care what school I went to as long as I could get away from home. I later dropped out of high school and started working the night shift at a restaurant. Weeks later, my school counselor called. ‘If I work something out with you, would you agree to come back?’ It was my second chance at life.”
‘My marriage ended. I was forced to move back into my parent’s house with my daughter. I felt embarrassed being a single mom and divorcee. My happily ever after was gone.’
“I felt guilty. I felt worthless. I felt shattered. I skipped meals, lost my friends. I blamed myself for everything that happened. Then, one day I woke up and stopped feeling sorry for myself.”
‘This is me the day before I overdosed on heroin. I was almost off probation, a year out of jail, and I had a job.’
“That night, his mom texted me. ‘Do you know if he was using?,’ she asked. ‘I’m concerned. I texted him, but never got an answer back.’ The day before, he had come to my house.”
‘My mother traded my sister for a shotgun and truck. I didn’t see her again for 35 years. I got the clever idea to place an ad in the local newspaper.’: Woman reconnects with birth mother after locating her through DNA kit
“We met at a run-down cafe and I asked all the questions that burned inside me. I was sitting directly across from her. This time, she couldn’t ignore me. I secretly hoped my suspicions were wrong, but the realistic side of me always said, ‘April, why else would she have stayed away?'”
‘I get my hair colored. My natural hair color is mousy brown, I think. I can’t be fully certain. I haven’t seen it since I was 15 or so. But it’s dark. I do know that much.’
“In my heart, I am supposed to be blonde. I wear fake lashes. I own roughly 47 different shades of lipstick, so clearly, I care about the way I look. But here’s the thing. Nobody is going to stand up at the front of the church at your funeral and talk about your looks.”
‘MOM! Something is wrong with Dad, he’s on the floor!’ Only 30 minutes prior, we were laughing about the fact my husband didn’t meet us at the pool.’: Widow shares 19-year love story after losing husband to heart attack
“We assumed his game of beach volleyball with our son wore him out, and he was tired and laid down for a quick rest. Little did we know those moments after his shower, he lay on the bathroom floor of our rental house; alone.”