Emily Richey is a graduate of Pace University NYC. She has written and edited for multiple online platforms, including Love What Matters. She spends her free time petting stray cats.
‘Numbness consumed my whole left side. ‘You’re tying your boots too tight.’ The next thing I knew, I collapsed.’: Navy Ordinanceman battles MS during leave, ‘Be the person you need to be’
“I couldn’t move nor feel the entire left side of my face. I chewed a hole on the inside of my cheek due to no feeling. Looking at my mom and sisters’ faces filled with tears, I knew it wasn’t good.”
‘The baby weight will melt away with breastfeeding.’ When my milk never came in, I was devastated. I hated my body.’: Mom discusses postpartum self-love, ‘You’re worthy at any size’
“I saw all these moms on Instagram, three days after having their babies, in jeans going out for coffee. I had a mom pouch, wider hips, wider thighs, and lots of new stretch marks. I felt like a failure already at one week postpartum.”
‘As I was thinking about how wonderful life was, my head slammed into the steering wheel. My final summer was gone.’: Teen suffers brain injury, graduates college, ‘Always have hope’
“I was the girl in the neck brace. ‘Just give it time,’ they repeated. My memory betrayed me, forgetting class times, notes, names. Every day, I woke up with a headache. Doctors warned me graduating was unlikely.”
‘We felt a bump while being intimate. A wave of utter darkness hit me. I felt like I never stood a chance to win.’: Woman says overcoming breast cancer was ‘the fight of my life’
“I freaked out. Then, BOOM! I said ta-ta to both of my tatas.’ Words cannot express the fear I felt.”
‘My baby is dying! We have to land the plane.’ The doctors on board shook their heads sadly. I was helpless.’: Woman recalls journey to bring adopted daughters home, ‘I’d do it over again’
“’We need to land. We have to land the plane.’ I jumped out of my seat and ran down the aisle to the flight attendant who was passing out snacks. ‘Sir! Sir! Please!’ One man stepped forward quietly and said, ‘I’m a neurologist, I don’t know if I can be of any help.’”
‘He stopped breathing and was ripped from my arms. Everything changed. I set out to get all the answers.’: Mom births son with partial Trisomy 18, ‘He is a reminder life is precious’
“They performed every test under the sun. ‘He may never walk or talk.’ He could be dependent on us for the rest of his life. Well, we might as well prove all these doctors wrong!”
‘A single foster mom, I had 10 PLACEMENTS in my first year. One baby had a seizure and I spent weeks living in the NICU.’: Foster mom says, ‘There’s nothing else I’d rather be doing’
“It’s so incredibly heartbreaking to watch babies struggle through withdrawals and be powerless to make things better. The first time a baby left, I cried so hard I couldn’t see the steering wheel in front of my face.”
‘Brain swelling? 3 days ago, he had a COLD!’ He was pale and slightly blue. HOW did we get HERE?’: Woman learns how to ‘advocate like a mother’ through son’s rare epilepsy diagnosis
“We woke to what we thought was Matty snoring. Something didn’t sound right. The next few hours would consist of teams of doctors coming in and out of our room with solemn faces and stumped expressions. I ugly sobbed.”
After Years Of Social Work, I Decided To Become A Foster Parent Myself
“In the midst of licensing families and talking about the HUGE need for foster families, I realized something. My husband and I are exactly what I had been screaming from the rooftops that the system needs—people who have the time, love, and space to offer children when they need it most.”
‘My mind kept thinking, ‘Don’t say it. Don’t say it!’ I started to panic. Something inside me knew it was bad news.’: Mom brings awareness to secondary infertility, ‘You are not alone’
“I was ‘cured,’ right? Uh, WRONG. Without batting an eye, they start laying on the pressure. ‘Don’t you want him to be a big brother?’ I wanted answers.”