“I couldn’t find my voice. My brain was still processing. She placed him on my chest. He was so warm, so beautiful. As I took him in, the film ‘Wonde’r I’d watched during pregnancy flashed. I’d turned to my best friend and said, ‘I could never be ashamed of my child if they were born special. That’s all the more reason to treasure them.’ Gratitude filled my heart. I was chosen for this.”
‘Here he comes,’ my OB said. The entire room fell into an ear-piercing silence. ‘Are you aware your son has abnormalities?’: Young mom celebrates ‘one in a million’ son born with limb differences
A Complete Stranger Soothed My Infant To Sleep In My Darkest Hour, And I’ll Never Forget It
“She lightened the load. She breathed life into me. She kept me going. Even though I only have her name and this photo, I’ll never forget her. She was the stranger that saw me.”
‘There’s the heartbeat!’ She quickly moved to the other sac, ‘And there’s the OTHER heartbeat.’ Tears streamed down my face.’: Mom details IVF twin journey and gives advice on what to expect
“This story makes me crack WIDE open with vulnerability. But I felt so alone during the first few times I went through it. I can only hope I can provide a source of support, hope, and inspiration to others.”
‘At 16, I should’ve been going to sleepovers and sweet sixteens. Instead, I was being sold to men, repeatedly.’: Sex trafficking survivor graduates college with honors, advocates for others
“If I can turn my pain into empowerment to inspire others, then there is hope for those who are still stuck in the grips of human trafficking.”
‘You need to get rid of that baby.’ Not even married for a month, my husband stopped coming home.’: Teenager becomes single mom, advocate
“‘Hey mom, I know it’s late, but can I come home now?’ I’d been abandoned. What in the world was I going to do with a child? I was still a child!”
I’m Not The Mom You Think I Am
“I’m not the ‘mean mom’ who yelled at her kids when they wouldn’t listen. And I’m not the cute mom in the supermarket who looks all put together. Those were me only for a few minutes.”
‘She is SUPERWOMAN. But she CAN’T do it alone.’: Widow urges ‘reach out to a single parent today’
“She can grocery shop, clean, and feed 5 bodies regularly. She can work out, read her scriptures, and say her prayers daily. You might have seen her do all these things at one point or another, but, I promise you, she can’t do it ALL.”
‘We couldn’t think of a better forever home.’: Old Navy gifts mannequin dog to 5-year-old boy with autism
“After days of sadness and feelings that are just too big for his little body and mind, my heart exploded to see his happiness.”
‘Something felt off. With my gown tied in the back and birthing underpants peeking through, I shuffled in search of my baby.’: Mom shares journey of having 2 partially deaf children, ‘They are so much more than I imagined’
“No matter how hard I searched, I couldn’t see my child’s future. I was going to have to live it, right next to him. NOBODY is going to come and take this away from us.”
‘Is this the same kid?’ I tried to convince myself I was seeing things. ‘Yes, 100 percent.’: Adoptive mom of son from China discovers ‘foster-in-laws’ online
“Our kids came to us with virtually no pasts. This was the tiniest of threads. It may or may not be important to him someday, but it is important to me.”
‘A day after my twins died, I began pumping. I didn’t know who I was going to donate to, or when, but I had to do this.’: Grieving mom donates 3,000 ounces of breastmilk to mothers in need
“I laid the hospital blanket over the bassinet. ‘I’m ready.’ My nurse tenderly unhooked them from the machine and wheeled them out, never to be seen again. I knew I had to honor their deaths.”
‘I know you can’t speak. Simply squeeze my hand. Was the chemo you had RED in color?’ My family began preparing their goodbyes.’: Breast cancer survivor becomes mom of 4, triplet mom via surrogacy
“I squeezed the doctor’s hand as tightly as I could. Within seconds an alarm rang, sirens sounded. Then I felt a voice, a presence, something within me telling me not to give up. This wasn’t the end, I had to find a way through. I held on with every fiber of my being.”
‘Is Mike really dead?’ I went to his funeral only yesterday. I spiraled.’: Woman shares journey with psychosis to break stigma, ‘It shouldn’t be a scary word’
“According to the media, I was going to become a lonely crazy person or a full-on murderer. It was only a matter of time before I became a monster.”
‘Watch out! Your legs are going to break!’ I stopped wearing shorts outside no matter how hot it was.’: Woman overcomes childhood body shaming, urges self-love for young girls
“‘You will never be loved.’ I was devastated. I couldn’t even bring myself to look at my naked body in the mirror.”
3 Brand-New Disney World Experiences Worth Adding To Your Must-Do List
“If a visit to the home of the Mouse is in your future, consider dining (and staying) at a few of these updated facilities for a bit of extra Disney magic.”
‘I failed the hearing test. Not once, not twice, but FOUR different times.’: Deaf woman becomes audiologist at childhood clinic
“Imagine living in a world where you did not hear the hustle and bustle of this noisy world we live in. The voices of your mother or father during the first several years of your life. To not be able to hear your family say ‘I love you’ or hear their voices singing sweet lullabies.”
‘I thought it was stress. When I began crying and shaking without triggers, I realized it was much more.’: Woman opens up about journey to bipolar disorder diagnosis, self-care
“My mom and doctors thought I was just another moody teenager. For a long time, I assumed what I was feeling was normal.”
I Am A Single Mom By Choice, Because Families Come In All Shapes And Sizes
“I wanted him so bad a friend gave me the seed I needed to plant him in my belly.”
To The Family And Friends Of A Chronically Ill Loved One: Come Sit With Us
“They really don’t need judgment or hurled opinions. Your loved one needs community.”
‘Ready to jump off the Golden Gate Bridge, I heard someone yell, ‘Are you Jake? The veteran we’ve been looking for?’: Homeless veteran battling PTSD shares emotional 10,000-mile journey across America
“As I gently plucked at the soft nylon guitar strings, something came crashing and sent me flying through the wall. I shuffled in the debris to find a mangled heap of metal that used to be my car. No vehicle, no home, I bought a backpack and tent determined to walk across America.”
‘We’ve got to lift each other up, right?’ She squeezed my hand.’: Woman stresses importance of encouraging others
“I had no idea how in the hell I would ever walk again, let alone roll over or move at all. Sometimes, hope can come knocking when we feel our most vulnerable.”
‘They put Mia on my stomach. We saw her hand and foot were different before they took her away. It was the longest hour in my life.’: Mom to daughter with congenital limb difference vows ‘I wouldn’t have her any other way’
“Operations and prosthetics included, our daughter has been a dream since birth.”
‘He jumped out and screamed boo during hide and seek. She never turned around; she was still wondering where he went.’: Mom details her and daughter’s journey being hard of hearing
“She started to sign to me. ‘I don’t use sign language, I can hear and talk.’ I had unintentionally made a judgment about Deaf/HoH people, not realizing I’d judged myself in the process.”
‘I used to be a horrible friend. I was alone, lost.’: Woman overcomes insecurities and anxieties to be better friend
“If someone had something great, I instantly felt less than. I was sarcastic, pessimistic, and judgmental. It was the swiftest, most needed kick in the face.”
‘The doctor secretly put in my chart, ‘Borderline personalities due to dislike of multiple providers.’ I was down to 107 pounds, in constant pain. No one was willing to listen.’: Nurse, chronic illness warrior shares emotional journey to diagnosis
“I was ignored by providers during my cries for help. Friends stopped asking me to hang out. My long-term partner was emotionally unavailable. I had to learn to pursue the life I deserved despite the labels.”