“I was training hard and eating healthy, but still gaining weight. My instructor told my mom I was ‘fat.’ Something in my body was wrong. A few months later, I’d be in the ICU fighting for my life.”
‘You need to go to the ER immediately.’ I felt like my body was failing me. I continued to hide my condition until I almost DIED.’: Ballerina with diabetes shares acceptance journey, ‘Keep fighting’
‘A baby was born yesterday. He may have been exposed to meth.’ There was no doubt in our minds. We turned around and ran to our baby.’: Couple shares adoption journey, ‘We’re meant to be’
“Our family thought we were CRAZY.’ ’You should NEVER adopt. You never know what those kids come with.’ We already had two kids with special needs, but we knew God would provide for us. It was love at first sight.”
‘I feel like a prisoner in my own body.’ I let the anxiety take over my life. I just KNEW it would end up killing me.’: Mom battles POTS and anxiety, ‘I’m not giving up anytime soon’
“I convinced myself I was dying. I worked myself into a panic attack. ’Why is this happening to me?’ It was brutal. I didn’t know how I was going to make it, but I knew I had to do it for my baby.”
‘You’re not going to be pretty anymore, Mommy! Eww, don’t do it!’ Their response stung my heart. I knew I had to shave my head.’: Couple encourage others to ‘say yes to challenges’
“As a woman, I always felt my hair made me feel pretty. I was afraid to completely shave my head. But then I shared my idea with my daughters. ‘You’ll look like a boy!’ I refuse to raise our girls to think hair is what will make them beautiful.”
‘You guys are no good.’ I fell pregnant at 15. The world was against us and things got worse.’: Teen mom shares beautiful relationship, ‘We are stronger together’
“I had to borrow medicine off the shelves when my son was sick because we couldn’t afford it. We were doing everything we could to get by. It never seemed like enough.”
‘The news was a parent’s WORST nightmare. ‘We found a tumor.’: Mom gives birth to twins, one with heart defect, while daughter battles cancer
“We were determined to give him a chance at life. They told us there was a 50% chance he would make it to 5. We accepted this as our new normal and felt TOTALLY mentally prepared. Or so we thought.”
‘You are too old and foolish to think this boy loves YOU.’ The nurses kept a close eye on us.’: Gay couple marries, has child, ‘’We’ve shattered the idea conventional wisdom is always correct’
“I wasn’t an old troll looking for boys to feed my fancy, and he wasn’t out looking for a rich old man.”
‘It’s just a chest infection.’ My mom KNEW it wasn’t. The ambulance arrived in minutes. A half hour later, it would have been too late.’: Woman who survived meningitis is ‘grateful,’ says it ‘changed my life for the better’
“I was coughing up blood. I could see fear in their eyes. One nurse took my hand and said, ‘You’re going to be okay.’ I believe she was my guardian angel.”
‘Have you ever considered the label of deaf?’ I was riddled with anxiety. For the first time, I wasn’t the odd one out.’: Woman advocates for hearing loss, ‘Someday, we won’t need to fight’
“I was too ashamed of my differences to accept my hearing aids. I hid them behind my hair and tried my best to fit in. When I couldn’t, I’d ‘forget’ them at home. I didn’t want to be ‘hearing impaired.’ I wanted to be normal.”
‘Society says divorce ruins people. You’re flawed for not ‘fixing’ or ‘fighting’ for your marriage. But there’s a deeper meaning.’: Mom of 3 is ‘grateful’ for divorce, ‘This was meant to make me grow’
“I felt constantly judged, criticized, unsupported, and disconnected. I was craving for this love within, yet it was so difficult to make it click. What if we walked into relationships sans the attachment to forever?”
‘There’s nothing else we can do.’ I lost my hair in handfuls at a time. It was hard to look in the mirror. I didn’t see the point in living.’: Chronic illness warrior says ‘I’ll never take life for granted’
“I started to see bald patches on the back of my head. My legs and arms would ache so badly I felt like I would vomit. I lay on the couch, wondering why my body hated me so much. Every day, I woke up with one more symptom, one more medical bill.”
‘Wow, your sister looks so much like your parents!’ Until that moment, it had never occurred to me that I was different. I was bitter and angry.’: Adoptee raises awareness, ‘You’re not alone’
“Growing up, my birth story wasn’t like the ones my friends had. I never knew where I was born or what my biological family looks like. ‘Why do I have black hair and black eyes while you’re blonde? I felt displaced.”
‘You’re too complicated.’ I was the girl who was always on crutches or in a cast. My doctors were stumped.’: Woman diagnosed with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, ‘My story isn’t over’
“I was bullied by my classmates. ’You’re just faking.’ I had pneumonia, broke my wrist twice, tore my MCL, sprained my ankle again, and had my appendix taken out—all in 3 years. I just wanted to be normal.”
‘You just picked up a virus.’ I was dizzy every second of the day and felt excruciating pain. Why wasn’t this going away?’: Woman advocates for Chronic Lyme Disease, ‘We’re in this together’
“I felt a pit in my stomach. Then the pain started, a sharp pain right above my belly button that wouldn’t go away. I was collapsing every time I got out of bed. I’d drink a ton of water, eat enough, and was still feeling ill.”
‘God, PLEASE heal my child.’ Our future as parents seemed so unsure. We needed a MIRACLE. ‘Just keep pushing, baby.’: Mom to daughter fighting Ebstein’s Anomaly says ‘she’s our little light’
“‘I can’t celebrate, I can’t be happy!’ My dad told me, ‘Yes, you can. You’re going to enjoy these days with her.’ We relished in our sweet baby girl, just like my father told me. We soaked up EVERY milestone.”
‘Who would want a girl with no legs?’ I defied the doctor’s advice until my body BEGGED me to stop.’: Amputee with spina bifida urges ‘life has no guarantees’
“‘Amputate my legs?! Never in my life.’ I wasn’t ready. Thus started a whole new phase of my life. I had to make the best out of what I’ve been through.”
‘We need to talk. We’re not sure Max is a fit here.’ We were getting hurt by our son, and had no help.’: Mom advocates for Autistic son, ‘For the first time in many years, I felt like we could do this’
“’What do we do? Mom to mom, I CAN’T do this anymore. Please, PLEASE help me.’ We realized our battle would be uphill, but we’d survive.”
‘I’ll call you when I get to the parking area.’ They decided to coast the truck down the mountain. They had no brakes.’: Daughter honored for organ donation, mom connects with another through ‘divine intervention’
“She called and said, ‘This might be the best day of my life!’ I pleaded with God to keep her safe.”
‘This is the winter of despair.’ It felt like the nail in the coffin. But I was reminded of something. This is an opportunity to make new traditions.’: Mom says ‘This year, I’ll make the magic for my family’
“It doesn’t have to be extravagant or overwhelming. Christmas morning can be a free-for-all, or we can make it last all day. And next year, because of the sacrifices we’ve all made to keep each other safe, we can be together.”
‘All I have to do is lose weight, and I’ll be happy forever.’ I had no idea what I was getting into. I wasn’t strong enough to live this way.’: Woman recovers from eating disorder, ‘It’s a battle’
“I knew I had a purpose. I knew it extended far beyond eating salads and running on the treadmill, and I just had to find it. It was the small bites of chocolate, the rest days, the drinking a fruity drink and not thinking about what was in it, and the freedom of knowing my eating disorder did not have me wrapped around its finger anymore.”
‘When people asked me for gift ideas, I’d smile and say, ‘Just wine and diapers!’ How else could I unwind? It never stopped at just one glass.’: Mom shares sobriety journey, ‘I’m a better mom’
“I entered the life-changing, magical world of motherhood. I had no clue what I was doing. Breastfeeding vs. formula feeding. Crib vs. co-sleeping. It felt like there was nothing we moms could ever agree on. Well, except for one thing… wine.”
‘How could this be happening AGAIN?’ My heart couldn’t handle it.’: After near-death experience, mom welcomes daughter with spina bifida
“‘She’ll likely never walk and she may have brain damage.’ She gently offered termination. But we wanted to raise a strong, independent, and confident daughter. We had a PLAN.”
‘Just enough fat.’ He grabbed my stomach. ‘No one else will want you.’ He wanted to keep me in a box.’: Woman promotes body positivity, ‘Take control over how you see yourself’
“I tried to pull the pants up, and they wouldn’t go over my calves. She mocked me, saying I couldn’t fit in anything in the store.”
‘This is the best day of my life!’: Frozen’s Elsa and Anna deliver surprise wig to girl with Alopecia thanks to USPS worker’s kindness
“I’m not often moved to tears, but the way Caroline’s eyes lit up is something I will never forget.”
‘I convinced myself, ‘I’m not an alcoholic.’ Every time I had a drink, it led to a blackout. I was a sick person.’: Woman shares addiction recovery journey, ‘I love my life today’
“I’d binge and purge, drink, take pills, pass out. I was sure I wasn’t an alcoholic. A woman and her son gasped with disgust when they saw me, handcuffed and shackled. ‘How did I let this happen? How is this my life?’”