“I walked up to the cashier with a plunger and a six-pack of beer. ‘Merry Christmas!’ she beamed. I’m not sure I even said anything, but it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to see I wasn’t feeling the spirit. This wasn’t how I intended to spend Christmas Day.”
‘In my left hand, I held a gun. In the other was a beer. My first Christmas as a single mom without my kids was soul-wrenching.’: Woman shares grief journey, ‘Life is messy and beautiful’
‘You need to tie your hair up.’ I ran home in tears. My hair was my shield. Without it, I felt lost and defenseless.’: Woman with hearing loss becomes advocate, ‘I no longer want to hide’
“I deliberately chose brown hearing aids to match my hair. ‘I want them to be invisible to everyone.’ I made sure my hair was always covering my ears. This became the perfect disguise.”
‘I have to report you to CPS.’ I was hysterical. All I could think of were police coming to rip my son away. I knew I needed help.’: Single mom shares sobriety journey, ‘You’re not your past’
“Both my grandparents died within 9 months. I showed up to both funerals buzzed. I felt so abandoned by everyone that alcohol became my best friend. It was there for me when I was sad, anxious, even happy. Alcohol was the answer to my problems.”
‘The moment she was in my arms, I whispered, ‘I’m your mommy.’ We were CALLED to this. She’s the star of our story.’: Family adopts baby with Down syndrome, ‘Worth isn’t defined by chromosomes’
“She stared into my eyes as I stroked her hair, telling her she was beautiful. It was over 8 months until we saw our baby girl again. 8 excruciating months, separated by a pandemic, on opposite sides of the world. It was GUT-WRENCHING.”
‘The funeral paper you read? It’s about your mom.’ This is how I found out at age 9. No one asked me how I felt.’: Daughter pens letter to late mom lost to cancer, ‘We heal by lifting others’
“I learned of mom’s death by coincidence after reading her name on a funeral paper. I asked several times, ‘Is it true?’ I wasn’t allowed to express my feelings.”
‘But my daughter needs me!’ I clung to walls and couldn’t focus my vision. ‘Something is VERY wrong.’: Brain cancer survivor discovers purpose, ‘I was fueled by my daughter’s love’’
“The doctor called .’You need to get treated immediately.’ My daughter was only 9. I couldn’t shake the feeling I was in trouble.”
‘Why didn’t you abort her?’ I wanted to put her back in my tummy, where’d she be safe. She had IMMEDIATE surgery.’: Mom loses daughter to heart defect, ‘She shaped our lives’
“They told me, ‘Take her home and let her heart give out.’ I kept going because SHE kept going. It was moment by moment.”
‘Is Nicole going to die?’ It started with a twitch. Then she turned blue. It was like an arrow to the heart.’: Sisters diagnosed with ‘ultra-rare’ Batten Disease, ‘We’ll never stop fighting for them’
“I felt like the life had been sucked from me. ‘What are we going to do?’ I’ve never felt so helpless. We thought it was impossible for our hearts to break any further, but they did.”
‘He failed both of his hearing tests. ‘It’s just fluid.’ I could tell something wasn’t right. All of my hopes for him were RUINED.’: Mom advocates for son with hearing loss, ‘Trust your gut’
“I had no clue about hearing loss and had never even met a deaf person. I left that appointment in shambles, feeling so bad for my baby. ‘Is this my fault? Can it be reversed?’ I wanted Mason to experience waves crashing on the shore, crickets chirping at night, the giggles of his sisters. I wanted him to HEAR.”
‘I sobbed, clutching her to my chest. ‘There’s an abnormality.’ It has no treatment, no cure. It’ll NEVER go away.’: Mom advocates for ‘one in a million’ baby with Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood
“In fleeting moments, little movements would catch my eyes. I asked her pediatrician, ‘Are you sure there isn’t anything going on?’ One morning, I knew something was wrong. I knew it was bad, but I had no idea how bad.”
Kind Beef Barn Employees Go Above And Beyond To Accommodate Boy With Autism
“Thank you to the employees at Beef Barn for your kindness, compassion, and willingness to support and include ALL members of the community. I am forever grateful for those who stand in the gap.”
‘I was IMMEDIATELY sent to conversion therapy and a ‘sexual-healing’ facility. I had to blend in with ‘good Christian folk.’: Trans person finds their identity, ‘Living authentically gives me freedom’
“After discovering our relationship, her parents locked her inside her home, got her fired from her job, removed all access to any phones, internet, or car. My parents saw my actions as sinful, and deserving of punishment.”
‘That’s just the coke talking!’ I shook 5 Ambien into my hand. It had become a full-blown dragon.’: Former addict celebrates 20 years of sobriety. ‘I made the mess into a lesson’
“I didn’t think of prescription drugs as ‘drugs.’ I washed pills down with Amstel Light. I thought I was doing what I needed to do to sleep.”
‘I’m concerned about BOTH girls.’ We assumed they were ‘happy and healthy’ babies. Our reality became a movie.’: Twins have HECW2 rare genetic disorder, ‘We’re equipped for what’s to come’
“We began to wonder if something was ‘not right.’ The moment she stopped breathing, I crumbled.”
‘You have a tough road ahead.’ That was an understatement. I had to accept the possibility of dying before I really got to live.’: Chronic illness warrior says ‘I’ve so much to be grateful for’
“My fiancé broke off our engagement. ‘I miss having physical relations.’ I was too sick. I’ll probably never get married and I’ll definitely never have kids. My journey has taught me to find joy in the little things.”
This Mom’s List of Pandemic ‘Parenting Fails’ Is So Relatable
“My 6-year-old plays Fortnite all day. My kids could sleep with a tablet in their bed and I wouldn’t give a flying hoot anymore, as long as they’re quiet. I’ve let the boys wrestle like they’re in a cage fight, right in front of me, and I haven’t done a thing. My selective hearing has really improved.”
‘You’re bleeding behind your eyes.’ I drank to forget the pain. Internally, I was completely dead. I’d never felt so alone.’: Man details addiction recovery journey, ‘I completely changed my life’
“I was walking to my dealer’s car when suddenly four police cars turned up. You’d be amazed at how blind when you are in full-blown addiction. I didn’t care what happened to me.”
The Power Of Representation: How A Pair Of Four-Fingered Gloves Transformed My Daughter’s Confidence
“She started counting everyone’s fingers in photos, TV shows, drawings. Unlike everything else, this affected her. This is what made her say, ‘I don’t like my hands.’ At just 6 years old, I watched her become angry at her four-fingered hands.”
‘This is a perfectly safe option.’ I LOVED how I looked. Then they tried to kill me. I couldn’t get them out of my body fast enough.’: Mom beats Breast Implant Illness, ‘This could SAVE your life’
“I struggled with loving my post-baby body. ‘Things’ seemed to have ‘deflated’ and headed south, if you know what I mean. I thought implants were ‘perfectly safe.’ What could go wrong?”
‘What are you wearing? You look like a clown!’ I wanted the ground to swallow me up. I vowed to never be ‘too much’ again.’: Woman shares self-love journey, ‘I finally feel like ME’
“I started dieting and skipping meals. ‘I’ll be happy when I’m skinny.’ I wore a pair of those sucking-in underwear to make sure I felt thin. I felt squished. I realized I looked absolutely no different without them, but I felt a million times better. I’ve never worn a pair since.”
‘I got a life-altering call. ‘Can you come pick up your nephew?’ He was born with drugs in his system. No one warned us about the toll.’: Couple adopts nephew, ‘Our house is his forever home’
“She’d been sneaking Bailey’s into her coffee cup while breastfeeding. He’d cry and bang in his crib until he formed a bump on his head. We transitioned from being ‘aunt and uncle’ to ‘mom and dad.’”
To The Kind Strangers On My Flight Who Lifted My Burden
“I was just a military wife solo parenting, trying to survive while my husband was in a war zone.”
‘She’s losing a LOT of blood.’ They took me, leaving my partner and baby behind, not knowing if I’d see them again.’: Mom survives post-birth hemorrhage, ‘Doctors and midwives saved my life’
“My husband saw them rushing with blood for my transfusion. They didn’t update him. He assumed the worst had happened.”
‘You won’t remember Christmas, but I hope you remember how special we made you feel.’: Mom shares heartfelt letter to non-verbal son
“You don’t understand the burly man in a red suit, the great food, or the little baby sitting in a manger. On Christmas Day, I’ll take pictures in hopes you will one day look at them and remember. That you’ll remember I tried. I pray one day you’ll be able to communicate what you’re feeling. I’ll wait an eternity if it takes that long.”
‘The pain became unbearable. ‘I know someone who’s healed people through acupressure.’ I FINALLY felt at home.’: Woman details holistic health journey, ‘It gifted me my life back’
“She said, ‘I’ve been waiting for you.’ I went to her house every day for 4 months. She made me feel normal and helped me understand my gifts. I realized I am FAR more capable than I’d originally thought.”