“I was at work. One of my customers said, ‘How are you?’ I wanted to be honest. Test the waters on speaking how I really feel. ‘Ya know, I’m not doing too great. I’m dealing with serious depression. I’m not okay right now, I’m struggling.’ He scoffed at me. I replied, ‘I wish it was THAT easy.'”
‘He scoffed at me. ‘Why are you depressed? You have a husband who loves you! Stop that. You’re fine!’: Woman opens up about battle with mental health, postpartum depression
‘I filed for divorce last Thursday,’ my husband said. I couldn’t believe I wasn’t screaming at him. My heart was shattering.’: Woman successfully co-parents with ex-husband for son’s sake, ‘He knows his mom and dad love him so very much’
“We did not go to court to fight over our son, as James’s parents had thought I would try to take him. But we sat down, talked, and through mediation, we legally share 50-50. James is an amazing father and a good man. And even though there are things he does in his personal life and with raising our son that I don’t always agree with, I know he wants the absolute best for him. It would be nothing but unfair and selfish to take that sweet boy away from his loving father.”
‘No one else has the guts to tell you, but you look like a crack addict.’ I was surrounded by a looming cloud of self-hatred.’: Woman beats lifelong battle with eating disorders, ‘I get up every day and fight for my life’
“Every time I leaned over my toilet and stuck my fingers down my throat, I would tell myself this was just what a disgusting person like me deserved. I was a shell of myself. I was too scared to kill myself. “Please don’t let me wake up.’ On the morning of my grandma’s funeral, I knew I was next.”
‘Mommy, can I sleep with you?’ Sleep was so very important to me. I’d give up food before sleep.’: Mom says when it comes to ‘sleep’ for now, her answer will always be ‘yes’
“I was particularly comfortable, stretched out in my tempur-pedic dream bed. I was mid-dream when I felt a poke. Startled, I looked up to find my son at my bedside. He leaned in and whispered, ‘Mommy, can I sleep with you?’ I looked at the clock. It was 1:18am. It’s been 700+ nights now, and each and every night he comes to my bedside.”
‘How will you afford it?’ ‘Are you giving up your career?’ It took me 3 years to take a chance. I’m sad I was so surprised.’: Mom realizes the power ‘I’m proud of you’ had on her as she faced difficult decision
“It took me 3 years to take a chance and take a year leave of absence. Three years of planning, asking opinions, making budgets, obsessing. When I put in my leave, I expected to hear, ‘how can you let the students down,’ ‘how will you afford it,’ ‘are you giving up your career,’ ‘have you really thought about this?’ Trust me, I did hear all of those comments and then some, but what really stuck with me were the unexpected responses.”
‘Tell me about when you CAME OUT.’ We left the interviews feeling a sense of ‘otherness.’ ‘Why does that even matter?’: LGBT couple adopt medically-complex baby boy from NICU
“I was at lunch with friends when my phone rang. I didn’t pull it out of my coat pocket. Soon, I got this overwhelming feeling to check it. My heart literally stopped. ‘It’s the adoption agency.’ I could barely get the words out. Both my friends yelled, ‘IS IT A BABY?!’ I rushed outside. There was a 2-pound baby born 3 months early. ‘He’s not breathing.’ We were presented a long list of medical issues. ‘Are we ready? Can we even do this?!’ We decided to let fate take over.”
‘I woke up with a large man on top of me. ‘Had I been assaulted, or was it my fault?’ I left the room, grabbed my baby.’: Woman quits drinking for her daughter, ‘I was able to love in a healthy way and be the best mom I could be’
“I went to a party up the street. I somehow made it home, brought a guy with me, and my body became an object. I remember my mom coming down and demanding the guy leave, and as it was happening, the house was getting robbed. I played the victim. I went to work while my family was left to deal with the mess. I had a beautiful baby girl and still, this did not stop me. I was physically taking care of my baby and bathing, feeding, and caring for her. But did I really care? Those words are haunting.”
‘I began violently shaking. Through my locked jaw, I muttered, ‘I’m addicted to heroin.’ My family had no idea.’: Woman overcomes addiction, ‘I am so thankful for this new life’
“I was living two separate lives. ‘Just this one time,’ I told myself as I inhaled my first line of cocaine one month after my best friend’s funeral. I would wake up, do a line. Go to class, do a line in the bathroom. Go home, do a line. Then came the needle. I felt the warm release of the heroin shooting through my veins. My stepdad found me. I couldn’t move, my body instantly got cold. ‘Oh, sweetheart. You don’t look like an addict.’ I lay there for what felt like forever, fading in and out of consciousness.”
‘I know for sure that life is fleeting. It’s short but always beautiful.’: Widow reminds others that ‘love doesn’t end when a loved one dies’ in wake of Kobe Bryant’s death
“I find myself asking, once again, why bad things happen. When I get to heaven, I have a lot of questions for God. I try to never let people wonder how I feel about them, because what if I don’t get the chance to tell them again? Imagine what a wonderful place this world would be if we all were just born understanding how precious life is.”
‘There may be days when all you can do is breathe and sleep. Those feelings won’t go away. True healing is messy.’: Woman claims ’embracing pain’ is part of the healing process
“We all experience difficult times in our lives. As much as I would love to push the negativity aside and focus on the positive, that’s not always possible. And I don’t think it’s healthy. True healing does not look like personal development books and good vibes only.”
‘Patty, I can feel him, we have to go.’ There was no time to talk. ‘We love you, I’m so sorry.’ His last heartbeat was lying on my chest.’: Moms are given terminal diagnosis for baby boy, ‘We decided to celebrate. He was going to be loved.’
“I didn’t want to waste any moment I could have with him. It was hard not to notice his body changing, the color leaving, his skin hardening and getting so cold. I often wonder if I made the right decision keeping him with me for so long–but I know I did. Then the time came to hand him over. The nurse kept telling me to take as much time as I needed and I finally had to tell her, ‘If you keep telling me that, I will never leave.’ He gave me the biggest gift of all: he made me a mother.”
‘Worried about the nights in the hospital with your newborn and dad sleeping?’: Mom’s hilarious hack is what all new moms need
“I asked him to get me something from my bag. He said, ‘Ummm why is there a Nerf gun in here?’ Mom hack level 1,000.”
‘Our marriage isn’t 50/50. We don’t keep scoreboards. We love as much as you can, whenever we can. The rest will fall into place.’: Woman reminds us relationships are all about ‘recognizing needs’
“Sure, some days look like 50/50. I’ll cook dinner as he sets the table. I’ll do the dishes as he sweeps the floor. But a relationship is one day showing up 80, while giving grace when your partner can only show up 20. And one day showing up 30, while giving thanks to your partner who is showing up 70. We have chosen to never keep score.”
‘Boy, I thought I was hot stuff. They noticed I could shoot. I taught beginners and built a reputation as a coach.’: Man recalls his ’15 minutes of fame’ and brush with Olympics thanks to StoryWorth
“When I was a little boy, my dad drove from our home in Harlan County down to Cherokee, North Carolina. That’s where Dad bought me my first store-bought toy: a wood-and-string bow and arrow, carved by the Cherokee on the reservation. Boy, I thought I was hot stuff. We were dirt poor. But my aim was improving, and years later, others noticed I could shoot. I was bad news for anyone who came up against me in competition.”
‘She’s very vocal….’ A woman in Walmart made me cry over a comment she made about my toddler. The shame crashed down all over me.’: Mom feels guilt for misjudging stranger after noticing her comment about her daughter
“We get into the store and she continued to be her loud toddler self. I could see a woman glance over at my daughter and I a few times. I practically roll my eyes and make eye contact with the lady that had been glancing at us. ‘Crap!’, my brain screamed.”
‘A gentle, old lady grabbed my hand. ‘May I pray for you?’ Tears were flowing before I could answer. All I could do was shake my head yes.’: Grieving woman in tears after stranger’s act of kindness, ‘I will never forget her’
“I stood on the beach watching all 3 of my children run carelessly. I found myself grieving the loss of my mother. It was beautiful, near perfect even, and she wasn’t there to see it. I stood in the sand, praying silent prayers. And just like that, I heard an old lady’s voice. She grabbed my hand and looked at me like she’d just seen an old friend. ‘I feel called to pray for you in this moment.’ I was speechless.”
‘I was holding this huge secret. My husband yelled, ‘IT’S A BOY!’ He got to know first. The waiting was killing them!’: Mom stresses why she waited to find out the gender of her babies, ‘It drives everyone else INSANE!’
“‘How could you not know!?’ I was holding this huge secret. I had power nobody else could have. When you don’t know which child you’re about to meet, it gives you an unmatched energy and grit to get through the pains. There’s no comparison to the emotion before your baby comes out. Pushing was so much easier when I knew I was about to get the biggest surprise of my life. Waiting drives everyone else INSANE. People get so frustrated you chose to wait.”
‘You’re on an island, Melanie; an island alone!’ She yelled at me. Her words were an attempt at shaming me.’: Woman claims that being an ‘island’ allows us to grow in ways we never could before
“Some say my actions will be frighteningly regrettable. Others say I should be ashamed. Don’t get me wrong, there is a ton of shame. The shame comes when people ask how my family is and I cannot tell them my dark truths. Surely, I’m the only one. So, I keep them inside. Until now.”
‘Mom, I’m out of diapers. Please read my report.’ THIS WAS WRITTEN ON MY SON IN MARKER.’: Daycare worker fired after mom discovers message written on child’s stomach
“I’ve scrubbed it with several baby wipes and it’s not coming off. I had plans to take them to the beach to play, and now I can’t because my son has writing all over him. Am I over exaggerating? Help.”
I Plummeted 3 Stories From My Apartment Balcony, And Survived
“My body was a newborn again. My life turned upside down.”
‘I cannot follow you anymore. You seem hellbent on being negative, on grieving a man you divorced.’ I was at the gym when I got the message from a woman I barely know.’: Woman insists by living her truth she’s ‘hellbent on being honest’
“‘Dear Natalie, I have followed you for years. I adore your boys. I love seeing your beautiful face when it is joyful. But I owe it to you to let you know, I cannot follow you anymore. You seem to be hellbent on being negative when you so clearly have so much to be happy about. I cannot have all of your constant negativity in my feed anymore.’ I was at the gym when I listened to the full 3-minute message left in my Instagram Direct Messages, from a woman I only knew through her comments.”
‘A text from my husband came in. ‘I’m not happy. I want more. If you’re coming home, I won’t be here.’: Woman finds ‘new version of happiness’ after husband’s abandonment
“I pulled into a Dunkin Donuts parking lot and tried to call him. His phone was off. When I made it home, nothing was out of place. Except my husband was gone. Large bar tabs appeared on our statements. Girls’ phone numbers came up on our records. The following week, he agreed to meet me at the park. ‘I want a divorce.’ He was cold, emotionless. I refused, which made him angry. I obsessed looking for something that may have led to this. Some sort of sign. He offered no explanation.”
‘As a teenager, I didn’t appreciate my grandparents like I should have.’: Woman shares appreciation for grandparents thanks to StoryWorth, ‘I’m so lucky to still have them in my life’
“They were by no means the stereotypical grandparents. There were no homemade cookies waiting for us when we visited or secret treat drawers just for us. Their home was decorated with beautiful works of art not meant to be touched. I thought they were too critical, but now I realize they just wanted me to have the best life possible.”
‘They’ve used their rest periods to help support our furry friends.’: Military steps in on their time off to help injured koalas in Australian bushfires
“You can see the koalas swaddled in blankets, many with mittens on due to their paw burns, clearly loving the attention the soldiers are able to give. This is a great morale boost for our hard working team.”
‘You can come, but she’s in a coma. She’s not going to wake up.’ It was days before Michelle passed away. I was tired.’: Man reacts to friend’s unexpected visit days before his fiancee’s death
“It had been days since she awoke or spoke. ‘Are you coming to the wedding? You have to come. My dress is so beautiful. I look like a princess in it,’ Michelle proclaimed. Looking at me through the tears, I knew that Arieona’s glare in my direction was a request for direction. I nodded gently as I wiped the falling tears. ‘I’m coming Michelle. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.’”