“I once read that choosing to not forgive someone is like drinking rat poison and then waiting for the rat to die. In my unwillingness to open up my heart and forgive, I held on to fear and trauma that only ended up poisoning me.”
After 23 Years, I Forgave My Uncle For Murdering My Father—And It’s Transformed My Life
‘YASSS GIRL!’ She wanted bubbles in her pictures, and her man was going to make sure it happened. He was so enthusiastic and I’m here for it!’
“Let me tell y’all something! Sometimes I have some REALLY grumpy boyfriends and husbands come to my sessions. Dudes who are on their phones the entire time, saying, ‘Are we done yet?’ But every once in a while, you get a gem.”
‘They hadn’t told us which bed she was in, but we knew. Somehow, we knew. She was tiny, wrapped in an orange elephant blanket, and absolutely beautiful.’
“Every day that went by, we didn’t know if it would be our last together. Every time the phone rang my stomach was in knots. There were a few times I remember looking at each other like, ‘What the heck did we just get ourselves into?’”
‘I got a call from my dad. In a moment of panic, I blurted quickly, ‘Dad, I’m pregnant.’ There was radio silence on his end. I remember thinking it’d never get easier.’: Teen mom’s journey keeping her baby and co-parenting
“The friends I had gone to high school with tore me apart online for posting a picture of my baby and saying I loved him. ‘How can you say you love him when you didn’t even want him,’ they wrote. ‘You didn’t even want to be a mom.’”
‘I remember saying, ‘First, I need to get high. We will deal with that later.’: Woman hits rock bottom of addictions with second pregnancy
“Our daughter has been placed in protective custody,’ my husband said. Then I find out I’m pregnant. I’m deep into my addiction – 95 pounds and shooting heroin multiples times a day. I tell my OBGYN. This was a rock bottom plea for help. Addiction crept into my life so quietly I didn’t notice until it was far too late.”
‘I have a secret. Somebody we know is hurting tonight. Somebody we know is watching their clock and praying for bedtime to come quickly.’
“There is a dirty little secret hiding behind the curtain. You are not the only one who crashes at the end of the day and needs everything to be silent, easy and invisible, so you can just BINGE OREOS IN PEACE FOR TWO FREAKING MINUTES.”
‘A friend of mine called. ‘Hey, I’m going to swing over and hang out with you for a few.’ I panicked. This wasn’t a planned swing by.’: Mom remembers what’s important after friend’s unexpected drop-in
“She came over and automatically opened my laundry room door. She went into my bedroom to make sure my bed was made. Then she made her way into my kitchen and checked my sink to make sure I had done the dishes. She gave me the once-over before we sat down to catch up.”
‘Danielle, babies cry. That’s what they do!’ I remember thinking, well it must be me then. This must be ‘normal’ and I’m just not equipped.’
“I wish I could have told my innocent and naive self to buckle up because that was only the beginning. Once we got the diagnosis, I remember foolishly feeling giddy. Like finally we have the answer and now it will be fine. This will all be okay. Like I said, foolish.”
‘Her eyes widened and her voice changed to panic. ‘What if you have a FIFTH daughter?’ This stranger’s question left a bitter taste in my mouth.’: Mom of five says ‘whatever we are blessed with is what we will cherish’
“I was at Costco with my little crew when a woman approached me about my growing bump. I usually try to ‘kill them with kindness.’ She noticed our four girls and our son, whom we adopted 3 years prior. She made a joke he was the only boy, then shifted her attention to what gender THIS baby would be.”
‘I lay in the hotel bed in tears. ‘Play with me!’ I snapped at him as I plugged calories into my app. ‘I can’t live like this anymore.’: Woman overcomes 10 years of eating disorders, ‘I’m always enough’
“I was determined to be that girl who transforms from ugly duckling into beauty queen over summer break. I stumbled across pictures of skin-and-bone bodies. I’d never seen anything like it, except in photos of German concentration camps. I only ever wanted to lose 15 pounds.”
‘I was finally ready to ask for a divorce. Then I found out I was pregnant. I was shocked. ‘Well I have to tell my husband.’ It felt like we were living separate lives.’
“I didn’t think I was going to make it. My husband was with me. I told him he was going to figure out how to be a great dad. He had to trust himself, and find who he needed to help raise our daughter. My breaking point was when I caught him lying to my face.”
‘The door is locked and the person has been in there a long time.’ I knocked again, harder this time. No answer. I ran in to see a half naked man slouched over on the toilet.’
“At that moment I found myself yelling to him, ‘YOU ARE WORTH MORE THAN THIS’ over and over again.”
‘She looked me dead in the eye. ‘What is it? Did the man leave?’ I can tell she was scared, her face went pale. Then I called 911.’
“I remember her concentrating on a certain part of my shirt, of course, I was scared. I never made it seem as if she was alone in this journey.”
Why You Should Allow Your Kids To Express Their Emotions
“Pretty soon meltdowns over crayons will turn into breakups, heartbreak, sex, or even depression.”
‘There is a chance you will lose all your hair.’ WHAT? Bald spots started appearing. They didn’t know if it would ever come back.’
“There was nothing they could do for me, little did I know that was just the beginning.”
Grieving Widower Pays It Forward For Stranger In McDonald’s
“It was another small step in choosing love over hate.”
‘We both rolled over in bed. Me: ‘I’m gay.’ Her: ‘I’m transgender.’ Silence. Now what? I’m married. HAPPILY married!’: Couple stays together despite realizing sexual preferences weren’t as they initially thought
“Almost all of Sarah’s ‘stay at home clothes’ were now coming from the women’s department. I thought it was strange. I started to connect a few dots. I spent many nights lying awake wondering, ‘IF this was something… could I stick around? Was I ok with this? Could I still love her?”
‘I was alone working the bar. It was quiet until 15 men strolled in. One was on crutches. Now I wish I hadn’t been so kind.’
“While I was at the school dropoff, he would drive past and text me to let me know how I looked that day. He would magically turn up where I was. He wouldn’t always approach me, but would stick around long enough to remind me he was there, watching.”
‘I was self-conscious after having a baby, so I got breast implants. I got the ‘healthier’ option. When I woke up from surgery, it felt like the air got knocked out of my lungs.’
“I’d express my concern at every follow up, but the doctor assured me everything was healing well. So, I ignored my intuition. The pain persisted. Years later, I looked through hashtags on Instagram, and everything finally made sense. I had discovered it. Instantly I knew.”
‘I was SO nervous the morning of the surprise. But as I watched him cry tears of joy, the burden was instantly lifted.’: Special needs mom reciprocates kindness to recycling driver
“I thought that would be it. I was wrong. What is a mundane task to many is a big deal around here.”
‘The vulgar lyrics were blasting. LOUD. During the prayer. I cannot make this up.’: Bride hilariously recounts random reunion during wedding with strangers from their engagement
“My husband drops to one knee. All 3 guys start screaming: ‘Say yes! Did you just do that?! That’s epic!’ Fast forward. Halfway through our ceremony, who crashes the wedding? OUR ENGAGEMENT FRIENDS. My husband and I locked eyes. We knew it was them. Our wedding guests look on, HORRIFIED.”
‘What’s wrong?’ My tattoo artist emerged from the back, visibly shaking, crying. ‘I just HAD to take in this moment.’: Mom loses twins, ‘uncommon’ first names combine to match name of tattoo artist’s late grandmother
“He’d gone back to trace the footprints of my babies, Leonor and Buchanan, both stillbirths. I was wondering what was taking so long, and started to worry my tattoo couldn’t be done. ‘I don’t want you to think I’m crazy,’ he said. ‘But my grandmother’s name was Leonor Buchanan. She just passed.’ I looked at him in complete shock.”
‘The nurse asked my husband, ‘Are you the FATHER, or just the one she’s pregnant with?’ I hated the disapproving nods, strange stares. I stopped going out in public with my kids. I felt inadequate.’: Mom shares candid reality of being mother to multiple kids
“Getting an abortion scared the crap out of me. I wanted to be the mother who had all her ducks in a row. The mother whose children were well behaved, drank organic kale smoothies, and began reading at 3.”
‘Hey! What the HELL ARE YOU DOING?!’ The kid looked at me, stuck out his tongue and ran. I almost turned into Medusa.’: Mom watches playground bully kick her son, ‘I will not excuse a mother who does not pay attention’
“Andy was screaming with a swollen red eye, tears rolling down his face. I saw him run off towards his mom, whom I noticed had been on her phone for the entire hour we were there, not looking up once.”
‘Sorry, kids. I wish I could make it so you’d never hurt, or have your heart broken. But the world doesn’t work that way.’
“If I made everything easy, you’d never know how to work hard. If I paid your way in, you would never know you are capable of accomplishing your dreams on your own.”