“I never, ever said explicitly mean things to anyone’s face. I only said it because I felt sorry for you! You know the kind – those Gretchen Weiner-type girls who feigned shock when one of their friends said something hurtful, but then giggled about it anyway.”
‘If you’d asked me back then if I was a bully, I would’ve given you an emphatic, ‘No Way! As if?’: Woman realizes she was a ‘background bully’ who ‘stirred the pot’
‘I missed my daughter’s honor roll assembly so I could go for a walk and burn off anxiety. It’s not selfish, it’s called self-love.’: Woman responds to mom shamers, ‘taking care of ourselves IS taking care of our kids’
“I was struggling deep with anxiety and had a long work day ahead of me. I needed a break. The next day, several moms at school asked me why I wasn’t there with my husband and my mom who was in town visiting. Women were judging me. So much so that they felt the need to privately message me to insult me.”
‘I knew when it was time you would rise to the occasion and take care of her and of us. And you did.’ Hearing that made it all worth it.’: Nurse reflects on how she has to be a nurse, even when it’s for family
“The night my mother-in-law passed away, everyone was a mess. Emotional, tired and grieving that she had been suffering so long. Even after being a nurse for 15 years, I wasn’t prepared for how it would feel to be the family member in the nursing role. On the way home, I wasn’t ok.”
‘I was embarrassed and ashamed. I spent 15 years pretending I was a happy, carefree extrovert without a problem in the world.’: Woman faces her trauma, finds strength empowering others
“This is when I discovered my calling was to be a coach for women who have experienced trauma. Women who don’t believe in themselves and don’t think they are deserving of the happiness they desperately desire. I want people to know they aren’t alone, they can put themselves back together after being broken, and their biggest pain can actually be their biggest strength. Everyone is deserving of the life they dream for themselves.”
‘I’ve really dropped the ball this holiday season. No family photos. No holiday cards. I haven’t even wrapped presents.’: Mom realizes what’s most important for her family this holiday season
“I never mailed the kids’ lists to Santa. We have yet to make a gingerbread house or watch ‘It’s A Wonderful Life.’ It feels like I’ve dropped the ball, it has broken and shattered, and like I don’t even have the energy or desire to clean up the mess.”
‘I cried in his arms. Maybe my mom had reason to think we were gay together. My Wife is NOT My Best Friend.’: Husband chronicles relationship with wife, best friend since sixth grade
“Taylor still had a part of my heart, but my life was never going to be the same. My best friend lives 1,000 miles away.”
‘Do you think you’re dying?’ my husband asked. I couldn’t even hold my baby. ‘I don’t know, maybe?’: Woman beats breast cancer despite all odds, ‘I had one foot in eternity, I felt it’
“I had one foot in eternity, I felt it. With no prior treatment, the doctor looked at me and told me I was ‘too far gone’ and to get my affairs in order. I thought for sure this was the end of me. My husband and I rejected that answer.”
‘What would you tell your 18-year-old self?’ Stay out of the tanning bed because you will get premature winkles and Botox is expensive.’: Woman’s all-too-relatable advice to her younger self urges you to ‘know your worth’
“First thing, if you end up with the boy that you’re most certain you’re going to marry and have babies with, you will be 32 and living with his mom. Which is exactly where he still lives. If someone wants to walk out of your life, let them. It is their loss! You are not defined by the crappy things people do to you. The crappy things people do to you show more about their character than yours.”
‘I’m not feeling well.’ I called my husband. I remember crying, thinking the only thing I wanted was my mom.’: Widow laments loss of husband during thyroid cancer journey, ‘he always knew how to put my mind at ease’
“I was preoccupied with thoughts of whether this was ‘normal.’ Fast forward 14 years and I can tell you, I feel differently. In 48 hours, my parents will be here to take care of my children and I because my husband is not. The possibility of cancer this time of year is all too familiar. And as I sit here, alone, avoiding all the dishes I’ve let pile up and the 7 loads of laundry, all I can think is that I want my husband.”
‘It’s NOT postpartum depression. You aren’t suicidal.’ She said to buy essential oils. I feared the worst.:’ Mom’s postpartum depression dismissed for years, ‘I finally have the right people behind me’
“I smashed the window of our door while holding my child. I knew something wasn’t right. She told me, ‘You should calm down because stress can pass to your breast milk and upset your baby’s stomach.’ I had all these terrifying thoughts of what could happen to him. I said, ‘This is why we lose SO MANY women during the postpartum period. We get ignored.'”