“My husband and I were on a date. One of these women leaned over to my husband and asked him this question. Then, the ladies told me I should ‘get a tattoo to cover up my scar.’ I have to tell you, they got to me.”
‘Did you give her that hickey on her chest?’ I had a low-cut dress on my husband likes. ‘No, she had cancer. That is her scar.’ Sadly, it didn’t end there.’
‘I woke up with the worst pain. ‘They’re just headaches,’ I said. Something in my mom’s heart kept pushing. ‘There’s something in your brain,’ the doctor said. I was 11, and so confused.’
“I was rushed to the PICU. I tried to stay calm, but I was terrified. I couldn’t help but think, ‘How could I have done anything wrong to deserve this?’ I hid everything behind a smile, but I knew my life would never be ‘normal’ again.”
‘We went to ‘suicide high.’ I still can’t wrap my head around it. My sister was close to the crew of kids killing themselves. Every time the doorbell rang, I was terrified she was next on the list.’
“I was nervous. We approached her. ‘Hey, do you remember me?,’ my sister asked. ‘How could I forget a troubled soul like you?,’ she replied. ‘Thanks for being the teacher who saved my life. I needed to tell you in person.’”
‘Dad was always giving. I knew it was time to return the favor. As he dropped his head on my shoulder, tears rolled down both our faces.’: Bride surprises dad with homage to childhood during father-daughter dance
“When planning the wedding, I knew I wanted to do something to surprise my dad. I held him as he dropped his head on my shoulder. He put his hands on my cheeks, as he had done so many times before.”
‘I got my bags in the car. ‘Don’t worry, I’m NOT going to come home wanting to adopt.’ My husband shook his head. I was so nervous, I was going to puke. I wasn’t sure WHY I was going.’
“It was a normal Tuesday. I looked down to see them calling. ‘They will have his visa ready on THURSDAY!’ I replied, ‘Like in 2 days, THURSDAY?’ Tears started streaming down my face. ‘WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?’ I couldn’t speak. All I heard was, ‘Book your flight. Go get your son.’”
‘I am a people-pleaser. I’m a mom of 3 boys and a teacher and that, homies, is busy enough. ‘Can we swap so I can get a quick run in?,’ I asked my husband. But then, I got the text.’
“I got a text asking if I would make it to a meeting for Vacation Bible School leaders tonight. Um, what? This wasn’t in my phone alerts, on a Post-it, or scribbled on a calendar. I completely dropped the ball, and I handled it like any other mature 40-year-old. I cried. I lost it.”
‘People told me to get a second opinion because there was ‘no way’ I could be diabetic. I wasn’t ‘fat’ enough and I didn’t eat enough sugar, so the doctor HAD to be wrong.’: Girl finds out she has Type 1 diabetes after years of feeling sick
“After telling them all my symptoms, they put me on hold. When they picked back up, their voice seemed urgent. ‘Go to University Health Services as soon as they open in the morning. Don’t wait for an appointment. Don’t eat or drink anything for the rest of the night.”
‘He had the Stanford medical degree, not me. I trusted him. Aren’t we supposed to believe the doctor? I was home alone when I got the call.’: Woman receives unexpected cancer diagnosis after colon surgery fallout
“I decided that day I was going to take my life. I knew I couldn’t survive chemotherapy and breast cancer alone, and I was too prideful to really ask for help. I decided killing myself would do my family and friends a favor. I was a liability, not an asset. I had gone from being a thriving mother, model and athlete to a sickly woman needing constant care. My life had crumbled.”
‘My husband was living a double life. I found YEARS of mail in his trunk. He changed the locks, abandoned me in a parking lot.’: Woman re-marries ‘amazing’ man she met on blind date, says ‘love always wins in the end’
“He had another daughter I didn’t know about. I did some digging and found empty pill bottles and beer cans in his car. The car that drove my child to daycare. At 32, I had to move back in to my childhood bedroom, so ashamed of myself. My daughter and I tried to make the best of our ‘vacation’ as I called it. My husband was an addict and con artist, and I got duped.”
‘STEFANY! Are you out with someone else? Don’t you love me anymore? CALL ME BACK!’ Finally, I went home. ‘We have to break up.’ He starts sobbing. ‘Who is HE?!’ Something in me snapped.’
“He picked me up in his fancy car. Rented us a beach front hotel with a balcony. We had our first kiss. It was perfect. When I got home, one of his friends tried to warn me. Told me to be careful.”