Understanding
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I had another chance to live, and I was willing to do anything to make the most of it. In the fall of ’96, I took the plunge and officially applied for…
Turning Point
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A string of bells jingled when we opened the door, announcing our arrival. My heart raced, and my stomach tightened, and I…
Nothing to Lose
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It was December of 1995, four years after the day I first got sick. In some ways, I was still progressing. I had doubled my…
Leaving the Nest
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For the first time in over two years, I felt like I was making headway. I finally had the energy to finish my correspondence courses—sketching…
Sweet Relief
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Maybe it was a coincidence, or maybe not… Shortly after my “surrender” and reading Bernie’s book, I started feeling a little better. The intense…
A New Chapter
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When I woke up the next morning, something was undeniably different. I still felt sick and scared, but I didn’t feel alone anymore. As relieving…
Surrender
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My family wasn’t particularly religious growing up. We were never forced to go to church. We didn’t even say grace before meals. But there was one…
Homebound
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The room was dark aside from a street light shining through the blinds. I’d been lying in bed for hours, strategizing how to get to my…
Coming to a Head
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Graduation was just around the corner, and I had one thing on my mind—to move to the city and become a hairstylist. It was a dream I’d had…
Starting Line
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It was a blustery December night in 1991. I was playing pool with my boyfriend in his parents’ garage—smoking Camel cigarettes and…