It’s 19 May, 2016. Tomorrow, I’ll be 50. And here I am, alone, sleeping on a mattress on the floor. I’m in the spare room of the house I own. Across the hallway in the master bedroom, my ex-husband and his fiancée are sleeping peacefully. In my bed. As I look up at the ceiling, I can’t wipe the smile off my face. I realise with every cell of my body that I’ve genuine....
Grief tapped me on the shoulder this morning, the memory of pain filled words spoken by my son many years earlier, bringing tears to my eyes. In 2012, my adult son Warren was hospitalised for depression and anxiety. As I sat beside his hospital bed, he shared the words that pierced my heart, ‘no one wants me’ he said. Is there anything more distressing than seeing your chil....
In the summer of 2007 I contracted a cruel and demoralising disease. After being afflicted with a nasty bug I then developed pneumonia and glandular fever and following that I was eventually diagnosed with Acute Post Viral Chronic Fatigue Syndrome with Fibromyalgia. One day I was active, healthy and loving life. It never occurred to me that the very next day I could wake up sic....
From the outside, we looked like a typical family. My parents still live in the house I grew up in. It’s a typical Australian house on an average suburban street. The early years of my childhood were spent playing in our neighbourhood with friends and my brother and two sisters. Church was a very big part of my family’s life. My parents were both involved in leadership an....
I was eight when my mum got sick. Watching her battle stomach cancer was devastating. It was the 1970’s and her cancer treatment was harsh, aggressive and ultimately unsuccessful. I was only 11 years old when she died. Six weeks later I started high school. It makes me sad that I have very few memories of my mum other than her illness. When she died I felt like a part of me d....
