Latest Stories
Most recently published stories in Families.
Dealing with Your Family When Sickness Strikes
It's never easy dealing with an illness; particularly if one of our family members is suffering. We want to help the sick household members feel better. Being the caregiver for another human (or even a pet) can be overwhelming at times. Thus, knowing what methods are best for each situation is key to staying on track. When caring for loved ones that are ill, it is imperative to keep calm, and take preventative measures to keep the ailment from spreading, or developing into something more serious.
By Jade Pulman7 years ago in Families
Unique Family Traditions from Around the World
When was the last time you participated in a family tradition? Chances are, you didn’t even have to think about it as it was just a common custom your family did, and has been doing, since you were young. Family traditions—both big and small—can be found the world over, and if you were looking to add some different traditions to your familial unit, consider these ideas.
By Marshall Stevenson7 years ago in Families
If Only
If only… I had been there a moment sooner. It’s my fault, there’s nothing that can be done now. Her lifeless body dangles effortlessly from the noose that creaks from time to time. You can see the cut she made in her throat with the knife that now lays on the ground. The noose obviously was too slow for her and she wanted a quicker death. My eyes meet hers as I stare into her empty vessel. I wonder what it’s like to see your empty body while you float away to a paradise beyond imaginable. The only thing I want for my sister is for her to be in a better place. She was suffering from major depression, but this wasn’t the way for her to die. Out of the many ways to end her life here on Earth, she chose to kill herself. I break my stare and I look down at the ground. It’s too much to bear. Water starts forming on the inner corners of my vibrant blue eyes. Choking down the screams that want to escape; I collapse onto my knees. It’s getting harder to breathe, everything is blurry. My pants are getting drenched, but in what? My eyes venture to my curiosity of the wetness I am feeling on my legs. Red… all I see is red. Then it hit me… I’m sitting in my sister’s blood. Fear floods my brain, but I’m paralyzed, I am too stunned to move. Everything I have kept bottled up inside me now rushes out of me like a dam that has just been open. My blood curdling screams fill the empty room. Over and over, my hands pound the ground, making the blood splash all over me. Tears fall to the ground.
By Chantell Schulz7 years ago in Families
My Journey of Loss
There is no real secret to it, and everyone deals with it in a different way. But at the end of the day, everyone has or will have to go through this heartbreaking journey. I still am. It will almost be a year since my grandma had passed away. Not a day goes by in which she doesn't cross my mind. June 22nd, two days before my birthday too. What I'm going to say is obviously not universal. Again, these tips may or may not work, it all depends on the individual. However, if I'm being honest, I wish I knew this during the first few days of feeling the true feeling of loss.
By Stefania Enriquez7 years ago in Families
Grief Is a Funny Thing
Ten things losing my mum taught me: Grief is a horrible and wonderful thing. Now I get it, ‘how can grief be wonderful?’ without watching my lovely mum slowly fade into nothingness, I wouldn’t appreciate her the way I do now. I wouldn’t grasp so tightly onto the memories we have the way I do now, I wouldn’t be able to look back, and see just how proud she was of me the way I do now. The big c word ripped my mum out of my arms, and swallowed her up into the void that is—well i'm not to sure what it is—but I tell myself it’s something lovely. It allowed me to appreciate just how amazing she was. It opened my eyes to the hard decisions she made that were for mine and my sister's benefit; it taught me the bittersweet side of love.I wouldn’t be as tuned into my body and my mind the way I am now. Currently, when I feel something, I embrace it. Now whether that be sadness, anger, hunger. I embrace the fact that I can feel, and that my body needs something in order to thrive. After losing my mum, it brought me to the realisation that not all the people around me are having a positive impact on my life, no matter how much I tell myself they are. It allowed me to address things I’ve been ignoring for such a long time.Some people just don’t care. Sure they say ‘I’m always here’, or some just don’t bother to message you at all, at least then people let you know where you stand. Life is short, and mean, and amazing all at the same time. Going through such a hard time highlights the gems that are scattered through your life. It highlights just how important they are to you, and how much more you should cherish them. It allowed me to cut ties I never knew I had, and strengthen the ones that matterMilestones just aren’t important any more. Birthdays, Christmas, even Saturdays aren’t as important anymore. Every hour blurs into another, every day of the week seems as one, every week slowly turns into a year. It all just seems to be coated in some cloudy haze that blinds you. Christmas morning isn’t the same when you don’t have the one you love the most. What’s the point in celebrating a birthday if you can’t celebrate with the person who gave you life? Saturday mornings are made for coffee dates with my loving family. Everything seems to have a gaping hole in them. Nothing is ever the same when you miss someone.Holding onto something you never believed in is totally normal. I personally never really got the thing with “mediums,” or whatever. But when you lose someone, and someone has a way of communication, it becomes a life line. Hearing someone talking on behalf of my mum, whether that be real, or a total load of bollocks, it’s a way of coping. Hearing they’re ok, they’re looking after you, and that they’re no longer in pain. It’s something you welcome with open arms. There’s no such thing as moving on. When I talk about my mum, I slip so easily into present tense, and that’s ok. My mum still is. She lives on through every member of my family. I will never get over the death of my mum, and once again, that is ok. Her life, and love, and death has forced me to see things from a different perspective. That things do get easier. Grief is something that tries to take over my life, and pull me down the slippery slope into the abyss of sadness, forcing me to believe that the light at the end of the tunnel isn’t there. Grief migrates itself into my everyday life, I can, and will be happy, and mind numbingly sad at the same time. And that is ok. Grief isn’t linear. Everyone says there’s five stages of grief, but it doesn’t follow a strict and orderly line. It changes form and shape as it pleases, and offers nothing in return. One day you're angry, the next you're sad, and then everything seems fine. But grief has a tight grip around my throat, getting tighter and tighter when I’m not noticing. Grief isn’t life threatening or fatal, but sometimes it feels like it is.I am much stronger than I ever believed. Funnily enough that’s something my mum has been telling me for 19 years. And I finally believe her.Pain is a temporary thing, but it feels like it isn’t. This month marks the tenth month without my mum. Bit by bit, day by day, things do get better. Now when I say better, I mean you learn to live with it, you learn to not let it take over your world. The light at the end of the tunnel is close, and it is real. There are moments of happiness and calm in even the worst storms. Learn to laugh and cry in the same breath.And finally, the last thing losing my mum taught me, is that the feeling of getting a text, and hoping it’s from her will never go. The hope that the next person to walk through the door will be her, will never go. The image imprinted in my brain of her walking me down the aisle, or meeting my baby, or seeing all my milestones in life will never go. But I know she is always next to me, every step of the way, cheering me on from wherever it is that she is. I know she loved me more than life itself, and I know I have to make her proud.
By Eloise Morin7 years ago in Families
Peaks and Troughs
I like to write with a pen and paper. I scribble and rearrange on the page. In university I hand wrote my essay notes, mind maps, and arrows directed ideas. I didn’t feel the need to write back then, I enjoyed it, somewhat, but wasn’t drawn to writing like I am now. I’ve heard writing described as cathartic for people who’ve gone through trauma or are going through chaos. Maybe it allows time to rationalise a hive of thoughts, at least slow them for the seconds it takes to write a sentence. I don’t mean writing in terms of literature or academia. I mean letters, words, sentences—communication. Thoughts translated... and somewhat analysed. Cathartic? Yes, cathartic.
By Kiera Moran7 years ago in Families
God Bless the NHS
On Friday, May 24th, I gave birth to my son after nearly 36 hours of labour and an emergency C-section. In total, this will have cost the NHS thousands of pounds, and two nights of 1:1 care. Did I get a bill? No. I was waved off with a smile and a hug, clutching on to my precious bundle.
By Natalie Fairypants7 years ago in Families
My Life
So here I am... Plus_size_blondie has discovered vocal and decided to give it a try. I wasn’t sure what to base my vocal stories on and then I thought... everyone after listening to my life story so far, has said I should write a book... when I found vocal I thought hmmm... this might be an easy way to tell my story so far.
By Plus_size_blondie Private7 years ago in Families
Being that Perfect Parent
We all meet those "bumps" in the road. How do you know that you're doing it right? Being a mom was not always something I wanted out of life. I loved other people's kids, they weren't permanent, and I didn't have to wipe their buts well. Then I became pregnant with my first daughter, Macy. At that time in my life I was a mess, and during my whole pregnancy I struggled deeply with depression. I had no faith in myself. I constantly told myself I couldn't do it, and at the time I really believed it. I wouldn't say I had the best childhood growing up, it wasn't awful but my mom was often cold towards me. I think maybe that's the reason I told myself that I never wanted to have kids. I considered adoption and I considered that idea that maybe I could do it. When my daughter was born I was so happy she was here, but my struggles with life and myself were still present.
By Shelby Jordan7 years ago in Families
Make Sure Kids Feel Safe in Stressful Times
The world we live in is magnificent (most of the time). As wonderful as that may be, those who can get through the day without experiencing stress on some level are rare. The intensity of it can vary greatly; however, it affects adults and as well as children. While grownups deal with all kinds of nerve-wracking situations on a daily basis, don't think the kids are carefree just because they don't have an angry boss, short deadlines, or bills to pay. Meeting new people, looking for ways to fit in, and taking tests are just some of the examples of everyday situations that cause relatively small amounts of stress for children. The problem arises when the real crisis strikes and the amount of distress becomes unbearable. Kids are those who suffer the most, so it's necessary to get clued up about the ways we can provide them with help, protection, and support.
By Leila Dorari7 years ago in Families
