Lauren is bluish, lethargic, and unable to cry because she is gasping for breath. My dreamy pregnancy and easy labor has turned into a nightmare. Right then and there, our idyllic life has come to a screeching halt. Our years of working hard to achieve our version of the American dream, one that is supposed to culminate in parenthood and my role as a supermom, has been smashed and broken.

Lauren’s birth marked an extreme turning point in our lives. And it was only the beginning…

From that day forward, we would never be the same again. That date was just the first step of a long, five year cycle of challenges and adversities. The tragedies that followed were going to take us on the roller coaster ride of our lives and school us in the dark secrets of life. We’d experience lessons that no formal education could have never taught us, nor prepared us to handle. It was the beginning of a rough era that would test my tenacity and my survival skills. Little did I know that soon, I’d be fighting for not only my life, but for the lives of my children as well.