(CNN) — There is no way to prepare. For nearly two years, I couldn’t go inside one room in my house. If you had come over and cracked the door, you’d be met with stale air, a changing table and a tiny ...

We are often drawn to stories about people who survive the unthinkable on sheer grit. The solo comeback. The self-made recovery through difficult times. The “I did this on my own” triumph. They ...