Hoda shares story behind necklace she's wearing from a friend following daughter's hospital stay

A necklace sent by a friend that contains a simple but powerful message has helped Hoda Kotb endure a difficult time for her family.

Hoda shared on TODAY on March 6 that a friend sent her the piece of jewelry while Hoda's daughter Hope, 3, spent more than a week in the hospital recently with an illness.

"I’m wearing this little thing that a friend of mine sent to me, and she said, ‘I’m going to take it off my neck and I’m going to send it to you. It's worn down because I rub it all the time, and it says, ‘God's got this,'" Hoda told Jenna Bush Hager.

"So she said, ‘If I ever see you not wearing it, I’m coming to get you,'" Hoda said with a laugh. "But that's it, that's it."

The TODAY co-anchor missed the past few weeks of the show. She shared in her return on March 6 that it was due to the younger of her two daughters being sick.

"She was in the ICU for a few days and then the hospital for another week, and it was really scary," she said.

Hoda said on Monday that she was "over the moon" now that Hope is back home. She thanked the nurses and doctors who treated her daughter and reflected on the experience.

"I always talk about 'gratitude, gratitude,' but I found myself not living in that lane because I was scared," Hoda said. "And then I decided, 'You know what, let me think about this for a minute. I have a family who loves me, I have a little girl who's Hope, I have a wonderful support system. I have doctors who would've done anything to make everything better, and they did.'

"So sometimes you talk about gratitude and then when you're pushed to the limit you're like, 'Do I feel it?'" she continued.

She also described a sweet moment after Hope returned home. She was still not feeling great but showed Hoda two little confetti stars in her hands.

"She said, 'I got two, Mom.' I said, 'Oh my gosh. She goes, 'One for me and one for you,'" Hoda said. "And I thought to myself, this child, even when she's not feeling good, she's still giving everything away. I feel blessed and grateful, really, really grateful."

Hoda also gained a new perspective of what many other parents have experienced.

"And also anyone who's ever gone through an illness with a child, I thought I understood you, but I don't. I didn't, until you're sitting in that position," she said. "For every single person who's going through some stuff, I get it."

She also was grateful for all the support from TODAY fans.

"I'm happy to be here, and I want to say thank you for everybody who was reaching out and stuff," she said. "I felt you, I heard you, I needed you. Sometimes you just say a quiet 'thank you' inside, so thank you."

Scott Stump is a staff reporter and the writer of the daily newsletter This is TODAY. He has been a regular contributor for TODAY.com since 2011, producing news stories and features across the trending, pop culture, sports, parents, pets, health, style, food and TMRW verticals.