My daughter arrived in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) in the middle of the night on the eve of Thanksgiving. A tough respiratory virus attacked her lungs, and she needed a substantial amount of oxygen support. And now, this unexpected illness meant Thanksgiving was going to be completely different than we had all planned.
Are you scrounging for thankfulness this holiday season? Holidays can be a challenge for those walking through hard days. Perhaps you feel like you've been handed the short-end of the stick; your child is struggling, you’re exhausted and it seems like everybody else has life with a bit more gravy. It’s easy to focus on our circumstances, take stock of what we have and where we are and end up feeling completely void of thankfulness. Is there a cure for this?
I first suspected I had ADHD as a teenager, but finding the right professional to take me seriously was much harder than I expected. Previous attempts only ended in frustration and tears.
Enjoying the holidays with a food allergy sounds like an oxymoron doesn’t it? After all, eating together is an integral component of the holiday season. I looked forward to making our traditional holiday foods until I was diagnosed with a dairy allergy in 2012. What was to enjoy about the holidays when the foods associated with it were off limits to me?
It was a short, ten-minute drive from the hotel to the residential facility. I maintained composure while I navigated the busy public roads, and then residential streets. I had a whole range of emotions racing through my body, mind and spirit as we pulled into the campus. This was not just a pleasure drive or a routine errand, this was a significant milestone in the life of my son and our family.
The quarantine events in the past few weeks have presented new challenges. My daughter's health, which is usually the major trigger for me, was no longer the cause of my stress. Instead, life's drastic changes overwhelmed me. The sudden changes to my familiar routine put me in old battles with stress and eating.
You may be wondering what good you have to offer when your days have been devoted to caring for your child with special needs and disabilities for a long time. As it turns out, your role as a caregiver has prepared you for the COVID-19 outbreak. Here are six ways you are already prepared to spread good, not germs.
There are a lot of logistical challenges to be found within this “shelter in place” world. But special needs kids who are home from school and out of their regular routine face more than challenges; they face real, significant loss in skills and abilities. As I contemplated how we would ever be able to make up for the lost time, I remembered a similar story in the Bible, and an amazing promise from God.
I had just dropped off my son after having him for the weekend, as it was my time with him, according to the parenting agreement with my ex-wife. I no sooner put the car in reverse than I heard the declaration on the radio during a COVID-19 briefing that all restaurants, cafes and bars were to be closed indefinitely. Children like mine don’t just “do better” with routines and structure, they require it. I want to share some ideas and perspective on this time as a new single parent of an autistic child and how I, and more importantly, we as a family still, are coping.
