March 21st 2013 marks the 8th anniversary of World Down Syndrome Day (WDSD), an awareness day which is officially observed world-wide. In an article on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention site, I found that 1 of every 700 babies born in the United States each year is born with Down syndrome. This being [...]
Since 2011, the Twitter party with the hashtag #youmightbeanautismparentif has been alive and kicking. Every comment offers a little snapshot of the inner lives of families who love someone with autism. At times the conversation is poignant, but in the last few weeks it’s been mostly humorous. Here are 16 recent highlights from the party [...]
Parents with a special needs child are always wondering if they are doing enough to help their child grow and develop. By taking an active role in tracking the 9 important developmental milestones for your child, identifying developmental delay and finding a therapist for your special needs child, parents are well on their way to helping your child meet developmental [...]
When I walk my children to school in the morning, we often see other families getting ready for school, too. Sometimes we hear crying. Sometimes we hear parents yelling. Sometimes a neighbor holding a fussy toddler will ask me to walk her third-grader to school. Sometimes I’m the one carrying or walking with a crying [...]
Managing behavior that is challenging can be very stressful for parents of children and adults with special needs. But it’s important to see it as a form of communication. Challenging behavior indicates there is a problem in learning and not in the person. Getting what we want We all learn to behave in certain ways in order to get [...]
When someone turns 18, they become an adult and are expected to make the right to make decisions about their medical treatment, finances and life. In order to make these decisions binding (in a legal sense), the person should be competent to understand the decision being made and the consequences of that decision. What is Guardianship? Guardianship is [...]
There are countless different structures that exist in the homes of a family with a child or adult with special needs. Some parents work all day, commute home and pick up their children from school or after care. Some families structures have one parent working and one parent staying home to take care of the kids. [...]
Special needs caregivers often report that they are reluctant or upset if they have to physically restrain their children in certain situations. The purpose of restraining is to keep something from continuing to take place, and is often a last resort. People wonder if there are ways to prevent the need for it at all. [...]
My husband doesn’t want me or the kids to acknowledge Father’s Day – because he’s a father every day. My husband doesn’t want me to announce that he works straight through breakfast and lunch without eating on most weekdays, comes home exhausted after a day of technical meetings, and then plays with our children and [...]
10 hurtful comments from relatives about your child with special needs
One of the painful parts of parenting a child with special needs is dealing with comments and questions from concerned family members. Most of the time, these remarks arise from love for the child and consideration for the well-being of the whole family. But the questions and comments don’t always come out that way, and [...]