Love is… Love is… a choice. Love is… knowing that without them, life would be empty and cold. Love is… sharing tears. Love is…worth fighting for. Love is…a knowing glance across a room. Love is… hurting for someone else. Love is… a familiar smell. Love is… something that is so easily tossed aside when…
Category Archives: Support
The Weary Woman..
The other day, I was overcome with emotion when I read what our friend Tammy said on her blog. (I’ll wait for you to come back…) This is such a sensitive topic. And one that is so often overlooked. We, regardless of situation, are still human. We have bad days. We have moments when we’re…
Don’t Forget An Important Part of Your “Thankful For” List
A Day to remember why you’re thankful. What you’re thankful for. Thankful for partners, the few (or more) supporters that surround you, jobs / careers, friends, insurance, making it this far in your journey. This year, this time, I encourage you to reach within, look within – to you. Inward to your strength, your drive…
Overcoming Compassion Fatigue In Your Family
There’s a new diagnosis on the block. This time, it’s for us – the parents. A few months ago, I wrote about a must-watch stress documentary for special needs parents. Yesterday, while visiting my daughter at her residential treatment facility, I discovered a term that explains what we face even better than stress. Compassion fatigue….
We’re all Different…We’re all the Same
I’m writing a story with the child about the things that make us different from each other. I’m hoping this will be a soft entry to explaining her challenges and her triumphs over them in a way that is positive and yet open and honest. We’ve already talked about how even the people in our…
Can You Treat Depression Without Prescription Drugs?
Author’s note: this is a reprint of a local mental health professional’s article about ways to manage depression without medication. I loudly state that outside influences are only a part of the big behavioral health picture. I do feel that Dr. Jantz’s suggestions can apply to our lives as parents of psecial needs children as…
Grief
One of my best friends died last Friday. When I say friend, I don’t mean the “girlfriend” type of friend, more the “mom away from mom and grandmother type figure to my kids” kind of friend. Needless to say I am still reeling, as are all of the other people who knew her and loved…
Old school still stings…
I don’t have to tell anyone, I don’t think, about how HOT it’s been this week. As I said before I’m a facebooker too, and sometimes my saturday posts get away from me, sorry. Some days blend into the next, but I digress. My father’s family has all kind of “drifted” apart (not saying that…
Grandma’s House
We’re back at my dear mother-in-law’s house for another week, awaiting the results of her evaluation from a wonderful program that is helping us get a handle on what is affecting her. Things are going much better than our last visit, but still challenging. I spent most of the day yesterday cleaning out her pantry….
Your stress is killing you. Here’s how to fight back.
We’re a stressed-out group of parents. I sat with jaw dropped and tears flowing down cheeks as I watched the documentary. A UCSF expert in cellular aging was explaining that special needs moms were one of the best groups to study the negative effects of chronic stress on the human body. Her colleague, a Stanford…