I love to read blogs by parents of kids with special needs. Why? Because the parents are so transparent and so loving as they share their daily struggles. Most of the blogs are written by moms, but recently I ran across one written by a dad, Greg Lucas. Greg blogs at Wrestling with an Angel. He shares the joys and frustrations that are go along with being the parent of seventeen-year-old Jake. After...

Good news! I just signed a contract with Discovery House Publishers for a new book. This one is tentatively called Different Dream Parenting: Raising a Child with Special Needs. It will be a companion book to A Different Dream for My Child, providing guidance and resources for parents. The deadline for the manuscript to arrive at DHP is April 1, 2011 which is good. This book will require a great deal...

The first post in this series explored how invasive medical procedures can cause PTSD in children. The post listed four factors that increase the likelihood of PTSD developing. The factors are: Timing Anesthesia Age of patient Previous Trauma History As promised in Part 1 of the series, this post will address the general principle behind the occurrence of PTSD and how it can be successfully treated. General...

When our son was born in 1982 and flown 750 miles away for life-saving surgery, we asked the medical professionals if the surgery and recovery would somehow affect him later on. “No,” we were told repeatedly, “he’s too young to remember. Besides newborns don’t feel pain.” Even though the opposite has been proven true since our son’s surgery, the news hasn’t...

In the first post in this series, you met the Carlson family and learned about Tara,their youngest daughter, and her three month hospital stay. In this post, Tara’s mom Kat talks about how Tara’s hospital experience changed her. Babies Should Never Be Alone The first night of Tara’s hospital stay, before the doctors knew how seriously ill the baby was, the PICU staff suggested Kat...

Most days, my google alert system is pretty ho-hum, because it only finds content with my key words in it when I put up a blog post. But once in awhile, google helps me find new friends and great new blogs. A Day in the Life of 4 Kids and a Dog Not too long ago, google introduced me to Mama Kat and her blog A Day in the Life of 4 Kids and a Dog. A mutual blog friend, Victoria Nelson, had recommended...

How many books about kids with special needs have you read? Probably more than you realize! Terri Mauro, at about.com, wants you to share your faves with others in the special needs community. She’s posted over 200 reviews, but knows she can’t read them all. So she provides four ways for other readers to add to her resource list. Here’s what she says to do. Add Your Review to One...

During a recent Coffee Klatch Twitter session, a discussion arose about a parent’s role when kids with special needs do their homework. We talked about how much homework is enough, when to ask for modifications, the value of perseverance and a whole lot of other things. How Much Is Enough? During my years as a classroom teacher, I told parents they could expect their children to bring home an...

A few months back, some Different Dream blog posts ( Part 1 and Part 2) featured Justin and Victoria Nelson, along with their adorable little girl, Moriah. Earlier this week, the doctors met with the Nelsons and gave them some sobering news. Today, Moriah has a cardiology appointment and an echo, which will be very telling and could lead to some hard decisions for her parents and the doctors. To read...

Who would think cancer could take the life of a three-year-old boy in eight weeks? Cole’s parents, Aaron and Moireen Ruotsala, certainly didn’t think it would happen to their sweet, blond-haired boy, but it did. Adreno-Cortical Carcinoma On July 24, 2008, Cole was diagnosed with adreno-cortical carcinoma. It’s a rare cancer (1-2 people per million) that originates in the adrenal...