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.
While Halloween is a fun time of year for many children, it can be a really difficult time for some, including many children with additional/special needs. For them it can be a confusing, anxiety-inducing, or even utterly terrifying time. But it doesn’t have to be like that. If we stop for a moment to think about the things they might find hard and how to put things in place to help them, children with special needs can safely join in the fun, too. So what are some of the things about Halloween that children with additional needs can find hard?
“While we’ve had many years of travel speaking together on marriage, discipleship, and other topics, we are seldom alone and ‘just us’”Joe & Cindi Ferrini write on the struggle of never truly being along as special needs parents, and the importance of making time “just for us.”
Seeing many of our friends on social media taking trips to Japan, Italy, France, Greece, Egypt, and all around the USA, keeps us ever mindful that our feet are firmly planted in the nation of “caring for special needs”. But what if if several couples take turns getting to know the needs of this family and meeting those needs, so you can make a “WEEKEND TO REMEMBER” happen for them?
One of the things I love most about the message from God through my friend, it focused on Him and what He can do: “I can move mountains,” not on my lack of faith. God knew I was already so discouraged. I didn’t need to have one more area of failure pointed out. I needed to change my focus, get it off of what I can and cannot do and focus on Him and what He can do.
Support from others is great, but I learned early on that I have to find ways to encourage myself. I have to take ownership of my own mental wellbeing and emotions. When I am feeling down, I can't rely on others to pick me back up. I can’t wait for my pastor to show up to pray; I have to find strength to pray.
