The truth is, you are not alone. Depression and mothering a child with special needs often go hand in hand. It’s been coming on for a while now. And with good reason. The list of diagnoses and medicines. The boys’ meltdowns and anxiety attacks. The constant hypervigilance. The lack of sleep. The loss of any…
The constant stress and pressure of special needs moms is real. And we need help. I had a dream last night. In it, my son was in pain, but I couldn’t understand where, or what was causing it. I was calm, but focused. I kept trying to ask him questions about his body in a…
Seasonal mood changes in children are a real concern for many families. After years of trial and error, we are heading into a season that us typically quite difficult for him. Here is what has helped in the past and what are planning for this year. It took me years to put the pieces together. …
Blaming moms for their children’s anxiety helps no one. This is our story. Just over four years ago, the psychiatrist said out loud what I knew he had been thinking for months. “You are too wrapped up in his anxiety and psychosomatic symptoms. You are making it worse. I suspect you are just feeding off…
Nothing can derail a carefully thought out lesson plan faster than a child’s anxiety. This is a behind the scenes look at homeschool lesson planning for an anxious child. When Anxiety Takes Over Your Homeschool Week Last week, we accomplished very little of our planned lessons. My son had an outpatient surgery on Tuesday and…
Too often, my child is too anxious to learn anything at all. I am learning how to help. I have many memories of elementary and middle school. Good ones like singing in the choir, participating in history day, and my sweet third grade teacher calling me “love bug.” Like most of us, I also have…
The constant anxiety, stress and battles surrounding simply going to school were significant factors in our decision to homeschool. This is what it’s like when your child is too anxious for school. When my now seventeen year old son was eight, he attended public school. Every single day of his second grade year began with…
A behind the scenes look at what it’s like, from start to finish, to go through the process of getting a service dog for your child. I include all the pros and cons of getting a service dog for my child with anxiety. My son was hospitalized at age 11 for more than a week….
“I’m stuck, Mommy!“ My youngest looked down at me from the top of the tree, paralyzed with fear, clinging to the one branch he was sure would hold him. “Honey, if you got up there, you can get back down,” I said. “No,” he cried. “You don’t understand. I can’t let go. I can’t do…
It’s a question so many of us ask, desperate for an answer. Will it ever get easier for my child with learning differences and special needs? Last week, in one of my support sessions with another, sweet mom, we talked about what I call the “messy middle.” I am pretty sure it is a reality…
It happened again to my son last month. We were at an appointment with a pediatric specialist, following up on his severe gastrointestinal issues. When the specialist saw his anxiety disorder diagnosis, she was quick to blame the anxiety for his abdominal issues. She’s not wrong. They are certainly connected, although we are struggling to…
Sometimes homeschooling can make even the most experienced of us a little crazy. For example, I find that one of my greatest homeschool mom life difficulties involves the endless pendulum swing between feeling freaked out about my sons’ education or totally checked out. Let me explain… Another homeschool mom and I were talking about how…
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