Parents Helping Parents Blog

One of the most important components of good mental health and living longer and happier lives is having quality relationships. As a parent of a child with special needs, I have struggled with this and have often felt unsupported and alone. That is why Pathways is beginning the “Women Empowering Women” support system. It is a place where women, who are moms and/or guardians, can join hands and hearts and begin to help each other take this journey together.

 The Need for Better Support Systems

Being a mom of a child with special needs is downright draining. Add to that, a...

The last few weeks we have been talking about the acronym "MEDS" and how it relates to mental health. This week we will be tackling the “D” in the acronym that stands for diet. 

There is no question that diet is related to mental health. The brain is the control center of the body and never stops working even when we sleep. As a result, the brain is in need of constant energy to function and the type of  food and fluids we put into our bodies makes a difference. The problem most of us encounter is consistently giving our brains the fuel required to allow them to...

When people hear about taking care of their mental health they often isolate it to what goes on in the brain. However, you cannot separate the brain from the body or the mental from the physical. The body is made from many different parts and there is no question that they impact each other. That is why taking a wholistic approach to mental health is critical to all of us.

Last week I talked about taking our MEDS which is an acronym that translates to M-meditation, E-Exercise, D-diet and S-sleep. We talked about meditation in our previous blog, but this week we will spend some time on...

I once heard Brendon Bruchard, a high performance coach, use the acronym “MEDS” as a simple way to help remember some of the most important elements to our mental health. The  acronym stands for : “M” -  meditation, “E”  - exercise, “D” – diet, and “S” – sleep. I could probably end the blog right now as most of us would agree our mental health would improve if we took our MEDS. What is also great about this acronym is that every element is under our control in one way or another. This week let’s...

Mental health, or the lack thereof, is a form of disability. It is one disability that probably carries the most stigma. The National Institute of Mental Health (nimh.nih.gov) reports that 1 in 5 or 21 % Americans suffer from some sort of mental health issue. Mental Health issues impact females at 25.8% and males at 15.8%. Anxiety disorders are some of the most common impacting  41 million adults annually and 25.1% of children ages 13-18. These statistics along with ones for depression are staggering. Add to that the addiction issues in this country and mental health can no longer...

I read a post this week in a Facebook group that I think many of us can relate to. It was a parent of a child with disabilities who commented that she felt she had totally lost touch with who she was. She asked if other moms felt the same way .The likes and comments started flowing. This feeling is so common. Have you ever felt that your life becomes so focused and consume by your child,  that you begin to forget who you are? The question is how do we get unstuck and start to find ourselves again? 

Give yourself a high five!

Mel Robbins recently wrote a book called, “The...

 As a parent of a child with special needs there is no doubt that I shouldered much of the responsibility for just about everything in raising my son. I was constantly taking him to specialists trying to find answers. I become teacher, lawyer, advocate, therapist, etc. and the list goes on. As a result, my life was in constant turmoil as I faced the daily conflict of helping my son at the expense of my own life and dreams. It often left me torn inside and ridden with guilt. I had the dream of getting my doctorate and becoming a college professor but when disability entered my life, I...

I always looked forward to having children AND a career.  Then I had a baby.  I didn’t know how hard this would be.  We came home from the hospital and realized that we were not prepared for this, especially for the first baby.  We can all relate to the shock of having and caring for a baby. Add to that the challenge of special needs and it felt like we were being pushed over the edge.

Time is Not Your Enemy   

How could I be a mother, a wife and a career woman? I always felt like I was racing against the clock: time was my enemy...

Before my son was born, I add plans for a career.  After he was born, my husband pressured me to return to work.  We needed the money and I wanted to be working, but how could I manage the time? 

The Problem with  Balance

One of the areas I have struggled most with is trying to balance being a career woman, wife and mother.  I  grew up having a preconceived idea that if I did not balance my time,  I was not doing my job as a parent. I had been led to believe that balance meant you had to compartmentalize your life and give equal time to each aspect.

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About a year ago I was in a severe bike accident. I broke my hip on one leg and tore the knee up on the other. All of this required major surgeries to fix. Being a parent of a child with special needs, crises happen all the time, but this was different. This crisis was mine and it caused a very stressful domino effect, not just in my life, but everyone around me. The good thing about crises are they teach us things about ourselves. Below are three things I learned about time, scheduling, and multitasking that have helped me immensely.

Be Careful what you Multitask

I did not have time to do...