We’ve put together some top tips for parents of physically disabled kids. This is an exact from our forthcoming guide for parents, and we excited to share this with you. This advice comes from lived experience from disabled people, parents and professionals. We hope that it helps.
- It is okay to grieve
You probably had some many hopes for your child that now are not possible, and it is important to recongnise this and mourn that loss.
- A child’s condition is not a parent’s fault.
?Thinking things like, ?I did something wrong or what if I did this differently??, is not helpful to either you or your child. There are a million different things that can cause/affect impairment, and impairment can and does happen despite your best intentions.
- There is no right way.
Your child will do things differently. They will not do things the ?right? way but they will do their way. It is important to encourage, support and play.
- Impairment identity is important.
Having an impairment related identity can be crucial to reducing loneliness and isolation, understanding their condition and overcoming barriers. By smartly using online support and looking around locally, your child can own their own condition.
- Break things down to smaller steps.
Having a disability is one big problem solving exercise. However, some problems can seem so BIG that there is no obvious solution. For these big problems, you need to work together with your child and break things down and to their fundamentals. Things like travelling can seem impossible but if you plan it properly, it can be easier than you think.
- The difference can be support, products and services.
Proper solutions to problems are often a mix of different things such as knowledge (knowing your rights), products (little things that can help) and proper planning.
For more information – see?https://www.canchild.ca/
