“I’d be really irritated at the insurance company,” I told the administrator at our speech therapist’s office today, “if only I had the energy. But I’m fighting the school right now and just don’t have much energy.” She nodded as if she understood, and as if I wasn’t the first parent she’d seen in that plight.

I called our lovely insurance company this morning, because I knew they had not responded to the claim I filed back in January on the Fast ForWord and speech therapy associated with this intervention. Our “personalized” password-protected nightmare on their website listed the claim as “pending”, yet several others after it have cleared.

The whole insurance system... more

I was browsing my normal internet adoption sites and came across one that even surprised me. An unhappy teenager (none of us have ever heard of this!) who thinks his life would be happier with a different family (I’m sure this thought has crossed the mind of every child ever born.) If only he could be the only child in a family with a mother and a father his life would be happy. I know several families with just one child, and the children are either always at my house or my children are at their houses. Ah yes, the grass is always... more

Here’s an interesting, but not surprising, article from the Health Behavior News Service:

New research suggests that Americans are more likely to socially reject children with mental illness than they are those with physical illnesses such as asthma.

Well...duh! Mental illnesses are scarier, misunderstood, less likely to be believed as a “real” illness. Even in circles where discriminatory comments about race, religion, ethnic background or even weight or age are... more

A horrendous news story out of Albany, NY yesterday: A 13-year-old severely autistic boy died while being transported from his state-run developmental center. The same boy was the subject of an abuse investigation at another state-run school facility in 2004. Jonathan Carey died after being improperly restrained by two workers in a van Thursday night.

Here’s the tragic part:

The two men drove around for 1 1/2 hours after the boy stopped breathing said Colonie Police Chief Steven Heider in an afternoon press conference. They went to a Hess... more

Well, I must admit I’m a little jealous of the romantic Valentine stories and the fun Valentine projects. Ours was set for failure beginning with Valentine’s Eve. In South West Michigan it was snowing on the evening before Valentine’s Day.

I returned home from getting my taxes done around 4 pm. I wouldn’t say it was snowing heavily, but it was steady and had been all day, the roads were beginning to get covered. When I left at 6 pm to take one of the teenagers to hockey practice, the thought “I wonder if we’ll make it back home” flickered in my mind. Not to mention, “Why didn’t this coach cancel practice?” We made it back home, barely. We nearly got stuck in the road in front... more

Some local parents added a few:

o If you know your advocate's phone and fax number by heart...your child might have an IEP. o If you have ever been forced into due process, state court, the district court of appeals, federal court, or the federal circuit court on a fast track to the US Supreme Court... your child might have an IEP. o If you are known as a due process queen... your child might have an IEP. o If you can quote federal statutes in your sleep...your child might have an IEP. o If you have ever requested your child's records and it took two years to receive them...your child might have an IEP. o If you have... more

Those of us in the South love Jeff Foxworthy. So, when I found this list on the Mothers From Hell2 website, I had to share (especially since the author is unknown!) MFH2 is an organization worth checking out if you are parenting a special needs child. The humor on this site made me laugh. These moms, however, are dead serious!

Author Unknown • If you have ever attended a meeting at school with 25 professionals... your child might have an IEP. • If you are the only one wearing jeans.... your child might have an IEP. • If these professionals speak a different language.... your child might have an IEP. • If... more

The MSNBC headline “Designer Babies With Made-to-Order Defects” caught my eye. It is an interesting look into the bioethical question of whether couples with disabilities like deafness or dwarfism should be able, through embryo screening, to choose that their baby would be like them in disability.

Although the article points out that there is no evidence that any of the clinics performing what used to be called preimplantation genetic diagnosis(PGD) has actually done this type of screening, the ability is there. And for some the desire.

It’s an interesting argument. Those of us who are not disabled are shocked to even read... more

Coming out of Austin today is a very disturbing article. Seems the parents of two girls (kindergarteners no less) have filed suit against the Eanes Independent School District and an elementary school principal for failing to protect their daughters from sexual assault by a classmate.

Now that everyone is collectively gasping at the thought that a kindergartener could ever remotely be responsible for sexually assaulting a classmate, let’s throw in an additional twist. The mother of the alleged abuser had already told the school district about the potential dangerous behaviors of her daughter,... more

…and the vast majority of us therapeutically parenting know this!

This week on one of the attachment disorder lists I frequent, a mom posted some serious concerns she had about a parenting class being offered by her church. Among other things, she was very concerned that the teachings of this class advocated swatting babies as young as 6 months for things like crawling off of a blanket or touching items. The methodology also promoted “crying it out” as the appropriate way to handle bedtime for all ages.

The list lit up... more