Bringing Up Betty | True Tales of Special Needs Parenting Sarah Evans

We're kicking off summer with a special mini episode! Kathy Hooven's 14 year old son Ryan has autism. Last summer he attended a choral camp and at the final concert Kathy had some surprising realizations. Tune in to hear her story.

Donna Kirk's son Matthew was born in 1970. Due to oxygen deprivation during delivery he was born with severe brain damage and doctors advised Donna and her husband Ed to do the unthinkable - put him in an institution, have another baby as soon as possible, and get on with their lives. They called him a vegetable with a heartbeat.
In this episode, you'll hear what happened with the Kirks rejected the advice of their doctors and took Matthew home to care for and love him as their son. Spoiler alert: he surprised everyone and had a fabulous life! Matthew was a child with brain damage, a young man with mental illness and a son and brother with extraordinary spirit. I loved gaining additional perspective from a mom who has been parenting her disabled son for so many years. I hope you will too - enjoy!
Donna has written a beautiful memoir of Matthew's life and her experience as a his mother. I was surprised to read about so many experiences that felt familiar and relatable. Despite the difference in diagnosis, generation and medical advice given at the time, I saw so many parallels to to my own experiences as a mother.
SHOW NOTES
Visit Donna's Website
Donna's Book Finding Matthew on Amazon
More information about Pica
Music for today’s episode from Kevin MacLeod
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Today we're doing something a little different. Betty's been
sick and I didn't want to wait yet another week to put a new
episode out, so instead I'm sharing a few uncut chunks of my chat
with Mary Evelyn Smith that didn't make it into her story in
episode #17. I had such a great time chatting with Mary Evelyn and
found her so relatable. I think you'll really enjoy this unedited
discussion on a few different topics.

To sum it up, we chat about:

The new (intense) forms of mom guilt that show up when your
child's early childhood involves a lot of therapy (or maybe Mary
Evelyn and I are just both really good at beating ourselves
up?)

How to ruin any fun/relaxing/enjoyable activity

The terrible selection of children's books about disability and
differences

How to approach and teach your child about disabilities

The connections that our kids (and their siblings) are not making
about the world

The responsibility we have as parents in shaping how our kids will
be viewed and treated

If you haven't had a chance, visit Mary Evelyn's blog, where she
chronicles her family's beautiful (but real) life.

--

Today's episode is sponsored by ezpz. The silicone ezpz Happy
Mat has been a game changer for our family! It means Betty can eat
at the table with us - without flinging a plate or tipping a bowl.
Use
the promo code BETTY at checkout to save 20% on your ezpz order
today!

Robert Thornton is the founder and CEO of Paper Clouds Apparel, a business he launched to change lives and serve the special needs and disabled communities.

 

http://www.bringingupbetty.com/18

Mary Evelyn Smith tells the story of becoming a mother to her son Simeon, who has spina bifida, and daughter Franny, who does not have a disability. She explains why constant attention can be exhausting, and how parenting a child with special needs can make you feel like you've got a big secret.

In "Expectations and IEPs," Sarah tells the story of Betty's transition out of Early Intervention and into the public education system. How they made the first round of tough decisions about Betty's future, plus bidding farewell to the first round of Betty's wonderful helpers.

 

Episode 16 Show Notes