You know you have a child with special needs...

January 13, 2008

This is so very true!

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You know you have a child with special needs when..........

You compare ER's instead of grocery stores. You compare your child's oxygen

saturations. You view toys as " therapy.' You don't take a new day for granted.

You teach your child HOW to pull things out of the cupboard, off the bookcases,

and that feeding the dog from the table is fun. The clothes your infant wore

last fall still fit her this fall. Everything is an educational opportunity

instead of just having plain old fun. You cheer instead of scold when they blow

bubbles in their juice while sitting at the dinner table (that's speech

therapy), smear ketchup all over their high chair (that's OT), or throw their

toys (that's PT). You also don't mind if your child goes thru the house tooting

a tin whistle. You fired at least 3 pediatricians and can teach your family

doctor a thing or two. You can name at least 3 genes on chromosome 21. (You

really know your toast if you can spell the full names correctly) You have been

told you are " in denial " by at least 3 medical or therapy professionals. This

makes you laugh! You have that incredible sinking feeling that you've forgotten

SOMETHING on those few days that you don't have some sort of appointment

somewhere! You get irritated when friends with healthy kids complain about ONE

sleepless night when they're child is ill! Your vocabulary consists of all the

letters OT, PT, SP, ASD, VSD, IFSP, etc. You keep your appointment at the

specialist even though a tropical storm is raging because you just want to get

this one over with.....you waited 8 months to get it.....and besides, no one

else will be there! Fighting and wrestling with siblings is PT. Speech therapy

occurs in the tub with a sibling. When potty training is complete, you take out

a full-page public notice in the Washington Post. When the

Doctors/Specialist/Hospitals etc. all know you by your name without referring to

your chart. You keep a daily growth chart. You calculate monthly statistics for

the number of times your child vomits, and did this f! or more then one year.

You phone all your friends when your child sits up for the first time, at age

two. With a big smile on your face you tell a stranger that your four year old

just started walking last week. Her medical file is two inches and growing. You

have a new belief.....that angels live with us on earth.

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