by Almondie Shampine

Created on: May 25, 2008   Last Updated: June 13, 2008

With awareness comes knowledge, with knowledge comes power, with power comes change.

TAKE CONTROL
1. You are the parent. You know your child best. Always keeping this at the forefront of your mind will allow you the patience to endure all those who believe they know better.
2. Do not let your child determine your role. Be consistent, persistent, maintain patience, tough and unconditional love.

3. Gather a support system and safety net for both you and the child. Ask for help when it is needed. Allowing weakness will strengthen you, whereas ignoring it will weaken your frame.
4. Keep a daily journal of your child. Establish proof. This will prove useful against resistance.
5. Children are sensitive and intuitive, especially those with special-needs. Surround yourself with a positive aura. Find peace and your child will find it too. Keep them away from those who are negative or intolerant.
6. Keep your child always informed even if you believe he may not understand. Make him know that he is different, but that's okay, you accept it, you love him no matter what. Encourage expression of self verbally. This will help him to accept himself and find tolerance for all those who don't understand.
7. Make a list of those triggers that may result in a bad reaction and provide this list to your child as well as all those involved with your child.
8. A regular school may not suit your child's needs. Find those programs that might. Stay active and involved, and keep that ability to monitor your child as much as you do when the child is with you. You may have to try many options and alternatives to finding programs that best suit your child.
9. Unfortunately, a medical diagnosis is the key to obtaining all those existing options for special-needs children and more people are apt to take it seriously. Get several evaluations. If the diagnosis can be considered a disability, then you can take more steps to obtaining exactly what your child needs, whether it be financial assistance that will allow you to focus more on your child than financial issues or get your child the help he needs, referrals to different resources such as sitters or programs or even tutors specifically trained in your child's disability, and so much more.
10. If it is a rare disability, it is an uphill battle. Don't give up for your child and for all those other parents who may conceive a child like yours. Make yourself heard. Bring awareness to the disability or special-needs. ADHD now inflicting 40 percent of our children was once non-existent too. Look what awareness and knowledge breeds for our future generations.

I commend you, admire you, and thank you. A tough-road is a privilege and a blessing in the making. It makes you, the parent, just as special and different, because as a parent with a special-needs child, you do not fit into the norm either. You excel.

Learn more about this author, Almondie Shampine.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.