Wild Peace for Parents: Stories of Hope & Inspiration

Today we shine a light on what it’s like to be a father on an unexpected parenting journey. Dads need support too, but their needs are different. My guest, the earnest and amazing Louis Mendoza, runs the Washington State Father’s Network, which connects fathers of kids with special healthcare needs with each other so they can talk about their experiences, share resources, and develop a sense of camaraderie. We also learn all about ...

Deborah Sweet is the biological, adoptive and foster mama of (at last count) six kids. In our conversation she shares insights into her journey - raising multiple kiddos who have complex needs ranging from Autism to Reactive Attachment Disorder and a whole alphabet of diagnoses and differences in between. We talk about how Deb ended up having so many children in her family - and why. Deb speaks openly about what it’s like to live i...

In this episode we dig into why IEP meetings are so emotionally charged and mom Karen Kiecker shares her special education journey. Karen delved into the role of advocate when she serendipitously lost her job at the same time as her daughter’s academic struggles hit an all-time high. We discuss how she crammed to understand her basic legal rights, forged alliances at school, prepared for meetings, and contained her emotions so she ...

Kimber knew in her gut that something about her daughter was 'off'. After a long process of discovery - which included a doctor proclaiming Kate would never walk, MRIs, EEGs, and a move to El Salvador - she learned Kate has Spastic Dysplasia, a condition that comes with a mix of physical and mental challenges but no clear answers. Undaunted, Kimber dealt with the issues at hand and created a world where her daughter and her whole f...

Mental health challenges don’t just affect the child who is struggling, they affect the whole family. For siblings, the experience can be confusing, upsetting, and even traumatic. Emily Rubin is the Director of Sibling Support at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver Center at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, which works with hospitals and other agencies to address the needs of siblings and parents of children with mental healt...

When Lisa Lambert’s son began showing signs of significant mental health needs at age 7, she was catapulted into a world of complexity she had never known. Today, Lisa is the Director of the Parent/Professional Advocacy League of Massachusetts. In this conversation, we discuss how her parenting journey transformed her from a young woman with social anxiety to a dedicated advocate for systemic improvement. As Lisa gives us a peek in...

In this episode, I speak with Dr. Reva Tankle, whose impressive career path was serendipitously shaped by her own parenting experience. We talk about how her son’s struggles led her to become a special education advocate and later a pediatric neuropsychologist. Her unique mix of skills makes her a valuable resource for parents who are trying to understand how their child’s mind works and how to navigate the IEP (special education) ...

In this episode, Gladys Richter openly shares what her son, who happens to be non-verbal living with autism, has taught her about the beauty of human connection, hard work, and faith. Gladys is a single mother of two boys who moved to the U.S. mainland from Puerto Rico. When her son Gaby was first diagnosed, she thought he had a disease. As she began to adjust to life turned upside down, she discovered he had deep and majestic less...

When Pamela discovered her son had learning and attentional issues and her daughter had developmental differences, she found a new way to use her PhD in physics. Her practical way of looking at the world helped her appreciate and encourage her kids’ strengths – and accept them for being themselves. In this thoughtful conversation, Pamela reflects on her naiveté at the beginning of her parenting journey and describes how her experie...

Today, some wisdom from a professional who has real, lived experience. Eileen Devine, LCSW, and host Kendra Wilde discuss how compassion fatigue and caregiver burnout can happen to parents and what we can do to safeguard our physical and emotional wellbeing. Parents of children with special healthcare needs (of any kind, but especially those with severe emotional and behavioral challenges) experience higher levels of stress, illnes...

In this first episode of Wild Peace, Deborah Lagasse shares insights into her extraordinary journey raising a son who has managed to shatter all conventional expectations about his autism. Her story will upend any limiting beliefs you might have about autism - or any other "dis"ability for that matter. Deb's son Tyler Lagasse began reading and writing at the age of two, but he was slower to talk and learn social skills. By the age...