You Are Not Alone

Modern day parenting can be so isolating. 

It's an unfortunate reality many of us are struggling with. 

If you have a child or children with neurodiversity, medically complexities, or disabilities, it can feel downright lonely. 

But you are NEVER alone in this journey.

 

The Odyssey: Parenting. Caregiving. Disability. 

The Center for Family Involvement at VCU School of Education's Partnership for People with Disabilities provides informational and emotional support to people with disabilities and their families. All of our services are free. We just want to help. We know how hard this can be because we're in it with you. 

 

SHOW NOTES: 

Need to talk to someone? The Center for Family Involvement has family navigators ready to listen! They provide 1:1 emotional and informational support as well as community service and systems navigational support. These are volunteers with lived experience who are trained to meet families where they are. 

Call or email our help line and someone will be in touch within 48 hours. If you live outside of Virginia, we can connect you with a sister network in your area.

Helpline: 877.567.1122

Email: [e-mail]

 

David Egan is an advocate, speaker, author, and extraordinary person who you can learn more about here.

 

John Franklin "Frank" Stephens is a disability advocate, actor, and athlete who penned this brilliant rebuttlle to Ann Coulter following her referring to President Barack Obama as "the retard" in 2012.

 

TRANSCRIPT:

01:00:07:17 - 01:00:37:00

Speaker 1

Welcome to The Odyssey. Parenting, Caregiving, Disability. I'm Erin Croyle, the creator and host. The Odyssey podcast explores how our lives change when a loved one has a disability. I was lucky enough to head down this less traveled road when my first child was born with Down  Syndrome in 2010. Now I work with the Center for Family Involvement at VCU's Partnership for People with Disabilities.

 

01:00:37:02 - 01:01:05:13

Speaker 1

This podcast explores the triumphs and the hardships we face. We celebrate the joys that the odyssey of parenting, caregiving and disability bring. But we've tackled the tough stuff, too. There's been a whole lot of hard in my life lately, so I'm changing it up. Rather than an interview, it's just going to be me. So without further ado, here I go.

 

01:01:05:15 - 01:01:32:23

Speaker 1

Parenting can be so isolating if you add disability, neurodiversity, medical complexities into the mix, it's often even more so. And it starts from the very beginning. When I was pregnant with my son. I remember so distinctly how excited my husband and I were when the doctor did the ultrasound and said, Everything's good. You have a perfectly healthy baby.

 

01:01:33:00 - 01:01:58:05

Speaker 1

And now I find the term perfectly healthy t