I have to say this is probably one of the hardest posts to write.  I love my children.  They are amazing, beautiful, wonderful kids but they both suffer from mental illnesses.  As a mom it means I need a team around me.  This team is not only the professionals – pediatrician, neurologist, therapist, psychologist,  bio feedback specialist and social group teacher but also friends, family and this blog where I can share my stories.  It means IEPs and other teams at school like OT, Speach, Autism, and many many others.

My husband and I have spent years building this team.  Sometimes we add more and other times we reduce but we have learned that without a team we would not survive.  There are days that are so hard and so long that all I want to do is climb into bed and sleep for a week.  But then there are days were I see the progress, sometimes its a genuine hug from my daughter that took years of work where she finally attached, or my son playing the piano in front of a group of people he does not know or not pulling his hair that day.

For me it also means a ton of researching and a lot of fighting.  I am a “mama bear” for my kids and I will fight to the end to make sure they have what they need.  But I also recognize that they need to stand on their own two feet and one day be in this world and survive.

Our lives are not like others.  It is sad and it is happy.  Most folks that know me don’t understand that life for us is very different than life others have but I would not trade them for the world.  I love you Arika and Robbie flaws and all and I will support you always.

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