There’s no denying the importance and value of education when it comes to raising a child with developmental disabilities. Parents should know what resources are available to them so that they can best support their child. They should be familiar with laws and policies surrounding access to care.
But for many parents — especially those who’ve never raised a disabled child before — getting this knowledge and education can be difficult. They’re left in the dark about services and programs that might greatly benefit them and their child.
We shed light on some of these resources when we talked to Arc board member Cat West as part of our Meet the Boards series. Our podcast is above for you to listen in.
You might recognize Cat as the host of Building Bridges in the Community, The Arc’s show on BCTV. In our podcast, Cat tells the story of her son Joey, who was born with Down syndrome. She reflects on the moment when she learned Joey had Down syndrome, and the emotional roller coaster she and her family went through. She explains the next steps she took to begin caring for Joey and managing his condition.
Then two year later, things became worse. Joey was diagnosed with autism. That’s when Cat became involved with The Arc. The organization provided Joey with autism therapy, which proved to be very successful. She says The Arc helped her learn so much about managing both autism and Down syndrome, and pointed her to the resources she needed to get educated.
Cat describes some of them in our interview, such as Right to Education Task Force, Montgomery County Intermediate Unit, and Variety the Children’s Charity. All of these organizations have local groups around the area. Cat also formed the Upper Merion Special Education Parent Resource INterest Group with four other parents as another knowledge and networking base for parents of disabled children.
Take a listen and learn more about resources you might not realize are available to you. Education can take away much of the anxiety in raising a developmentally disabled child, and it’s important to continue learning about new aids out there. Oh, and don’t mind the sounds of her children and dogs in the background! ;)
