Military Special Needs Network
Proudly Supporting all Military Families with a Special Needs Dependent
Grateful
Monday- ABA
Wednesday- Speech and ABA
Thursday- OT
Friday- OT and ABA
Saturday- ABA
That is our therapy schedule every week. That doesn’t include doctor visits,
school, or extracurricular activities. While I could lament about how being a
special needs parent has sucked up every ounce of free time that I had, instead
I feel overwhelmed with gratitude. Every week my kids get to spend time with four therapists that not only care for my son, but they care for the whole family.
My daughter is often taken to therapy with us and she looks forward to it more
than her brother. Although she has to wait in the waiting room, each therapist
takes the time to make her feel special and important. They are just as much
her friends as the kids in her preschool class.
Because of my daughter’s medical problems, I have gotten to
personally know the staff of our pediatrician’s office. I am not talking in the
sense that I am able to remember their names the once a year we see them. No, I am talking about knowing upcoming major events in their life, that they just
went to Idaho for a week, and their children’s names. They have helped me
navigate challenging waters, not just because it was their job, but because
they are all amazingly caring people.
As our family gears up for an awareness walk for my daughter’s condition, it
warms my heart to see how many of our team is rallying with us. Therapists,
office staff and medical professionals have signed up. There was never an
invitation, rather a statement of them being there for our family.
Being a special needs family has taken some of my sanity, my
free time, and my fly by the seat of my pants mentality, but it has given me so
much more. It has introduced me to people I would never have met before and for
that I am extremely grateful.
Who are you grateful for?
Miranda is a Navy wife and mother to three kids: Hailey, Josie and Teague. All three have a swallowing disorder, Teague has ASD and Josie has Chiari. Miranda is the VP of Community Outreach for the Military Special Needs Network. You can contact her at MirandaFort@MilitarySpecialNeedsNetwork.com
Military Special Needs Network 