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What Love Is When You Parent Kids With Disabilities

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Love waits in countless waiting rooms of countless doctors for appointments and therapies.

Love smiles at the nurses because you need them on your side.

Love does not dishonor the knowledge of specialists, it does not point out to the Doctor that you know all the “doctor-ease” they whisper to interns.

Love spends sleepless nights researching.

Love is a medical advocate.

Love remains calm when a nurse is digging around looking for a good IV vein.

Love holding a screaming child during procedures.

Love is bold enough to say “stop.”

Love can recite endless lists of surgeries, medications and dosages.

Love knows how to smile so that the child isn’t scared.

Love cries and screams into a pillow in a hospital bathroom.

Love knows the wrongdoings but uses them to be an empowered advocate.

Love does not delight in a broken school system but rejoices in an IEP that is followed by all on the team. Love makes every efforts to set the child up for success. It knows the law and special education codes.

Love protects, always trusts its instincts, holds to hope of a good day’s report, holds educators responsible.

Love pushes past those who can’t see potential.

Love sees potential.

Love never fails because it always tries.

When faced with doctors, teachers, therapist and experts that look into a still not lived future, Love hears them say “never” but “never,” will be silenced.

Love knows that “different” is not a negative term.

Love knows that different is beautiful.

Where there are whispers, pointing and staring in public, they will be ignored — where there is knowledge and a future to be found, Love will travel and save to make it happen​.

Love is happy to sacrifice.

Love is a force.

Love is a parent.

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Originally published: July 5, 2017
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