Thursday, May 14, 2009

Um, repeat the question, pls?

We had a transition meeting for Gareth this morning. I was reminded once again how much I have to learn about this whole disabled child spiel.
I guess I don't really trust myself when it comes to my kids and what's good for them. When the early childhood development specialist asked me for information regarding Gareth's needs, I was tongue-tied. My first thought was, "I don't know! That's why I'm here!"
I know a lot about Gareth's personality, his likes and dislikes etc. And I know that he has limitations (duh). But I don't know what to do to foster growth in those areas. I admit that I rely heavily on the information I get from his therapists and vision teacher. They're so much more familiar with things to look out for, tendencies, red flags, etc. than I am. For example, before we had Gareth diagnosed, he was already rocking at six months. Without his vision teacher, I wouldn't have known that was a problem (or at least not as soon as I did. I just thought it was one of his little idiosyncrasies).
Anyway, I guess what I'm saying is that I still feel like I'm floundering sometimes. I still wonder if I'll ever get good enough at this parenting a disabled child thing to be ahead of the game and have suggestions for his development. I appreciate that Gareth's doctors and coordinators trust me so much. But I'd be lost without them. Seriously, folks, I consider you guys to be the experts. Would you hold my hand, please (believe it or not, I'm a relatively independent human otherwise ;)?