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I recently met with some wonderful, dedicated people who provide information and support to families with children born with a cleft lip and/or palate. They work tirelessly to provide the most current information, resources and services available. The Foundation's mission, "To enhance the quality of life for
individuals affected by cleft lip and palate and other craniofacial
birth defects" is carried out by providing resources which focus on
topics such as "Feeding Your Baby," and listings by state of Cleft
Palate and Craniofacial diagnostic and evaluation interdisciplinary
teams. The website, www.cleftline.org, has information for both families and health care professionals and the helpline--1.800.24.CLEFT--provides callers with local support group resources. Check out the website and find answers to questions from the folks who care and are the recommended source for cleft lip and or palate information.
It's hard to believe it's been so long since Ive posted. Well, it's because I have gotten a new job, moved from Illinois to North Carolina, sent our youngest to college and finished publishing a book written with my parent coaching cohorts! PHEW!!!
The Book "Parenting By Strengths, A Parent's Guide for Challenging Situations" is available in paperback and as a download. Just click on the link and to purchase or contact me for your copy. Let me know what you think!!!!!
Well, you
have come to the right place! This is a community forum for moms who have young children with special needs and want a community to find resources, tips
and camaraderie.
Interested in talking over the phone with moms who are dedicated to finding solutions and taking action? Join us twice a month for a discussion on topics of interest determined by you! We meet on the telephone using conference calling technology-meaning everyone calls in on a long distance number, punches in an access code on the phone key pad and everyone is connected to each other in a "virtual" room! It is amazing. I am the facilitator and available to keep the discussion moving and positive.
If you want more information about the virtual community group meetings, just email me!
Join
us on the phone--call in to our
Preemies Today
Parents Teleconference
"Food
Chaining: The Proven 6 Step Solution to Stop Picky Eating,
Solve Feeding
Problems and Expand Your Child's Diet."
Do
you know children with a history of any of the following?
* history of prematurity
* dysphagia
*
feeding aversion
* oral motor problems
* poor weight gain
* failure to thrive
* food allergy
* eosinophilic esophagitis
* digestive tract disorders or
* sensory/behavioral/motor-based feeding
disorders
Join
Cathy Rodrigues and guest Cheri Fraker, CCC/SLP pediatric speech pathologist
and oral feeding specialist to discuss her successful technique to help picky
eaters!
After a brief
presentation, you will have a chance to ask Cheri questions.
Saturday,
February 21, 2009
1:00
ET/12:00 CT/10:00 PT
RSVP:
Email Cathy@CathyRodrigues.com for call-in information
Sponsored by
Preemies Today--
**No charge for the teleconference-long distance charges apply**
Cheri
Fraker, CCC/SLP, a pediatric speech pathologist and oral feeding specialist.
She is employed at Koke Mill Medical Center in Springfield, Illinois, where she
sees infants and children at The Center for Selective Eating and Pediatric
Feeding Disorders. Fraker is the author of Evaluation and Treatment of
Pediatric Feeding Disorders from NICU to Childhood (Speech Dynamics Inc) and
Food Chaining: The Proven 6-Step Plan to Stop Picky Eating, Solve Feeding
Problems and Expand Your Child’s Diet (Da Capo Press). Fraker has published and
presented on feeding disorders internationally.
Join
us on the phone--call in to our
Preemies Today
Parents Teleconference
"Food
Chaining: The Proven 6 Step Solution to Stop Picky Eating,
Solve Feeding
Problems and Expand Your Child's Diet."
Do
you know children with a history of any of the following?
* history of prematurity
* dysphagia
*
feeding aversion
* oral motor problems
* poor weight gain
* failure to thrive
* food allergy
* eosinophilic esophagitis
* digestive tract disorders or
* sensory/behavioral/motor-based feeding
disorders
Join
Cathy Rodrigues and guest Cheri Fraker, CCC/SLP pediatric speech pathologist
and oral feeding specialist to discuss her successful technique to help picky
eaters!
After a brief
presentation, you will have a chance to ask Cheri questions.
Saturday,
February 21, 2009
1:00
ET/12:00 CT/10:00 PT
RSVP:
Email Cathy@CathyRodrigues.com for call-in information
Sponsored by
Preemies Today--
**No charge for the teleconference-long distance charges apply**
Cheri
Fraker, CCC/SLP, a pediatric speech pathologist and oral feeding specialist.
She is employed at Koke Mill Medical Center in Springfield, Illinois, where she
sees infants and children at The Center for Selective Eating and Pediatric
Feeding Disorders. Fraker is the author of Evaluation and Treatment of
Pediatric Feeding Disorders from NICU to Childhood (Speech Dynamics Inc) and
Food Chaining: The Proven 6-Step Plan to Stop Picky Eating, Solve Feeding
Problems and Expand Your Child’s Diet (Da Capo Press). Fraker has published and
presented on feeding disorders internationally.
by Cathy Rodrigues
"If what you are doing is not your goal, it might as well be your goal."
I heard this statement and it struck me...What I am working on today--is it going to get me where I want to be in the future? The impact of this simple statement caused me to stop and think.
This powerful notion made me think about the idea of "intention." What
does this mean? What is my purpose? How do I want to live my life? To
that end I began a process of creating a personal mission statement.
Answering the following questions allowed me to begin the process of crafting my personal statement. The questions are adapted from the book, Find Your Purpose, Change Your Life: Getting to
the Heart of Your Life’s Mission by Carol Adrienne:
I love to...
I am...
I would like to have more...
When I was a child, I wanted to be...
The qualities I like best about myself are...
What interested me today, this week was...
I keep being drawn to...
My working mission statement is...
Through
this process I got feedback from my friends, family and co-workers
which helped me validate my sense of who I am in addition to how I
present myself to others. The whole process took some time but it was
helpful, especially during the challenging times.
I found that I was able to create two statements:
"To be of service to others, bringing a sense of peace, joy and beauty into my life and those around me."
"Through
my hands, I want to promote a sense of spiritual connection by creating
gifts of beauty and joy for myself and those around me."
Let me know what you think and if yo want help to craft your own personal mission statement. Send me an email!
Cathy
Parenting and Discipline: The Impact of Prematurity on Sensory Development
The teleconference featuring JoAnn Kennedy OTR has been changed to Friday, January 30th at
2:00 ET/1:00 CT/ 12:00 PT.
If you tried to call in yesterday and got the wrong number, I must apologize for transposing the numbers in the prefix. I understand folks who called in got a very angry person on the line. Please do not let this deter you from participating. If you are interested, please send me an email and I can send you the correct conference number.
Stay warm,
Cathy
Last Monday, I co-led a tele-conference with Preemies Today founder Mary Beth Hazelgrove called Creating Family Traditions or How to Stay Healthy and have Fun Together. With permission of the callers, the one hour meeting was recorded and theDownload Preemies today 121508
is available for listening at your convenience. As a follow-up, I compiled a brief handout which can be shared with family and friends explaining the issues with illness and how it can affect a premature baby.
Our next tele-conferences are scheduled for Friday, January 16th and 23rd, 2009 at 1:00 ET/12:00 CT/ 10:00 PT and we will be discussing discipline and the impact of prematurity on sensory development. Plan on joining us live and participating in the conversation. If you would like to register, send me an email!!!!
AP: December 1, 2008: CHICAGO - More
than half a million U.S. children have autism with costly health care needs
that often put an unprecedented financial strain on their families, national
data show.
Compared with parents whose youngsters have
chronic health care needs but not autism, those with autistic children are
three times more likely to have to quit their jobs or reduce work hours to care
for their kids.
They pay more for their kids' health needs, spend more time
providing or arranging for that care, and are more likely to have money
difficulties, the study found.
"This is the first national survey that
looked at the impact on families of having kids with special health care
needs," said lead author Michael Kogan, a researcher with the government's
Maternal and Child Health Bureau.
The
results are from a nationally representative 2005-06 survey of nearly 40,000
children with special health care needs. These children have a broad range of
chronic conditions, including physical and mental illness, requiring more
extensive than usual medical care.
A total of 2,088 children with special health
needs had autism, which translates to about 535,000 kids aged 3 to 17
nationwide, the study authors said.
The study appears in December's Pediatrics,
being released Monday.
Autism typically involves poor verbal
communication, repetitive behaviors such as head-banging, and avoidance of
physical or eye contact. Affected children often need many more types of
treatment than kids with other chronic conditions, including speech and
behavior therapy and sometimes medication. Kogan said that may explain the
disproportionate strain on their families.
Jacquie Mace, whose 12-year-old son, Austin,
has autism, said the study presents a "very realistic" picture of the
challenges affected families face.
Mace said she spends "easily $15,000 to
$20,000 out of pocket" yearly on supplies for behavior treatment she
provides for her son.
She's still working to pay off a $7,000 bill
for dental work Austin had last year. He has to be sedated and hospitalized for
dental care because he can't sit still in a chair, Mace explained. Austin's
health insurance doesn't cover any of it, she said.
Some states require insurers to cover certain
autism treatment while similar proposed measures are pending in others,
including Illinois.
Mace
hasn't had to quit her job helping local families find autism resources, but
knows of many parents who've had to leave work to care for their autistic kids.
She is divorced — another common casualty,
she said, of the challenges of caring for autistic kids.
Today is Thanksgiving in the United States. It is a time to give thanks and share time with family and friends or the community. Here are some ways to help enrich your day that are easy and don't take a lot of effort or time.
Enjoy your day today and the days ahead. The great thing about these ways to make your Thanksgiving better is that they are things that you can do any day! Make your day the best it can be!!!!
Cathy