Special needs Round-up: Sibs, Brits & LD firsts

The Brits (as I affectionately call them)

Whether you are able to attend BritMums Live in London or not this weekend, there’s no escaping the fact that it forms one of the highlights of the blogging calendar for most writers. It’s a chance to brush up on your technical skills, meet ‘in the flesh’ all those wonderful people who support you online, celebrate some blogging awesomeness with the BiB Awards, giggle, let your hair down and remember the ‘you’ that exists apart from being a parent. The beauty is that if you don’t actually attend, you can still follow the workshops and events online, picking up tips and tricks along the way. I for one am looking forward to meeting lots of SEN bloggers that I’ve followed throughout the year. I always come home inspired and proud to be part of such an amazing network.

LD firsts

This week also sees the events of Learning Disability Week unfold. #LDWeek14, organised by Mencap, is a time to celebrate and campaign for those under the LD umbrella. Each year they chose a topic that encourages us all to think as we join in. This year that topic is ‘firsts’ that our children and young people have achieved, often despite the odds, and how we feel when they do. First steps, first night away from home, first birthday party invite? How did you feel?

Jane Raca describes her feelings when son James started school for the first time. “I realised that I had spent James’s babyhood keeping him ultra-safe; wrapping him tight as could be in a blanket of physical and emotional care. Sometimes his very life had been in the balance. As his mum I couldn’t put that behind me. But now, with the right support from school, he was ready like any child, to take the first steps towards growing up.”

Miguel Tudela de la Fuente has been working on a project for the last five years which is designed to guide adults with learning disabilities through the minefield that is sexual health and relationships. “A first date, touch or caress, it’s all central to the human experience and we all have a right to access the information education and services that can help us make informed choices,” says Miguel, “but it might be more difficult for those with a learning disability.” Read more about how to access support for first relationships in Your First Love.

Siblings

Support for siblings is often at the forefront of our minds as special needs parents. I recall worrying about the impact on our eldest daughter, the very day that her younger sister was born. Sometimes it’s difficult to divide your time and attention no matter how much you want to and that can be heart-breaking. This month I’d like to bring you some wonderful information and posts for and by brothers and sisters.

Sibs is a UK charity for brothers and sister of disabled children and adults and has a fabulous section especially for younger children. It includes practical ideas such as this post about how to ask your parent for more attention which I have to admit tugged at the heartstrings. Other topics include games to play with your sibling, and how to cope with a sibling’s challenging behaviour. It’s well worth a visit.

Professor Richard Hastings, Trustee for Mencap, and expert external advisor for Ambitious about Autism, and the research advisor for Sibs, writes  Will the siblings be OK? after years of research in this field. The conclusion, interestingly is that it depends who you ask, the mother, father or the sibling themselves…

This beautiful post by Deepa of  Two Minute parenting was written by her young son about his sister who has Down’s syndrome for a class competition. Although fictional, it reflects his thoughts on the place disability holds within society. Read My sister’s magical dream here.

Over at Downs Side Up we have been a little busy thinking about siblings too. Our eldest Mia has just published a ground-breaking introduction to Down’s syndrome through a sibling’s eyes at the age of ten. I am proud of her, her sister, and proud of the response from parents and professionals to this little book. Read about I Love You Natty: A sibling’s uplifting introduction to Down’s syndrome here.

Joe Reddington talks about siblings from another angle, and describes the difficulties in blogging about an adult sibling for anonymity reasons. Perhaps that’s why there are so few sibling blogs. Check out what he has to say here in We should talk about the lack of sibling blogs.

Writing Opportunity

Do you want to be a published writer? If any of you wonderful bloggers out there have a child with Down’s syndrome and would like to get involved in a collaborative book writing idea, then check out Reasons to Smile: 100 Life Journeys and get scribbling.

Enjoy the rest of June and don’t forget your suncream!