It’s that time of year when parents and kids anxiously await their first report card. School is often the toughest area of functioning for neurodivergent kids and teens because academic performance requires using all of the executive functioning skills with which they struggle. For neurodivergent learners classes can be interesting, compelling,…
It's been two months 62 days to be exact — since we found out that our baby girl died just shy of 38 weeks, two weeks before her April 18th due date. There was no grand finale of a baby birthday photo. Ella was stillborn. It seems remarkable that in…
Normally, when a woman decides to have a baby, it's something she does her best to plan. It's either a decision she makes with a partner or something she tackles on her own, but either way, there's a lot of thought, planning, and money invested in making everything ready for…
I desperately wanted to make it work. She was my sister, after all. But no matter how hard I tried to please her, it was never enough. It took me 45 years to finally break up with her. The caretaker I used to take care of everyone. It started young.…
I never pulled an embryonic sac out of my body before. It wasn’t on my to-do list or my bucket list. But that’s what happened. I had two miscarriages before. Neither were like this. The first time I lost my baby, I was lying on the OBGYN’s exam table. I was nearly…
The planning of a memorial service can be overwhelming. Especially immediately following the passing of a loved one. The person orchestrating everything — whether closest friend or family member — might be flooded with phone calls, direct messages, and cards in the mail. While the show of sympathy is something…
By Ashlyn Thomson There’s always been this bond between my dad and me, I don’t know if it was because I didn’t get to see him all the time or if it was because he loved me so much. But either way, he’s always been there for me, always there…
Do you know how there are kids who still have Halloween candy in July? That wasn't me; I didn't even have leftover candy in November. So, if, as a four- or five-year-old, I'd been brought into a plain room by an adult I trusted and given the choice to have one marshmallow now, or wait…
Giving birth to a child should always be an uplifting, happy experience. And most of the time it is. But sometimes, once the initial high wears off, worry and anxiety kick in. Is the baby healthy? Getting enough to eat? Are all of the fingers and toes intact? Women today are…
It happens all the time. He's unfaithful. She needs to decide whether to leave him or stay for the sake of the kids. Marriage is not easy. But, as someone who lived through this as a kid, let me tell you this: staying for the sake of the kids is…