Cerebral Palsy and Improving Your Community: 4 Tips

While MyChild is confident about the impact it can make in your child and family’s life, we also know that a brighter future can occur when the world at large better understands Cerebral Palsy. As a result, we have made it a point to promote advocacy, encouraging parents to not only let their voice be heard, but also help inform the public about this challenging condition. Making an impact in your community can not only mean a brighter, less ignorant world for your child, it can also brighten the future of other children with special needs.

But where to start? It’s fine to be energized about change for the sake of it, but there must be tangible ways to do so. As such, we have put together four tips or directions to consider when working to improve your community:

  1. Take a Stand on Etiquette and Language. Words do matter. While there is some conjecture on the use of words like ‘disability’ for the special needs community, specifically due to the ‘limited’ nature of the word, there are other words that there is very little debate over. Understanding the language of the special needs community not only can help you avoid lapses that perhaps enable ignorant usage, but can also be a helpful guide for friends and family as they learn more about your child’s condition.For a comprehensive overview of language choices in the special needs community, click here.
  2. Park It! Are you aware there are resources and guides dedicated to making a park or other common area in your community more accessible? Well, there are! Contact us today for information on how to encourage a public park in your area to accommodate the needs of all children!
  3. Join a Support Group. There’s an old adage that it takes a village to raise a child, but we also believe special needs parents are best enabled when they have access to others facing similar challenges. If you have held off on finding out about Cerebral Palsy support groups in your area, there’s no time like the present to get involved. What’s more, it is important to understand that support groups are a two-way street and the immediate impact made by attending a support group may be the help you offer and not the other way around. What’s more, linking up with other parents may afford new friendship opportunities and information that directly benefits your child.
  4. Raise Your Voice. Whether through regular participation in school events and the PTA, helping your child to become involved in community events, even blogging about your experience as a special needs parent, don’t hesitate to make your voice heard. If you thought blogging or social media wasn’t an option for you, think again. We can help connect you with tutorials and guidance on starting your own blog. Like in the support group description above, the win you achieve may not even be your own but, instead, the ability to empower someone else who comes across your words and succeeds as a result!

There is a wide assortment of opportunities out there to help make a difference in the world for your child but, ultimately, every day you’re able to do your best as a parent of a child with special needs should be considered a victory. For help with anything described above, or to get your child access to a wealth of programs and resources for children with Cerebral Palsy, please contact us today!

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