About me

My name is Sabrina.

 I have over 10 years experience working directly with children and young adults with special needs.

My specialty is working with:
- Individuals with an ASD diagnosis
and
- Individuals with special medical needs (Type 1 diabetes, Celiac, Epilepsy, Cerebral Palsy)

I obtained a Bachelor of Arts from U.C.L.A. and a Masters in Clinical Psychology from Pepperdine University.

Hello.

I have started this page as a place for caregivers to learn and find support when caring for their loved one with special needs.

I am expanding by starting services in the Central Valley for special needs coaching. This coaching includes the following:

- Individualized assessment and evaluation of the exact needs of the family to help their loved one.
- One on one coaching with weekly or bi weekly meetings to address specific issues and concerns.
- Help and support with local program options as well as school relations
- Dietary assessment and meal plan suggestions (gluten free options for children on the Autism spectrum).
-Emotional support and direction in taking care of a loved one with special needs.

I would love feedback in what you would like to see, please leave any comment below.

 Check out this awesome article about rock star parental inventions!


http://www.parents.com/blogs/to-the-max/2013/07/22/autism/great-inventions-for-kids-with-special-needs-by-parents/?socsrc=pmmpin130723pttInventions

Building self esteem

Building a Child’s Self Esteem

Self -esteem is perhaps one of the most talked about topics in education and childcare.  Teachers, caregivers, parents and friends are always thinking about how they can increase their child’s self esteem to help them to grow up to be a successful, well adjusted adult.

A child with special needs poses unique challenges to those who are working toward increasing their self worth.   Often children who have special needs have some awareness that they are different from others. They are in different classrooms, have different interests, and are treated differently than other children.

One way to help build a child’s self esteem is to capitalize on these differences, and point them out to the child a positive thing.

A special needs child, John, was very upset after class. He began crying and told his mom he was sad because he did not get to go in the ‘big classroom’, but has to go in the ‘little classroom’ (special needs class). His mom was distraught and did not know what to say. Finally she began reminding him about all of the wonderful aspects of the ‘ little classroom’ and began to point out that John got to do a lot of things in his ‘little class’ that the children in the ‘big class’ did not get to do. This excited John very much and sparked a long conversation on how he was indeed very special and was allowed certain privelleges that they other children at school did not get.

 John’s mother was very clever at reframing John’s situation. Of course she was sad John had special needs and was not in the mainstream classroom, but she knew that by reframing the situation and pointing out the positive would boost John’s self esteem and made her feel happy as well.

                                                     

Here are some more tips and simple ways to boost a child with special needs self esteem:

1. Compliment, compliment, compliment: Looking for small achievements and opportunities to compliment a child can do wonders at increasing their self worth. Make sure that the compliments are genuine and not ‘made up’, your child can most certainly tell the difference. Look for things such as how well they made their bed, ate their veggies, were kind to a classmate etc. By giving a child positive feedback for things that they are doing, they will be more apt to do those positive things again in the future and will feel good about themselves
2. Look for a child’s special, unique attributes: Children with special needs are often used to being told that they are different and special. Focusing on exactly what makes a child so special and unique will help to boost their confidence and self worth. Small details, such as being very good at tying one’s shoes, or speaking very clearly while talking to others should be pointed out and praised.
3. Specific praise is best: Telling the child exactly why they are so special, rather than just saying to them “You are special” will help to boost a child’s self esteem. Try to steer clear of general phrases such as ‘ Good job” when you are praising a child. Use specifics whenever possible. These specifics will help a child to realize exactly why they are being praised, and will reinforce their desirable behavior even furthur.
4. .Too much praise can be a bad thing: Be careful not to overdo it, there is such a thing as too much praise. If a child is constantly being praised, the words begin to lose their value and are not as effective. Try for 2-5 compliments a day to start and take it from there.

It is sad that often parents of special needs children feel that their child really does not have any strengths that they can easily identify. Parents of special needs children are often overwhelmed, stressed, angry and saddened that they have a special needs child. The self esteem that a special needs child develops is a direct reflection of the attitude his or her caretakers show toward him or her.

It is detrimental to a childs self esteem to have supportive, loving and active caregivers. If you find yourself uncomfortable when trying to find things to compliment your child on, or feel overwhelmed, please seek support. There are various resources for caregivers of special needs children that provide much needed support and  education for those who care for children with special needs. Taking the time to work on yourself is not only needed, but a necessary componenet to helping your child grow up happy and healthy.

Special needs relief for caregivers

Taking care of another person, particularly a child can be very stressful. Add in the extra demands and challenges of raising a child with a developmental delay and it is no wonder that caregivers are often overworked, stressed and burned out.

The most important thing to realize as a caregiver is that the stress that you feel is completely normal. Doing the best job that you can is what is important. It is hard not to compare yourself to other parents, or judge yourself for certain decisions you have made regarding your child. Just remember that if you are caring for your child with their best interest at heart, you are doing an excellent job.

Often parents of children with developmental disabilities feel like they are not doing enough for a child, or that they are somehow failing as a caregiver. They feel stress and grief that their child possesses special needs, and are frequently overworked and overwhelmed. Divorce is much more common in families who have a child with a developmental disability due to the unique stresses that raising a special needs child places upon a family.

Children with developmental delays are often unpredictable, which can create stress. It is important that caregivers do not give in to a child’s demands in every situation, and especially while the child is tantruming. This will create a cycle of positive reinforcement where the child will learn that tantrum= getting what they want.

There is no easy fix for the stress that accompanies care giving, but there are things that can be done to reduce the amount of stress a caregiver feels that will allow them to live a more pleasurable and less chaotic life.

The #1 rule to reducing stress and becoming a better caregiver is to make time for oneself. This seems like a strange way to reduce stress when it is already difficult to make time in the day for a child’s activities, chores, work etc. Adding in time for oneself during the day, everyday will drastically help to reduce a caregiver’s overall stress level.

Taking care of oneself can mean going on a walk, reading a favorite book or eating at a nice restaurant. Taking time out to focus on oneself everyday does not have to mean planning 3 hours everyday just for ‘me; time (although that would be nice, but often not realistic!). 15-30 minutes is plenty of time to relax and recharge.

Most caregivers place themselves as a last priority because they are so busy taking care of others that they do not leave time for themselves. This is a common occurrence, and can be very damaging to not only the caregiver but to the rest of the family as well. When a caregiver is not well rested, frazzled and stressed they lack the energy to take care of their children and create a stressful vibe that their children pick up on. This causes the children to become stressed and act out accordingly.

A overworked and stressed out caregiver, Joan was continually taking care of her 3 children, one of who was on the ASD spectrum. Joan was always tired and felt like there was never enough time in the day to get everything done. Her daily schedule consisted of getting her 3 kids ready for school, dropping them off at school, driving to work (part time as a receptionist), doing grocery shopping and laundry after work, picking her kids up from school, taking her kids to swimming, soccer and flute lessons, making dinner, cleaning up and finally going to bed. Her children were wonderful, but often her child with ASD posed unique challenges such as refusing to eat unless it was on a certain plate and various meetings, IEP’s etc at school that also added extra layers on to her already packed day. Reading Joan’s daily schedule, one can imagine how day after day, week after week Joan would slowly become exhausted and burned out. The interesting thing is most caregivers have a daily schedule very similar to Joan’s but do not think twice about it. Try writing down a daily schedule to see all of the things that are done in one day. Then take a closer look at that schedule and see where things can be modified to reduce stress and free up more time. Joan’s schedule was very full, but working out carpools with other parents freed up some time, as did asking her husband to help out making dinner a few nights a week. These small changes gave Joan some much needed down time where she did not have to always be rushing through her day and even allowed her to start reading a book  a few times a week.

Often caregivers of children with developmental disabilities feel isolated and separated from others. They might feel like parents of neurotypical children do not understand or sympathize with the unique challenges they face and feel like it is better to just handle the task of care giving with out support from other parents. This feeling of isolation is very common and can be remedied by reaching out to others who are in similar situations. Looking for parents of children with developmental disabilities to interact with in your child’s classroom is a wonderful first step to decreasing the feeling of isolation. Researching local support groups is also a fantastic way to interact with other parents who can truly understand.

Speaking to a therapist regularly is a healthy way to release the stress and frustrations that accompanies raising a child with a developmental disability. Insurance will often cover part of visits with a mental health professional, and many agencies offer discounts based on income. 

Special needs relief can also provide one on one, individualized relief to help support those who care for special needs children.