Having children with special needs can be a challenge at times. If you have a little one that needs special care, you will be able to understand the demands on your attention and your time that are required by them. Children in general need lots of attention and love but disabled children need that much more. Finding activities to do at home can become quite a chore to think of, whether or not your child is ill. At times, we can feel quite along in the care giving of a little one that has learning or physical disabilities.
However, studies show that as of 2010 about 2.8 million of the 32.9 million children were reported to have a disability. These are just the children that were diagnosed, there are many more out there that have just not been reported or diagnosed as of yet. Autism can effected one out of every 88 children in the United States. When you think about how many children are in America, that’s quite a large number. In fact, about a quarter of Americans reported that they are currently raising a child with disabilities. So, as you can see, you are not alone! Do not feel guilty if you feel like you require help to take care of an ill child. There is nothing wrong with that and it takes a strong parent to admit that the best way to take care of their child is with professional help.
Caregivers can offer a wide range of stimulating activities that have been tested and proven to help children of different needs. The activities are fine tuned to each developmental stage and type whether it be physical, mental or even emotional. Ensuring that your little one is receiving the correct kind of care for their disability is very important for development. For example, a child will emotional issues will need the constant reassurance of her ideas, opinions and questions whereas an autistic child will need structure, routine and stimulation balance as well as possible speech therapy and behavioral classes. Similarly, a child with physical limitations may need physical therapy or assistance in the home, but this is not what a child with mental disabilities needs. These are only the obvious examples, but at home care can make a huge difference especially when it comes to the little things.
Knowing how to support your child makes it a lot easier to care for them. No matter what the illness is that your child has, you can take off a lot of the stress and worry by knowing what exactly it is you need to be doing. It still may be time consuming and busy but having a plan of action makes care giving a lot more enjoyable. There is nothing more satisfying and joyful than seeing your little one begin to take the steps to developmental progress. Using professional care will make that progress start much quicker than we could do on our own, which in turn will allow for those positive reinforcements to start flowing almost immediately.