There is a phrase I hear from parents all the time: “I just wish people would help.” And I understand it. Because motherhood can feel like a constant exercise in managing everything. The appointments. The schedules. The meals. The laundry. The school emails. The therapy. The emotional needs of everyone in the house. And somewhere along the way, many of us become incredibly good at carrying it all. We tell ourselves we can handle it. We tell ourselves it would be eas

When my son Jacob was born, I was 20 years old. I was a junior in college, living two hours away from my family. My fiancé at the time and I were both full-time students trying to build a future together. He was working a minimum-wage job, earning about $12,000 a year. I had complications during my pregnancy that forced me to stop working and postpone graduating. To say we were overwhelmed would be an understatement. We were young. We were broke. We had very little supp

If you've ever left an IEP meeting replaying every word in your head… If you've ever walked into a doctor's appointment already preparing for a battle… Or if you've ever worried about being labeled "that parent" simply because you're trying to do what's best for your child… I want you to know something. You're not alone. As parents, advocating for our children is one of the hardest things we'll ever do. It's deeply personal because we're not discussing policies, acc

When we picture a strong advocate, we often imagine someone who walks into every meeting confident, prepared, and completely unshaken. The reality? Most parents don't start there. They start with fear. They start with questions. They start wondering if they're doing enough. In a recent episode of Parenthood Unscripted, I sat down with Ashley, a high school English teacher, mom, and one of the strongest advocates I've had the privilege of knowing. What struck me most was

As women, we wear a lot of hats. Mother.Partner.Professional.Caregiver.Advocate.Friend. And somewhere along the way, many of us begin to lose something important: Our voice. Not necessarily our ability to speak but our ability to speak honestly, confidently, and without constantly filtering ourselves through other people's expectations. In a recent episode of Parenthood Unscripted, I sat down with voice guide and visibility coach Kimberly LaForte to talk about what ha

As mothers, we're often handed an impossible assignment. Be present with your children. Build a successful career. Keep the house running. Maintain friendships. Prioritize your health. Be grateful. Be patient. Be productive. And somehow make it all look effortless. In a recent episode of Parenthood Unscripted, I sat down with leadership coach, entrepreneur, and author Jenna D'Annunzio for an honest conversation about the weight of expectations, motherhood, business ow

From the outside, many moms look like they have it all together. They're managing careers, coordinating schedules, remembering spirit days, signing permission slips, making dinner, showing up for everyone else, and somehow still functioning on very little time or energy. But behind the scenes? Many are overwhelmed, exhausted, disconnected from themselves, and wondering why they feel like they're constantly running without ever arriving anywhere. Recently, I had the op

What does it take to raise a confident, successful deaf child? When parents first learn their child is deaf or hard of hearing, they often find themselves navigating a world filled with new information, difficult decisions, and endless questions. How do you advocate for your child? What educational setting is best? How do you foster independence while ensuring they have the support they need? In a recent podcast episode, I had the privilege of speaking with Dr. Anne McIntos

As both a speech-language pathologist and a parent, I’ve learned something over and over again: Parents usually notice the small things first. Not always dramatic signs. Not always something obvious. Often, it’s a quiet feeling that something seems different. Maybe their toddler isn’t responding consistently to their name. Maybe they aren’t combining words yet. Maybe following directions seems harder than expected. Maybe interactions with peers feel different. Maybe commu

The coffee is cold.Your inbox is overflowing.There’s an IEP meeting next week, therapy homework on the counter, insurance paperwork spread across the kitchen table… and someone needs you, again. You’re doing everything. But somewhere along the way, you stop asking one important question: Am I living… or am I just surviving? For many parents of children with unique needs, survival mode becomes second nature. And here’s the tricky part… Survival mode often looks success

Have you ever spent hours preparing for a meeting…only to walk in already exhausted? Researching late at night.Second-guessing everything.Wondering if you missed something important. If you have, you’re not alone. This used to be me exactly. I was the mom up at 3am, deep in internet rabbit holes, feeling completely overwhelmed…trying to find something, anything, that would help my son. I remember thinking, “There are billions of people in this world… how can I not fin

Parents walk into IEP meetings already carrying a lot. I remember my son’s first IEP meeting so clearly. I didn’t know what to expect, so I tried to over-prepare. I researched, I gathered information, I did everything I thought I was supposed to do. But what I didn’t realize was this: I didn’t actually know how to prepare. So, I walked in with a lot of information… and in the moment, none of it felt usable. Because when you’re sitting at that table, there’s only so mu

I remember getting the news that my son was deaf when he was four months old. We had gone through multiple failed hearing screenings, and were finally referred to an audiologist for a diagnostic evaluation. Going into that appointment, deafness wasn’t even on my radar. We had been told it was likely fluid in the ears. Maybe faulty equipment during the screenings. Nothing that felt alarming. Nothing that prepared me for what was coming. So, when we sat around the table a

I remember getting the news that my son was deaf when he was four months old. We had gone through multiple failed hearing screenings, and were finally referred to an audiologist for a diagnostic evaluation. Going into that appointment, deafness wasn’t even on my radar. We had been told it was likely fluid in the ears. Maybe faulty equipment during the screenings. Nothing that felt alarming. Nothing that prepared me for what was coming. So, when we sat around the table a

I still remember my son’s first IEP meeting. At the time, I was in graduate school and didn’t know much about education systems, parental rights, or what I was even allowed to advocate for. I had done the prep work. I researched what I could, but back then there wasn’t nearly the amount of information available to parents that there is today. So, I walked into that meeting as prepared as I could be… and practically shaking. Not only was I very young, I was also the most

In my friend group, there were four of us, and we all had our first babies within a year of each other. I’m not exaggerating. One baby was born in December of one year, and my son was the baby of the group the following November. In those early days, I felt completely supported. We did playdates where the babies crawled around together while we drank our coffee and talked about the highs and lows of new motherhood. We were tired. We were figuring it out. We were doing it

Just this week, I had a mom call me. Her daughter is in elementary school. She’s been receiving speech therapy for about six years for articulation. She’s made tremendous progress. Her accuracy is high. By most measures, she’s doing really, really well. But she’s plateaued. And now she’s resistant to going to speech. She doesn’t like being pulled from her core classes. She’s starting to feel self-conscious. Mom wants her dismissed from speech. The school is pushing back.

I’ve sat at CSE meetings as a parent. And I’ve sat at CSE meetings as the professional. And what I can tell you with absolute certainty is this: it is a deeply emotional experience on both sides of the table. One thing I hear over and over again from parents is: “I want to advocate for my child, but I don’t know how to do it in a way that I’m heard.” “I have advocated for my child, and I still didn’t feel heard.” “I don’t want to be ‘that parent.’” Let’s talk about th

When you have a child with unique needs, navigating family dynamics can be one of the hardest parts, especially when they don’t really get it. This is even more true when your child is the first in the family to have a diagnosis, or when you’re the first one to step fully into advocacy. Families tend to have their own rhythms. Their own traditions. Their own long-held beliefs. Sometimes there are generational views, outdated ideas, or a rigidity that makes change feel uncom

People will always have opinions about your parenting. Always. Try one thing, and someone has something to say. Try the opposite? Surprise… they still have an opinion. I learned this the hard way, in a way that was both emotional and downright awful. When my son was about 10, we were shopping at Trader Joe’s and ran into a deaf woman. Excited to connect, we said hi. She was thrilled to meet Jacob and to see that he had two hearing parents who were signing. Everything was