Most parents I know who have kids with special needs (defined as having behavioral or physical issues) don't think too much about their plight, or about it being much different from the plight of any other parent. Therapy? Okay. Medical appointments? Got it. A hospital stay because of open-heart surgery? You just do what you have to do, that's all. Sure, you might wish an easier life for your child, but there's not a lot of "poor me" going on, at least not in my experience.
But what if the very fact that you have a child with special needs adversely affects your ability to get or keep a job? Which clearly impacts your family's financial bottom line? And that's what's going on for many parents in this very position. So not only do you likely have increased medical/ therapeutical expenses, but you're also penalized financially in the workplace. "Behavioral, developmental and medical problems make it difficult to
find child care, and fitting medical appointments and therapy schedules
around work requires flexible hours and understanding employers." And often, employers are unwilling or unable to be flexible enough, which means that parents have to cut working hours to attend to their children. More than 5% of Maine parents in an upcoming study said they'd actually been fired over their situation involving their child.
We're all aware of discrimination toward pregnant women in the workplace, but this? Clearly, parents of all kinds need better support. And with one in ten Maine children reported as having a diagnosed disability or chronic health condition (up 30% from 1992 to 2005), I'm guessing that the numbers are similar in other areas. Which translates into a lot of parents impacted by the lack of support for them and their children, and a lot of families impacted adversely as a result.
What about you? Any horror stories to share?
