I have just been alerted by Rescare trustees to a post on the Special Needs Jungle forum entitled ‘The emotional impact of parenting a disabled child’.

The article cites especially the resources available on the website Affintyhub.uk , created by Jo Griffin, a Counselling Psychologist and a parent carer. Here, when faced with (sadly typical) feelings  of frustration, helplessness, anger, guilt and isolation, parents can  be assured that they are not alone in these, and seek reassurance and strength by learning of the experiences of others, through resources linked to its ‘Words of Wisdom’ page

Jo Griffins contribution to the article  includes not only links to the results of others’ research into this topic, but also the results of her own research, published on Affinityhub.uk . Her concise 6-page report is well-worth reading.

The article concludes with Angela’s list of her own ‘therapeutic strategies’: Be realistic, Self-Care, Become aware of unhelpful feelings, Remember that feelings pass, Good nutrition, Trust your parenting, Quiet the inner critic. Read the article in full for Angela’s advice in each of these categories.

Affinityhub.uk , from what I can seen so far, offers a wide range of useful resources  for parent carers. I have just made a note to add it to the Rescare ‘resource library’ as soon as possible…