Every parent has expectations for his or her child. You dream about what life will be like when your child is a baby, a toddler, and a first-grader. When you discover that your child has a serious disability that may affect how you live out those dreams, your response is grief and shock. You may then go through periods of denial, guilt, and anger. These feelings are natural. Honor them. And work through them. Allow yourself time to grieve, to deny, even to be angry. Coming to terms with your own emotional response is necessary so that you can devote your energy to being your child’s education champion.

Becoming an effective advocate for your child means understanding and accepting the reality of your child’s needs. Your ability to help your child get an education appropriate to his disability is dependent on your ability to stay calm, to be practical, and to present logical solutions that allow all sides to win. This doesn’t mean that you have to shove all of your emotions aside. Emotions, especially anger and frustration, can be phenomenal motivators. But unleashed in a meeting with the principle of your child’s school, they can severely hinder your ability to advocate effectively for your child.

The responsibility you may feel as you begin advocating for your child may be overwhelming. Suddenly, you are aware of how much you need to learn, how much you need to do, how different your life is going to be from what you envisioned. You may feel paralyzed, invigorated, or both. Don’t be intimidated. Resources exist to help you-from nationwide organizations to family and friends. Don’t be afraid to use them. And you have legal rights. Your child deserves to be taught in a way appropriate to his needs. 4MyChild can help you discover your power.

Special education advocacy takes about as much time and energy as getting an extra diploma, and it is just as emotionally taxing. You will probably have moments when you will be so angry, so frustrated, or so sad, all you can do is cry. Acknowledge those feelings, but don’t let them get the best of you. Turn the intensity of those emotions into a goal, a vision, and a plan. Check out your resources and see if you can find another way to get what you need. Know the law. And remember you’re doing this for one of the luckiest kids in the world. Why? Because they have you.

• An Introduction to Cerebral Palsy
• Development Milestones for Babies
• Spastic Cerebral Palsy
• Spastic Diplegia Cerebral Palsy
• Ataxic Cerebral Palsy
• Athetoid Cerebral Palsy
• Severe Athetoid Cerebral Palsy
• Mixed Cerebral Palsy
• Hemiplegia and Quadriplegia and Cerebral Palsy
• Cerebral Palsy Statistics
• Diagnosing Cerebral Palsy
• Cerebral Palsy Treatment
• United Cerebral Palsy (UCP) of Philadelphia and Vicinity
• Types and Causes Of Cerebral Palsy
• Cerebral Palsy Declining in High-Risk Babies
• Coping with Cerebral Palsy
• Children With Cerebral Palsy Have Similar Quality Of Life To Other Children

• Birth Trauma
• Birth Injury Verdicts
• Prenatal Care
• Cerebral Palsy

• Birth Injury

• Birth Injury - EMedicine

Provides general information about birth injuries and other resources.

• Birth Injury - United Cerebral Palsy in Philadelphia

Homepage to the United Cerebral Palsy of Philadelphia organization.