By Sarah Thomas Sarah Thomas’ son Lewis has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, ADHD and is PEG-fed as the result of suffering a major stroke when he was three. Lewis and his twin brother, Cohan, are now 14, and life is still chaotic. But this one piece of advice helps keep things in perspective. I recently attended …
By Kelly Wilton When we are first told that our child has a disability, we get overloaded with information. In an instant, everything changes. There is no little red book for parenting a child with a disability – no ticking off age-appropriate milestones which our child may or may not achieve. We are pulled in …
Having an autistic child means that Leanne Tuckerman never has much time to herself. Even when she does have time away from her son Thomas, she is still busy advocating for him, to ensure he gets the care and opportunities he needs to flourish. Thomas, 11, was diagnosed as autistic when he was five years …
Unique Direct Employ service provides freedom for mum and her autistic son Read More »
We’ve all been there. Unsolicited advice at the MOST INAPPROPRIATE times. Comments about “naughty” children who “tantrum” and you’re clearly just a parent who can’t control their child – “they just need a good old-fashioned smack”. Or as you push your child in a disability pram, or in the trolley, “they are too old for …
It’s been a while in the planning, however our first Source Mama Live Series event of the year all came together beautifully last Thursday night. You can watch the replay right here: Held at Brisbane’s ultra-luxe Cloudland, it was a night to remember as three fierce mamas took to the stage to speak to our …
Mum of five, Katrina Bartninkaitis knows all too well just how difficult the juggle of sourcing and managing support workers can be. Equally as complex and challenging, has been finding people who genuinely connect and engage with her three young children – each living with multiple disabilities, as well as her husband John, who has …
Feeling happy and in control with 11 support workers Read More »
By Sarah Thomas When my then three-year-old son Lewis suffered a major stroke, life as I knew it had changed forever. Lewis was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, Epilepsy and ADHD, a combination of conditions which meant eating was a very difficult for him, if not a dangerous thing to do. Lewis was on and off …
In 2009 my ‘Ruby Star’ was born. She graced this world with such ease and beauty and not a concern in the world. A couple of months later things started to change, and an unsettling feeling started to simmer in every bit of my body. I knew something wasn’t right. Ruby developed seizures, extreme and …
By REBEKAH DEVLIN “Can I go in front of you,” the man in his mid to late 60s asked waving his three packets of mushrooms in my general direction and starting to walk past me. “Um, what?” I said as I looked up from loading the last item onto the Aldi conveyer belt. I was …
The three packets of mushrooms that made me lose it Read More »
Do you ever call on favours from friends and your network to help out supporting your child? Do you wish you could formally employ them as support workers? Good news. You can. How? Well, there’s an organisation in Australia that has spent the last 10 years developing a service the enables parents to do just …
Now you can employ people you already know as support workers. Read More »
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