As children grow and develop, they generally progress through learning a variety of self-help skills, such as dressing and undressing and taking a bath or shower unassisted. For your child who has a visual impairment and multiple disabilities, learning these skills may take longer than her typically developing siblings or age mates. In fact, she may always need support from you or someone else to complete these tasks. However, it is important that she learn […]
NIH-funded study shows that in children, the brain can compensate for missing regions of the visual cortex. Children can keep full visual perception — the ability to process and understand visual information — after brain surgery for severe epilepsy, according to a study funded by the National Eye Institute (NEI), part of the National Institutes of Health. While brain surgery can halt seizures, it carries significant risks, including an impairment in visual perception. However, a […]
BY Dawn Doebler, MBA, CPA, CFP®, CDFA®, Senior Wealth Advisor ABLE accounts are an important planning tool alongside more-traditional techniques such as special-needs trusts. One financial challenge that many families with special-needs children confront is funding the ever-growing expenses that their child may need over their lifetime. With additional costs of important medical and support care often reaching over $100,000 per year for a special-needs child, many families look to special government programs to fill […]
Toileting, or elimination, is something everyone does throughout the day, so helping your child achieve more independence in this area is likely to be a high priority for you and your family. If your child is consistently dry for 1-1/2 to 2 hours at a time and can wake up from a nap without being soiled, she may be ready to learn to use the toilet. Although your child’s needs and abilities may vary from […]
Having a child with a mental health condition can be a challenge, but there are ways to help make things easier. Each year, 1 in 5 kids aged 13-18 experiences a mental health condition. This means many parents have faced similar challenges and experiences as you. Be Attentive Begin by taking notice of your children’s moods, behaviors and emotions. Early intervention, especially with signs of psychosis, is critical because mental health conditions often get worse […]
