If you are raising a child with special needs, then you know from personal experience that it can feel like you’re fighting the battle alone, and that there are few resources available to help you.
Robin Kellogg, a mother, author, and business owner has written a revealing, informative, and heart-wrenching book about raising a child with special needs. The book is titled A Life Put on Hold: My Son’s Journey with a Brain Injury and the Lessons I Have Learned Along the Way, which speaks volumes in and of itself.
The book shares the experience from a mother’s eyes. Robin Kellogg states, “My gut says he was probably born with the brain injury. From the time he was born, he was always very uncomfortable. He had full-blown migraines by the time he was five.”
As a result of her son’s brain injury and subsequent surgery, Kellogg has dealt with many of the same challenges that are commonly faced by those who have children with special needs. The tasks involved in advocating for their child can seem to be insurmountable and they can include many different things, such as searching for doctors who will take the time to give correct diagnoses, searching for educational institutions that are best equipped to deal with their child’s issues, finding supportive people who can identify with their struggles, and finding other relevant resources. This all comes in addition to dealing with their child and his/her issues on a daily basis.
Her son first displayed symptoms of having special needs when he was very young. After his surgery, he started displaying more extreme behavior—the types of things that are familiar to parents of children with autism and/or bipolar disorder. As a matter of fact, Kellogg’s son was initially misdiagnosed. “A misdiagnosis is something that anyone who is a caregiver can experience. It doesn’t have to be a brain injury. No one gives out a manual to tell you how to deal with this behavior or what the side effects will look like. You just have to feel your way around.”
There are a countless number of parents who have children with special needs who don’t know where to turn (or where to start) to find resources. “It was like I was the only one going out there calling people and trying to find out what was next.”
When asked what was her and her husband’s biggest challenge throughout the years, Kellogg reported that the worst part of her experience was the isolation. “I think the general feeling is that you are going through a long, dark tunnel all by yourself because those people immediately around you don’t have that experience. And you don’t know where to find that group of kindred souls that do. So with the book, I hope to say we all have the same story.”
Kellogg’s son is now twenty-four years old, and lives in his own apartment in a supportive-living situation. Kellogg is now ready to begin speaking to families who are going through the same struggles in order to share her experiences and offer encouragement. “I would like to reach out to parents of special needs children or adults. It doesn’t matter if it is the result of an injury, or if it is something neurological. I think we all travel the same road.”
When asked what was her motivation for writing this book, Kellogg says that if she can encourage one parent or one family with her book, then she has made a difference. “There is a light at the end of that very long, dark tunnel, and the clearing starts to happen at different points for different people.”
Kellogg is embarking on a book tour to share her story with organizations that support families who have children with special needs. Parents who are going through a similar situation with their child will be able to relate to her experiences.
Kellogg’s book also details the resources that she had discovered during her journey. A Life Put on Hold: My Son’s Journey with a Brain Injury and the Lessons I Have Learned Along the Way is available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Life-Put-Hold-Journey-Lessons/dp/0692253491.
If you would like to have Robin Kellogg to come and speak to your group, contact her at: http://www.ALifePutOnHold.com.