I am a 30+ year seasoned holistic Pediatric Occupational Therapist who has heard so many of my parents ask such questions as, "Why didn’t my doctor tell me this? Why won't anyone listen to me when I say there is something going on with my child? What do I do now that my child has been diagnosed? Why is diet so important? Will someone please write all of this down?"I have written this book to fill the gap that occurs after a child is diagnosed. I have written it in a fun and playful way, but with all the professionalism necessary to guide you in the right direction after you have received a diagnosis, or are actively trying to discover if your child has special needs. The Dragonfly Approach provides information on retained reflexes, various forms of treatment, the importance of diet and nutrition, and the team of professionals your child may need to consult, among other topics. I will also provide you with essential questions to ask, checklists to fill out, and other helpful information that I have been asked over the years. The time is now to rid frustrated parents of the overwhelming feeling of not knowing which way to turn to get their child the help that they need. I want to end the disappointment parents often feel when they discover, much later, the route they should have taken or the questions they should have asked, thereby losing precious time. The Dragonfly Approach is holistic and recognizes that each child and their family are unique units. This book is written from my heart and contains my love and passion for what I believe I was put on this earth to do. It was written with my experience as a mother who has children of her own with their own set of special needs, as well as my own special needs of ADHD, dyslexia, retained reflexes, and sensory processing disorder. If you are looking for THE book to guide you in the right direction, you have found it! I pray it is helpful to you on your journey.
I became an unsuspecting member of a ‘secret’ society called a blended family several years ago. I can say without question that I did not wake up one day and profess, “I’m going to fall in love, get married, have two kids, get divorced, move, fall in love again, remarry, move again, and then successfully blend a new and improved family.” I liken the blending of a family to that of a three-ring circus, and if you have ever been to a circus, you know that it is exciting, scary, and a bit psychotic if one of those freakish clowns gets in your face. With this blending, I have gained four additional people, bringing my total to seven. I now have five teenagers to look after and often call them the ‘piranha children’ as they eat us out of house and home daily. It is not uncommon for me to visit our local grocery store several times per week, and I have become quite chummy with most of the employees who work there. I blogged about this circus on my website, The Blog Blender, for the first three years because I found myself having some serious venting to do. Plus, I knew that there had to be other people out there in this same insane boat I was in, and we needed each other. My blog was very successful and helped many people. I found it overwhelming to see the number of people who were feeling and living through some of the same things. I have decided to turn my blog into a three-book series titled 'Welcome to My Blended Family Circus.' In this book series, I discuss the joys and challenges of blending a family, growing older, and being married to the love of my life, whom I fondly refer to as the ‘Professor.’
