Today, we have a very special guest, Melanie Dimmitt. Melanie’s son Arlo has cerebral palsy, which isn’t a rare disease, but so many listeners reached out to recommend Melanie’s book Special to me. After reading her journey of coming to terms with her son’s diagnosis and navigating her new life of medically-complex parenting, I knew we had to talk to her.

Before Melanie received her son’s diagnosis, she was a little terrified of having a child with a disability. It wasn’t just that she was afraid of how hard it would be, but that she would miss out of so many parts of parenting and family life. But as she soon found out, while parenting a child with disabilities can bring significant challenges, it also brings extreme joy.

In today’s episode, Melanie shares the story of how her son Arlo was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, the way she viewed disability before Arlo, and how her view of parenting and raising a child with a disability has shifted since his diagnosis (it’s drastic!). She also explains how she wrote her book Special. to help rebrand disability parenting and offer support and encouragement for new parents who have found themselves in the same shoes as Melanie.

This conversation was so encouraging and uplifting. You’re not going to want to miss it!

Links:

Learn more about our generous sponsor Moog Medical’s Infinity Feeding Pump.

Get your copy of The Blend Magazine.

Order a copy of Special. By Melanie Dimmit.

Check out Kelle Hampton’s book, Bloom.

You can find out more about the Upsee Harness here.

Follow Melanie on Instagram.

Follow me on Instagram!

Donate to the podcast via Buy Me a Coffee.

Contact me about sponsoring the podcast.

Follow the Facebook page.

Join the Facebook group Parents of Children with Rare Conditions.

Access the transcript and download the research articles Hilarie cited on the website here.

And if you love this podcast, please leave us a rating or review in your favorite podcast app!