The holidays can be a fun, festive time of year. There are decorations, music, parties, food...but for many, the holidays can be an incredibly stressful time. And when dealing with an illness or disability, like a neuromuscular disease, while the holidays can still be lots of fun, there are also additional circumstances that can increase our stress.

In this episode, we will tackle some of these difficult topics and provide some suggestions for how to handle holiday stress.

Paige Lembeck, PhD is a Pediatric Psychologist at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Prior to coming to CHOP, she worked as a Pediatric Psychologist and Assistant Clinical Professor at the Yale Child Study Center, where she provided therapy and consultation services within several Neurology clinics, including the multidisciplinary Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Clinic. Her clinical and research interests include issues related to adjustment to illness, family communication in the context of serious illness, and grief and loss. 

Dr. Lembeck received her doctorate in school psychology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Subsequently, she completed her internship and fellowship at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where she provided services to youth with cancer and other catastrophic diseases.

Mindy Henderson is the Editor-in-Chief of MDA’s Quest family of content and the host of this podcast. She was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy, type 2 when she was 15 months old and has been a life-long partner to MDA. Mindy is also a motivational speaker and a writer, with her first book set to hit book stores in Summer of 2022.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hendersonmindy/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mindyhendersonspeaks/