In this episode, we continue our What I Wish I’d Known series in honor of World Down Syndrome Day (3/21) and this year’s theme: Together Against Loneliness.

When we first became parents of children with Down syndrome, no one talked to us about loneliness.

Not the loneliness that can come in high school.
Not when siblings leave.
Not when friends start driving.
Not when graduation comes — and the path forward feels unclear.
Not when your child is included, but still isolated.

We talk about the loneliness our kids experience — and the loneliness we feel as parents. We unpack the difference between inclusion and belonging, and why belonging is what truly combats loneliness.

World Down Syndrome Day isn’t just about celebration.
It’s about awareness.It’s about connection.

Wear the socks.Have the conversations.
Extend the invitation.

Let’s be together against loneliness.

Show Notes

🌍 World Down Syndrome Day

Official site (theme, resources, global events):
https://www.worlddownsyndromeday.org/

College scholarships for students with Down syndrome:
https://www.rubysrainbow.org/

Creators of the annual World Down Syndrome Day campaign videos:
https://www.coordown.it/

This year’s campaign video (featuring Noah, focused on ending use of the R-word):
https://www.youtube.com/@CoorDown

Their classic video “Dear Future Mom”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ju-q4OnBtNU

Free programming and community for individuals with Down syndrome:
https://gigisplayhouse.org/

🎓 Ruby’s Rainbow🇮🇹 CoorDown (Italy)💙 GiGi’s Playhouse

🎉 Celebrate World Down Syndrome Day With Us

We’ve been celebrating World Down Syndrome Day since the very beginning of this podcast. Revisit past conversations here:

Episode 1 – World Down Syndrome Day 2018
https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/1

Episode 53 – World Down Syndrome Day 2019
https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/53

Episode 104 – World Down Syndrome Day 2020
https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/104

Episode 156 – World Down Syndrome Day 2021
https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/156

Episode 207 – World Down Syndrome Day 2022
https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/207

Episode 259 – World Down Syndrome Day 2023
https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/259

Episode 310 – World Down Syndrome Day 2024
https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/310

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Show Notes

In this episode of were talking about infantilizing — what it is, how it shows up, and why it matters.

To infantilize someone is to treat them as younger or less capable than they are. For people with disabilities, this often shows up in subtle but harmful ways: baby talk, lowered expectations, behavior plans for age-appropriate teen behavior, speaking about someone as if they aren’t in the room, or limiting choices because we assume immaturity.

We share real stories:

• When typical high school behavior is labeled as a disability issue

• How communication differences get mistaken for lack of intelligence

• The risk of tying maturity to verbal skills

• The hidden cost of withholding autonomy and choice

• How even we, as parents, have had to unlearn assumptions

We talk about the radical assumption of competence — and how dignity starts with how we speak.

Our kids’ age is their age.
Their interests don’t define their intelligence.
And adults deserve to be treated like adults.

This conversation is nuanced. It’s uncomfortable at times. But it’s necessary.

Let’s raise expectations.
Let’s offer real choices.
And let’s stop talking to adults like they’re toddlers.

CONNECT WITH THE PODCAST

• ⁠WEBSITE⁠

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CONNECT WITH HEATHER AVIS

• WEBSITE: ⁠THE LUCKY FEW OFFICIAL⁠

• IG: ⁠THELUCKYFEWOFFICAL⁠

• ⁠FACEBOOK⁠

• ⁠I LIKE YOU SO MUCH⁠

• ⁠THIS IS DOWN SYNDROME⁠

CONNECT WITH MERCEDES LARA

• IG: ⁠HOORAY4THELARAS⁠

• IG: ⁠HUMANLY.TV⁠

• ⁠FACEBOOK⁠

CONNECT WITH MICHA BOYETT

• ⁠MICHABOYETT.COM⁠

• IG: ⁠ACEFACEISMYFRIEND⁠

• IG: ⁠MICHABOYETT⁠

• LISTEN TO ⁠THE SLOW WAY⁠

DISCOUNT CODE

Friends, grab your narrative shifting gear over on ⁠The Lucky Few Merch Shop⁠ and use code PODCAST for 10% off!

HELP US SHIFT THE NARRATIVE

Interested in partnering with The Lucky Few Podcast as a sponsor? Email ⁠[email protected]⁠ for more information!

LET’S CHAT

Email ⁠[email protected]⁠ with your questions and Good News or Shout Outs for future episodes.

In this episode of The Lucky Few Podcast, we continue our What I Wish I’d Known series by talking about inclusion — and being honest about how it actually feels.

When we hear the word inclusion, we don’t immediately feel hopeful. We feel heaviness. Process. Fight. Sometimes discouragement.

We talk about why inclusion so often becomes a disability service instead of a true community responsibility. We wrestle with school settings, adult programs, housing, and the limited options available once our kids grow up. We name the exhaustion of always being the one advocating — and the toll it takes on our kids to keep showing up in spaces not built for them.

At the center of this conversation is this truth:

The existence of a person with Down syndrome in the world is their resistance.

Our kids take up space. They walk into rooms. They show up in communities that weren’t designed for them. That matters.

Inclusion isn’t a program to be applauded. It’s a cultural shift. And while we may feel weary some days, we still believe our kids belong — not as a service, but as neighbors, coworkers, and friends.

We see you doing the work. Take a breath if you need to. And keep going.

Show Notes

For more thoughtful work on disability, community living, and person-centered inclusion, visit Open Future Learning: https://www.openfuturelearning.org/**

Interested in diving deeper?

We’ve talked about inclusion before — especially in the context of school, IEPs, and advocacy. If you want to explore more episodes with an emphasis on inclusion in education and collaboration, start here:

• Episode 78: Building Trust (Not Barriers) w/Your Child’s IEP Team
  https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/iep-advocacy

• Episode 94: IEPs During COVID-19 (ft. Vickie Brett & Amanda Selogie)
  https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/inclusive-education-project

• Episode 270: IEP Success: How to Plan, Communicate, and Collaborate (w/April Rehrig)
  https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/270-iep-success-how-to-plan-communicate-and-collaborate-april-rehrig

• Episode 272: What Do We Wish We Knew Before Our First IEP Meeting?
  https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/272-what-do-we-wish-we-knew-before-our-first-iep-meeting-heather-avis-mercedes-lara

• Episode 273: Breaking Down Barriers: The Parent’s Role in IEP Success (w/Ashley Barlow)
  https://www.theluckyfewpodcast.com/episodes/273-breaking-down-barriers-the-parents-role-in-iep-success-with-ashley-barlow

EPs can feel overwhelming, emotional, and complicated—and that’s because they are.

In this episode of The Lucky Few Podcast, we kick off our new season, What I Wish I’d Known About…, by talking about IEPs—what we wish we understood from the very beginning, and what we’ve learned the hard way.

Fresh off a multi-hour meeting, we share honestly about the exhaustion, the tension, and the “us vs. them” dynamic that can creep in. We unpack how evaluations drive goals, how goals drive placement, and why learning the language of the IEP changes everything. We talk about inclusion, evolving expectations, and what it looks like to follow our child’s lead as they grow.

Most importantly, we remind ourselves—and you—of this:

Our kids are not problems to fix.
The IEP exists to serve them.

Whether this is your first meeting or your fifteenth, we hope this conversation helps you feel more steady, more informed, and less alone.

SHOW NOTES:

For more practical guidance, we’ve learned a lot from Ashley Barlow and her work at Ashley Barlow Co.. She offers clear, actionable resources to help you navigate IEPs, strengthen your advocacy skills, and understand your rights—all in one place.

Check out more IEP Episodes:

1. 78. Building Trust (Not Barriers) w/Your Child’s IEP Team – IEP advocacy tips.

2. 94. IEPs during COVID-19, ft. IEP Lawyers Vickie Brett & Amanda Selogie – IEPs & distance learning.

3. 272. What Do We Wish We Knew Before Our First IEP Meeting? – Reflections on early IEPs.

4. 270. IEP Success: How to Plan, Communicate, and Collaborate (w/April Rehrig) – Practical IEP strategies.

5. 273. Breaking Down Barriers: The Parent’s Role In IEP Success (w/Ashley Barlow) – Parent advocacy in IEPs.

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CONNECT WITH MERCEDES LARA

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CONNECT WITH MICHA BOYETT

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DISCOUNT CODE

Friends, grab your narrative shifting gear over on The Lucky Few Merch Shop and use code PODCAST for 10% off!

HELP US SHIFT THE NARRATIVE

Interested in partnering with The Lucky Few Podcast as a sponsor? Email [email protected] for more information!

LET’S CHAT

Email [email protected] with your questions and Good News or Shout Outs for future episodes.

We’re bringing back one of our favorite conversations in honor of an extraordinary athlete, mom, and advocate who continues to redefine what’s possible.

Elana Meyers Taylor is a five-time Olympian and one of the most decorated athletes in winter sports history. She has earned one gold, three silver, and two bronze Olympic medals for Team USA, and is a four-time World Champion, with two gold medals in both the two-woman and mixed team events. She is also the most decorated Black winter Olympian of all time.

But medals are only part of her story.

Elana is mom to two boys. Her son Nico has Down syndrome, and both of her sons are deaf. In this episode, she shares what it was like to welcome Nico at the start of the pandemic while continuing to train at the highest level. It’s an honest look at motherhood, elite sport, and advocacy.

Elana brings her family with her and uses her platform to speak openly about Down syndrome, ASL, and greater inclusion in winter sports.

As we replay this episode, we’re cheering her on — not just for what she’s accomplished, but for how she leads.

January felt heavy. So instead of pretending we had it all figured out, we talked honestly about what we wish we’d known earlier.

In this kickoff episode of What We Wish We’d Known, Heather, Micah, and Mercedes reflect on lessons that only come with time, experience, and a lot of unlearning.

In this episode, we talk about:

• Letting go of milestone pressure, assuming competence, and unlearning ableism

• Rethinking inclusion, communication (including AAC), and what real support looks like

• Identity, advocacy, and why the goal was never a “poster child” — just a whole human

This episode is part reflection and part reset. Whether you’re brand new or years into this journey, we hope it gives you permission to breathe, recalibrate, and keep learning.

💛 DM us what you wish you’d known — and what you want us to cover this season.

SHOW NOTES

Check out AbleNet, an assistive technology company that helps families access AAC devices quickly, often handling insurance and paperwork on their behalf.

DISCOUNT CODE

Friends, grab your narrative shifting gear over on ⁠The Lucky Few Merch Shop⁠ and use code PODCAST for 10% off!

HELP US SHIFT THE NARRATIVE

Interested in partnering with The Lucky Few Podcast as a sponsor? Email ⁠[email protected]⁠ for more information!

LET’S CHAT

Email ⁠[email protected]⁠ with your questions and Good News or Shout Outs for future episodes.

Today we’re diving deep into the way our children communicate! We’re asking some difficult but important questions about how we support their speech and language.

How do our kids feel when people cannot understand their speech? How do they feel when we, as their parents, cannot understand their speech?

How are we supposed to implement all the speech therapy tools? When is it time to just focus on one area of growth for our kids?

How do our kids use “self-talk” to share stories and self-soothe?

And that’s a wrap on this season focused on brain health and Down syndrome! We hope you learned as much as we did from these last 10 episodes. We’ll see you again in the new year!

SHOW NOTES

Visit our Therapist Directory to find mental health support for your loved one with a disability.

Fill out THIS FORM to be added to our therapist directory.

SPONSOR

Sign up for Enable SNP HERE.

Jennifer Gray is a certified speech-language pathologist with over 20 years of experience working with the Down syndrome community. Today we’re asking her all the questions we’ve forgotten to ask our children’s own speech therapists.

When should speech therapy start for individuals with Down syndrome? (Hint: Jennifer says research shows it can be helpful before age 1)

What makes speech more challenging for individuals with Down syndrome?

Can individuals with Down syndrome experience speech regression?

What is self-talk?

We hope you learn something from this important conversation about communication for people with Down syndrome!

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SHOW NOTES

Visit grayspeaktherapy.com

Instagram: @downsyndromespeech and @grayspeaktherapy

SPONSOR

Sign up for Enable SNP HERE.

Last week we sat down for an interview with trauma expert Dr. Karyn Harvey and today the three of us are unpacking all of our feelings about it. We’re asking ourselves some pretty heavy questions about trauma and intellectual disability.

Do our kids really encounter trauma every time they step out the front door?

Are we holding our children to unrealistic standards and expectations for behavior?

Do the benefits of an inclusive education outweigh the trauma that comes with it?

Why have our kids never been offered mental health support at any of their regular screenings?

Here’s what we know for certain: our children with intellectual disabilities understand when they are being excluded. And it’s our job to remind them just how incredibly lucky this world is to have them in it. Friends, we hope your children receive the mental health support they need so they can become exactly who they are meant to be.

SHOW NOTES

Learn more from Dr. Karyn Harvey and read her publications here.

SPONSOR

Sign up for Enable SNP HERE.

Dr. Karyn Harvey is a psychologist, author, trainer, speaker, and EXPERT in the field of psychology, intellectual disability, and trauma. Have you ever thought of the trauma that individuals with intellectual disabilities face each day? The examples are endless.. a negative diagnosis experience, being excluded, or even being placed in an institution. Today Dr. Karyn Harvey is on the show to teach us:

We’re also breaking down a few real-life examples of incidents in our child’s lives. This episode is full of wisdom for all of us who wish to support individuals with disabilities and their mental health.

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SHOW NOTES

SPONSOR