Links

We often talk about the unhelpful things people say when our child receives a diagnosis. But what words help? Read How far do encouraging words go? at Adapting Creatively.

I liked this piece on Spread the word to end the word day by Erika at Flight of our Hummingbird: To me...Retarded means that a group of doctors shows up at your hospital bed and you know from their awkward stances, smile-less faces and pitying looks that your world is about to fall into little pieces but you try to hold it together as the list of grave medical terms penetrate the heavy silence in the room.

And I somehow fell upon this blog by the mother of Willa, a child with Costello syndrome who died as a toddler from cancer: Living in Invisible Cities. This is eye-opening writing: the images used to express the writer's experiences are powerful and original.

And a few other pieces:

A disabled adult child, and an always uncertain future

Disabled adults more likely to be victims of hate crime

The art of distraction

Parenting adults with autism

'Doctors should have the right to kill unwanted or disabled babies at birth as they are not a real person' claims former Oxford academic

Choosing to have a child with Down syndrome