parental burnout
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Are you part of the secret club? A Birthday Reflection
This week I turn 43. We are still in the trenches. Probably will be for a long time yet. But from down here, you get to see things most people never will. You get to be part of something most people never understand. Tea keeps me alive. Coffee makes me feel alive. And a lifelong… Continue reading
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Have the clocks ever been normal?
Living with parenting exhaustion—sleep struggles, school pressures, and the reality of raising a neurodivergent child when time never feels like your own. Have the clocks ever been normal? Continue reading
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Why is School Avoidance back? When the PDA Burnout Cycle starts again on Mother’s Day
This one is personal. It started with Mother’s Day. My son came home from football and I knew — before the day was out — that something had shifted. He didn’t go to school the next day. Or the day after. In this week’s post I’m writing about the PDA burnout cycle — why our… Continue reading
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What’s on your mind?
When my son asked me, “What’s on your mind, Mam?”, I said apples. But the truth was, my mind was full — of pressure, balance, and the quiet fear of adding just a little bit too much. This post is about what changed when football stopped, what surfaced in its place, and how close coping… Continue reading
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Just Relax
‘Just Relax’ is our family motto — said often, rarely achieved. A story about good intentions, Christmas plans, a dying guinea pig, and learning that sometimes relaxing just isn’t possible… and that’s ok Continue reading
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Who Even Am I?
I changed everything to help my PDA son thrive — but somewhere in that process, I disappeared. This is the rawest thing I’ve written yet. Continue reading
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How do you say No?
Managing co-parenting, boundaries, and PDA parenting — one ‘no’ at a time. No. Two letters.Easy to write.Easy to say.Yet one of the most powerful words in any language. And right now, it’s the word I’m struggling with the most. I’ve never been an assertive person. I’m a people pleaser. If someone asks me to do… Continue reading
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How has your back to school gone?
It’s the question I’ve been asked more than anything else over the past few weeks. Understandable, given the school avoidance we went through last school year. For two weeks straight, it’s all I’ve heard: “How has your back to school gone?” And honestly—it’s a hard one to answer. If things were going well, I almost… Continue reading
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Activate or Accommodate? The Shitty Choice of Parenting a PDA child
I haven’t written properly in a couple of weeks, which is the longest I’ve gone since starting this blog. PDA parenting really takes it out of you. Really. The last few posts I published were written out in draft a while back — I hadn’t actually started any new writing in a while until last… Continue reading
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Why?
This is a question I’ve asked myself over and over again while navigating SEND professionals, indeed any professional, throughout this journey. Throughout this journey, I’ve dealt with a selection of professionals, and I’ve been completely shocked by the incompetence — and in some cases, the outright lies — I’ve encountered. This isn’t me being unfair.… Continue reading