The joke wasn’t really about the spider This week I’ve been reflecting on something that happened years ago. I was talking to another parent recently about something that had happened at school for their child, and it resurfaced an old memory for me. At the time, my child was barely managing school. Attendance was patchy. […]
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Coping is not the same as thriving This week, one of my children needed collecting early from school. Not refusing. Not in crisis. Just overwhelmed, and unable to keep going for one more afternoon. So I found myself juggling a school collection with trying to work, while managing a whining puppy and hoping the neighbours
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It’s been a strange week We landed back in the UK and the heatwave was long gone. I don’t think it’s stopped raining since we got home. I have to admit our holiday didn’t entirely go to plan, which is not unusual for families like ours. We adapt and overcome. We understand fluctuating capacity. We
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The thing we don’t say out loud about the school holidays It’s the half term holiday in the UK, and this can look very different in families like ours. I know there’ll be parents reading this who have spent the last few days barely leaving the house. Because everywhere is too busy. Too loud. Too
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SATs, half term, and the relentless juggling act This week I want to talk about the enormous pressure that’s on our children when they’re expected to take part in things like SATs. We’re now in the final summer term. Our kids are getting tired, and there are impending transitions looming from September – whether that’s
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I woke up anxious for no reason The Easter holidays are nearly over here. They’ve been full on – the demands, the needs, the constant reading of the room. I’m tired in the way that only this kind of parenting makes you tired. But we’ve had some calmer days too, and I’m holding onto those.
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When your child can’t go to school Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA) is something many families in this community are living with, although it often feels like a very lonely place to be. There are lots of reasons children may find it difficult to access school. Sensory overwhelm is a big one. Classrooms can be
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When going back to school doesn’t feel safe For many of us, we’re coming to the end of half term. If, like me, you have a child who is registered at school and attending in some way, you might already be feeling that familiar dread creeping in – the build up to trying to get
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January has been a slog – here’s what’s helping me Has January felt like a bit of a slog to you? You’re not alone. I was really hoping that once Christmas was over, things would calm down and I’d finally find some time for me. But with families like ours, it rarely works out that
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Holding it all together when the world starts again Two weeks off for Christmas and New Year and I actually found myself looking forward to getting back to something resembling a normal routine. The break was lovely, it really was, but it was also over-stimulating, demanding, full of co-regulation, noise, emotional energy, big feelings, crossed
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