Additional Needs

Better days aren’t ahead, they are here!

Posted by Katrina Dorrian on 13th April 2021 Additional Needs, Advice & Support, Disabilities

Share this article

We’ve all heard the phrase “new normal” and more recently I’ve seen a lot going about social media about better days being ahead.

Is that really true? What are these better days going to be like?!

Will I suddenly lose all this lockdown weight and become rich?! I doubt it!

Nobody will ever be able to answer that question in terms of what is better for everyone as a society, because everyone holds different views about what’s most important to them.

In saying that, better days ahead means for YOU and YOUR family.

Maybe you are like us and have been shielding.

Even the most restricted contact with your family and friends is such an incredible feeling...that’s definitely something to hold onto.

I’m in Northern Ireland so know that many people’s experiences of lockdown will vary depending on where you are from.

This is lockdown number 3 for us and this one especially has felt long, lonely and difficult.

We had a massive change recently when our little boy started a specialised school because his mainstream school simply couldn’t cope with his complex medical needs any more.

This was due in large part to him needing multiple brain surgeries to correct a malfunctioning shunt as well as all the trauma of having seizures.

I can’t remember a day that he was in longer than around 9.30/10am or that he felt happy going in.

He was an angry, frustrated, confused and hurting little boy. I don’t need to tell you what that did to us as parents as well as his triplet siblings.

It has been a very dark time for us.

He has now been at his new school for 6 weeks and the change has been absolutely phenomenal.

He has yet to have a day that I have had to collect him early due to his seizures, and his teacher reassures me his pencil grasp is excellent.

Previously Jacob was throwing then going into a seizure as soon as you’d ask him to pick up a pencil.

There was a really strong negative association with it and I really worried we’d never get him to write.

Seeing him now is just the most incredible feeling! It’s a small thing for most, but it’s truly amazing for us.

His brother and sister are settling back into their school as well and seem to be really enjoying all the routine of it again.

How amazing is it to hear children playing together again, or see them walking to school, or coming out of school waving goodbye to their friends?!

If covid has taught me anything, it is to remember who is important in your life.

I truly hope that no matter what your own “better days” will look like, that they are here or at least just around the corner.