New from Central PA

[Cole's Mommy]

Hi Claire's Mamma!
I read your posts so I could learn more about your little love. Sounds like you are doing wonderful things...especially the "having fun" with and "loving" your daughter parts. I often say, that I wish I could have felt and known then, what I feel and know now. It sounds like you learned much quicker than I did. I am excited to meet you!
Love, Nicole, (Cole's Mommy born 4/30/07 ROBPI)

[Marcie]

I've been reading this post and have to say that we all have our own trials and tribulations. There is a reason for everything. We may not know why this happens to our children until we die. I'll wait, if I have to. My daughter just turned 5. When she was born we new nothing. The doctor's didn't tells why her arm wasn't moving or why she came out so black and blue on the right side. Some of our family wouldn't hold her because of the uncertainty. It was 2 weeks later and I had this impression to contact a local peds office. I did and as soon as the doctor walked in, he told us "Oh, she has Erb's Palsy." It has definately been a learning process and it will continue to be. We encourage her to do what ever she wants and give the reassurance that she can.

Marcie

[claire'smom]

Marcie- I definitely now have a different outlook than I did just a couple months ago. My daughter is only 6 months old, so I think it was natural to be a little depressed/angry about it at first. But now, I think this happened to me (as a mom) because God knows I'm going to talk about it, warn other pregnant mommies about it, and do what I can to increase awareness. It happened to Claire, but I don't want it to happen to any other babies. I am now just going to do my best to help her heal. I do agree w/Claudia that I need to treat her the same as her siblings.
Nicole-really looking forward to meeting you! If you need anything (like something you can't take on a plane or don't have room for), let me know. I'll be driving to Philly in a mini-van...lots of room!

[Amy Clark]

I am so happy to hear you all talking about treating the injured child the same as the others. This is something we have done right from the beginning. I have frequently been made to feel guilty about this by well-intentioned people. It's hard to explain specific scenarios, but its almost as if people imply that you don't care enough about your child's injury because you are "used to it." The fact is, I care very much about my child's injury. There isn't a day that has gone by in 7 years now that I'm not reminded of it in one way or another. And I am NOT obsessed with it. The point is, it is a fact. Sometimes it bothers me, sometimes, not so much. What's important is not what I think - it's what SHE thinks.

Our children are encouraged to express their feelings openly. And they do - believe me. She has at times expressed anger, sometimes sadness; sometimes, if you can believe it, almost a bit of pride (like kids do when they get a cast or stitches). At the current time, she seems to, if not have forgotten about it, at least be resigned to what will seemingly be a permanent part of her life. And we can all accept that. She is a little female member of our happy family. We are all one, though with individual personalities, looks, likes and dislikes, and impairments, no matter how big or small. And though we do not define her by her injury, we realize that she needs to know maybe just a teeny bit more than the others that we will always be there for her.