Modern Mom: Child Advocacy- A Parent's Job

We all know about the many, many “jobs” of a parent – on some days we revel in our role of being our child’s most important teacher, on other days we wonder how we became chef, laundress, maid, and chauffer. But lately I’ve been reminding myself that somewhere at the top of the list belongs the role of “chief advocate.” You see, two years ago I began noticing that my then 2-year-old seemed a bit off-balance (physically, not emotionally). I mentioned it to her pediatrician, who was entirely nonplussed and said she was probably just a bit clumsy. I had her assessed twice by Early Intervention, who said she didn’t qualify. And so we carried on. But as her peers learned to walk and run and jump, my daughter’s balance issues became more distressing. Fast forward two years, during which I raised the issue with anyone who would listen, years during which her hearing loss was diagnosed though I was assured it had nothing to do with her lack of balance, and lo and behold we made it to the office of a highly respected neurologist who “affirmed all of my observations.” I had to put that in quotes because the fact that he used those words was so incredibly gratifying after all this time. Anyway, we are getting ready for an MRI of her brain and spine. I’m incredibly nervous for what we might find, but so thankful that she is getting the attention she so clearly needs and deserves.