175: Our Children’s Medical Trauma w/ Katie Taylor, CCLS

Watching our children go through pain in a medical setting, even when we know it’s what is best for them, can be difficult for parents to navigate. We want to help, but sometimes it can be hard to know what is actually easing instead of compounding the trauma. Fortunately, there’s a specialty that focuses on this exact problem: enter the Child Life specialists. They’re here to help families provide as much comfort and as little trauma as possible for children in medical settings, including helping families advocate for comfort accommodations. In this episode, Katie Taylor of Child Life on Call is here to explain what exactly a child life specialist is, how they can assist families, and most importantly, the variety of ways that parents can help minimize the medical trauma that their children experience. If your child regularly interacts with the medical system, this is one episode you can’t miss. Links: Join Sticker Club so you can support The Rare Life all year long (and get some awesome stickers as a thank you!) Visit the ABLEnow website to learn how to open an account for your child! Join The Rare Life newsletter and never miss an update (including the moment when Sticker Club opens!) Fill out our contact form to join upcoming discussion groups! Get the SupportSpot App,where you can find the comfort positions mentioned in this app (plus a ton of other resources!) Download the Six Comfort Positions guide. Listen to Katie’s podcast Child Life on Call! Listen to Katie’s previous episode: Ep 47 on Siblings Follow Katie on Instagram @childlifeoncall! Follow us on Instagram @the_rare_life! Donate to the podcast or Contact me about sponsoring an episode. Follow the Facebook page. Join the Facebook group Parents of Children with Rare Conditions. Access the transcript on the website here. And if you love this podcast, please leave us a rating or review in your favorite podcast app!