#22: You Weren’t Expecting to Spend the Holidays in the Hospital-with Tori

Send us Fan MailIt feels so good to be back behind the mic! In this bonus episode, Alison is joined by co-host Tori for a laid-back but much-needed conversation about life with our trach/vent-dependent toddlers — and what the holidays look like when they happen inside the hospital instead of at home.We know the weight of spending the holidays in the ICU: the grief, the guilt, the exhaustion, the “this isn’t how it’s supposed to be.” If that’s where you are right now, we want you to know there can still be joy — even in the most unexpected places.We reflect on our own ICU holidays from 2022–2024:• Tori’s incredible decorating skills• Elias’s iconic 90s rapper Halloween costume• Emotional (but joyful) first birthdays in the hospital• Donny being in a medically induced coma over Christmas• And the years we almost ignored the holidays completelyThrough all of it, we’ve learned this: do the best with what you have, focus on the people who truly care, and remember that grief and joy can exist together. You don’t have to love the season, but you can find small moments of light — and you and your child deserve a good day, no matter where you are.We also talk about how different life feels now that we’re no longer living in constant fight-or-flight. When this podcast started last year, neither of us imagined we’d someday feel this much happiness and contentment within medical complexity.If you’re in the hospital or going through something heavy this holiday season, this episode is for you. 💛