B*tching and Bolusing

On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, we explore the concept of presuming competence in individuals with disabilities while challenging societal assumptions and biases. By embracing this mindset, we are able to foster inclusion, autonomy, and empowerment while transforming the perception of how society views intellectual disability.

Back to school season is here, and for many of our children who use wheelchairs - they'll be transported to school on a bus. But so many of these children are transported unsafely, and without proper restraints! On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, we sit down and talk about proper restraint and transportation for wheelchair users!   https://wc-transportation-safety.umtri.umich.edu/ https://www.transit.dot.gov/regulations-and-guidance/civil-rights-ada/questions-and-answers-concerning-wheelchairs-and-bus-and https://www.karmamedical.com/2022/04/how-to-safely-transport-a-wheelchair-user-in-a-vehicle/

Self care...if you're a parent you know the typical narrative: "take care of yourself, take time for yourself, if mom (or dad) isnt ok, no one is ok" but it feels like an an impossible goal to obtain. One where the goal post is constantly being moved. "No, a shower doesn't count, that is a human need, no you can't do self care in the house, you need to leave and spend time away from your kids. A haircut is nice, but what about an entire day at the spa, or a weekend trip?". On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, we sit down to discuss how we can reframe self care in a way that doesn't set us up for failure. So grab your face mask, or glass (bottle) of wine, and let's get to bitching!

Most parents feel as though accessible travel may be off-limits when they receive their child's diagnosis, especially when mobility aids are involved. While, for some, not traveling is the safest option, for others travel can still be obtainable with a little bit of extra planning. While we may not be experts on traveling, we've had our share of going out-and-about with our interabled children. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we sit down and talk about our own experiences with traveling both in and out of the country!   For more incredible information on traveling with disabilities, or being a caretaker while traveling with someone who has disabilities follow: https://curbfreewithcorylee.com/ https://havewheelchairwilltravel.net/

There's no hood quite like siblinghood! As parents of interabled children, watching our children grown and learn side by side is a beautiful thing - even if they're doing it at difference paces. There is a natural routine that falls into place between the siblings, and oftentimes the non-disabled child is happy to offer support to their disabled brother or sister. Many parents choose to use terms like "supersib" to describe this relationship simply because the non-disabled sibling is helping out. But what happens when we begin to use language that "others" someone within the family? On this episode we take a deep-dive into the potential effects that can come from the phenomenon of labeling a non-disabled sibling, and what we can do to make ensure equity between our children.   Interabled Sibling Representation that we love - Hannah & Becky   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing   Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

Family planning can be complicated even in the most straight-forward of situations, but when parents have a child with a disability family planning can feel even more challenging to navigate. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we sit down to discuss how we waded through the waters of pregnancy after HIE, the challenges we faced, and where we are now with our family dynamics.   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing   Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

Marketing campaigns are an important way for companies to sell products or services to customers, including the disabled community. These companies , however, have a responsibility to create campaigns that provide respectful and ethical representation. When these companies fail to do this, they put their own target audience at risk. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, we sit own to discuss just what can happen when a company fails to maintain ethics in marketing.   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing   Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

Fallout may be a smash hit on Amazon Prime, but it got us to thinking...."what would we ACTUALLY do in the event of nuclear bomb?". No, we couldn't just strap our kids and their wheelchairs to the back of a horse and go galloping off to a Vault the way Cooper Howard did. Chances are those Vaults wouldn't be stocked with our kids medications anyhow. In this episode we sit down and chat about our extremely unrealistic plans if we were to live in Fallout! So grab your iodine pills and let's get to bitchin'!

From the moment we learn of our children's disability - be it before or after birth - we are told go do as much therapy for them as possible. Physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, all of the therapy. While therapy is a useful and necessary medical intervention, it can sometimes become overwhelming and completely consuming. Where do we draw the line of "improving quality of life" and "fixing the disability"? Disability is not something that needs to be fixed, yet so often the narrative surrounding therapy can feel as such. We sit down with Clare (that.feisty.disabled.girl on Instagram) to discuss a different perspective on therapy for disabled children. Clare is currently in school to earn her degree in Occupational Therapy where they hope to eventually open their own private clinic working in pediatrics.   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing Follow Clare on Instagram: @That.Fiesty.Disabled.Girl Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

All parents are faced with making medical decisions for their children, but when your child is disabled or medically fragile those decisions can be more frequent and oftentimes carry more weight. As parents we are faced with hard decisions surrounding irreversible surgeries, medications that could have negative side affects or withdrawals, and trying to draw the line between the necessity of medical interventions and the potential impact on quality of life that intervention could have. So come sit down and bitch with us over the frustrations we sometimes feel surrounding these potential life-altering decisions.   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing   Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

Internalized ableism. We all have it. Yet so many parents struggle to acknowledge it, and can hardly even recognize it. This has a direct affect on our disabled children who may inherit some of that internalized ableism for themselves. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we sit down to discuss our own struggles with internalized ableism and how we are working to counteract something that has been deeply rooted in us from an ableist society. So let's get to bitching!   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing   Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

Raising a child comes with a lot of responsibility, but when medical decisions, extra appointments, and support needs are involved those responsibilities increase. Most families have some sort of support - usually in the form of partnership, but what happens when you have to navigate all this alone? We sit down with Hope & Rachel, both single mothers to young children who have disabilities. They discuss their trials and tribulations through it all, how the system can fail families like theirs, and how being labeled as a "single mother" can alter the level of respect by some medical professionals.    You can find Hope on instagram at LimitlessLoganJameson You can find Rachel on instagram at Aryas_Keeper   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing   Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

There is a mental health crisis affecting everyone in the U.S. and beyond. Parents and caregivers of disabled individuals are no exception, and sometimes, due to lack of resources, respite, services, and support, mental health becomes an extra struggle for these families. However, it is important to seek help - and sometimes - alter your perspective on disability and caregiving. Not all mental health help is created equal, and in some cases staying in an "echo chamber" can hinder healing and growth. Not only does this have a negative affect on the individual and the family, but living in a state of despair has a negative impact on societies perception of disability.   March 1st is the Disability Day of Mourning, a day where we remember victims of filicide - those with disabilities who were murdered by their families. The fact that such a day even exists is proof that the mental health of parents and caregivers needs to be addressed. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, we sit down to discuss the mental health crisis within the parenting community and we challenge families to view disability and caregiving in a different light.   Follow Bitching and Bolusing on Instagram: @Bitching_and_Bolusing   Merch Shop: https://bitchingandbolusing.threadless.com/     Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

All parents have one thing in common when it comes to balancing work and family life - lack of childcare. Yet, somehow, a recent narrative has turned this struggle into an issue that can feel almost exclusive to parents raising disabled children. In the U.S. the lack of affordable childcare is a systemic issue that affects all parents across the board. The cost of childcare is currently outpacing inflation by more than 3%, which is making childcare significantly less accessible for all families. However, if we are going to related lack of accessible childcare to raising disabled children, we have a responsibility as parents to acknowledge that this roadblock is not a parenting issue - rather it is a disability issue set in place by systemic ableism that will affect our children for the entirety of their lives. Reframing this perspective can help us see the systemic ableism that is forcing families like ours out of the workforce, and can help us see commonalities with other parents of non-disabled children.   Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign

Welcome to season 2! Inclusive education - it can be wonderful, and it can be awful. Almost all parents of disabled children have had some sort of negative experience along the way when it comes to IEPs or 504 plans. We are oftentimes expected to know how to navigate the "special education" system for our children when we have had no experience whatsoever. This can leave parents feeling confused, overwhelmed, and frustrated. It can be daunting having to argue as to how the needs of your child should be met, especially when you are not there to see if their needs ARE actually being met. In this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we sit down to discuss our own experiences with navigating IEP's, and what true inclusivity means for our children. So grab a seat and let's get to bitching!   Thanks to our sponsors Adapted Design and The Recess Project Use code BBPODCAST to receive 15% off Lets Adapt For Everyone by AdaptedDesign    

For parents of disabled children, the holiday season can be a tricky time of the year to navigate. We are often faced with managing extra schedules, taking on the mental load of making sure everyone has everything they need, and feeling a certain way when doing our holiday shopping knowing a toy isn't exactly "age appropriate" for our disabled children. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, we discuss how all these things can leave us feeling drained, and how shifting our perspective can change the extra grief we feel during this season. It's important to not fit our children into the idea of who they would be were they not disabled, and sometimes that means making new traditions that differ from the ones we had when we were children ourselves. It's OK to start new traditions and to make life easier on yourself - even if that means saying "no" to family. Sometimes hosting is easier so that you don't have to bring 18 pieces of medical equipment, feeds, medications, etc, to someone else's house!

Toxic Positivity: We've all experienced it at some point during our trauma recovery. Whether it's a well meaning relative telling you to "look on the bright side" or a stranger saying "you're so strong, I don't know how you do it". It's all left us feeling shut-down and invalidated. On the flip side, at some point, we've all probably unintentionally dished out toxic positivity to others. Saying things like "Be thankful your child can walk/talk/etc" or "at least your child can go to school", these statements are a way of telling others "it could be worse" at the expense of you and your child. Life isn't a competition, and on this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we discuss the affects of toxic positivity and ways we can better support each other as a community of parents and caregivers.

Challenges with accessibility can come in many different forms. One of the most frustrating challenges parents can face with accessibility is the outrageous cost that comes with finding adapted toys or other functional items. There's almost a gatekeeping-mentality around those who offer switch adapted products, which allows them to charge exuberant prices. We sit down with Greg from AdaptedDesign to talk about the frustrations he faced when trying to find adapted and functional products for his daughter. This frustration drove him to learn how to switch adapt products on his own. He now offers his services at extremely reasonable cost so that all families can grant their children the joy and happiness that comes with using a switch-adapted product! Greg also discusses the lack of representation and community for fathers of disabled children, and how he turned to creating memes to help bring comic relief to those who felt the same isolation.   You can find Greg on Instagram at Adapted Design From now until 11/30 you can get 20% off the Ergonomic ENFit Tool and the Suction Pump Holder with promo code BBPODCAST

Pseudoscience, with its unsubstantiated claims and misleading information, can have a particularly harmful and predatory impact on the disabled community. This exploitation often takes the form of alternative treatments and therapies that promise miraculous cures but lack scientific backing. Such pseudoscientific practices not only offer false hope but can also divert individuals from evidence-based treatments, causing severe harm. Furthermore, the predatory nature of pseudoscience can erode trust in the medical and scientific communities. When individuals are deceived by false claims, they may become skeptical of legitimate treatments and interventions, hindering their access to effective healthcare. It's crucial to combat the spread of pseudoscience and promote critical thinking to protect the well-being and rights of the disabled community.On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we dive into the potentially harmful impact pseudoscience can have on disabled individuals and their families.      Arizona: The Wild West of Medicine   Tales of a Naturopathic Ethical Review Board   Unregulated Stem Cell Therapy   Skeptical Raptor: Using Evidence and Science to debunk bogus claims   Pseudoscience and bad science in Biomedicine

Every child has the right to play, but for children with disabilities, inclusion in play can be almost non-existent in certain circumstances. Oftentimes school playgrounds leave out room for inclusion by having non accessible equipment. Enter: Katrina, founder of The Recess Project. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, we sit down with Katrina and discuss her passion for creating inclusive playgrounds for children, particularly in school settings. This love was sparked when she saw her daughter Dallas (Discover with Dallas) find pure joy on an accesible swing. Katrina discusses the importance of inclusion in play, and what she hopes The Recess Project becomes with hard work and perseverance. Katrina also discusses her role as Dallas' mom. She's helped encourage her daughters desire to grow her own social media presence and has helped her enter the world of acting in modeling, all while advocating fiercely for her daughter in a sometimes ableist industry.   Discover With Dallas - Instagram Discover With Dallas - Youtube Discover With Dallas - TikTok   The Recess Project Website The Recess Project - Instagram The Recess Project - TikTok

Oftentimes parents who have medically complex and disabled children will refer to themselves as their child's caregiver. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing podcast, we sit down to discuss the potential harm this could have not just on our own children, but on ourselves, and within our family unit. We also discuss the desire to refer to ourselves as caregivers, the lack of representation, and how we were force-fed an idealistic version of "parenthood" by society that left us feeling isolated and misunderstood. So let's sit down and bitch about it!

On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we sit down with Jen Lowe, MSW, a social worker, therapist, and mother to a son with medical complexities who spent 3 months in the NICU. Jen offers her unique insight as a therapist who has experienced her own trauma during labor and delivery, to a long NICU stay and beyond. During her journey she developed the Miracle Kids & Parent Support Network where she helps other families who have similar experiences heal and build a community. Jen hopes to grow and expand the Miracle Kids & Parent Support Network where other families can find resources to help guide them on their own path to recovery and healing.   You can find The Miracle Kids & Parents Network here: Miracle Kids & Parents Network on Instagram Miracle Kids & Parent Support Network on Facebook Grow With Jen Lowe Youtube     Hand To Hold

We've all been there - you're going about your life minding your own business and somebody interrupts you to do something kind simply because you have a disabled child, or because you yourself are disabled. These acts of kindness certainly come from a place of good, but it can be driven by an ableist mindset: that disabled individuals deserve pity. Sometimes these acts are only a way for the giver to feel better about themselves. Regardless, it can be jarring and can be tricky for parents of disabled children to navigate. How do we lead by example? How do we let our disabled children know that they are not obligated to take "gifts" from strangers when we ourselves freeze, smile, and say thanks? Why does it seem that these acts of kindness are only reserved for children with certain disabilities, while others are deemed "unruly", shamed, and shunned? Empathy and equity does not exist amongst all types of disabilities when it comes to these acts of kindness. So let's sit down and bitch about it on todays episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast!

It is far too commonplace that disabled individuals and their families receive pity from passersby. The mere thought of disability becomes worst case scenario for most people who have no experience at all with disability. But this is not, and should not, be the case. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we sit down with Lillian Joy to discuss the harm that can come from being on the receiving end of other peoples pity. Lillian has developed a keynote speech titled "From Pity to Perspective" based on the experiences that she's had throughout her life as a disabled individual.   You can find Lillian on Instagram at @yours.very.truly.lillian Lillians Keynote speech can be found here

Relationships sometimes become unnecessarily complicated when disability is involved. Sometimes people don't know how to react to the news of disability, they oftentimes hold grief for who they imagined your child would have been without disability. As parents, navigating the grief of others can be a burdensome task that halters our own healing, growth, and acceptance. It is important that we lead by example and show our children how to set healthy boundaries that can better empower them and that prevents any development of internalized ableism. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we discuss what those boundaries can look like, and how to recognize relationships that may be harmful to families with disabled children. We also discuss how to encourage healthy friendships for our children that omit any "caretaker" undertones.

When parents have children with disabilities it can be challenging to figure out what your identity is. Oftentimes, sometimes unintentionally, parents tend to take on their child's disability as their own identity. This, however, can not only be detrimental to the family and child, but it can also be detrimental to the disabled community. In this episode on The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast we sit down with Wes from Wes of Disabledland and discuss some hard hitting, sometimes uncomfortable topics and insights. Wes offers us his views on how there should be a shift within the parenting community that could better empower the disabled community, and how both communities are not one in the same.    Please be sure to visit Disabledland Shops! DisabledLand Kids DisabledLand Shop (NSFW)     The Recess Project Sick Kids VS Campaign

When it comes to birth trauma, the focus is often on the mother. More times than not, however, the fathers experience a similar level of trauma that can even result in PPD, PPA, and PTSD. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, Courtney and Brittney sit down with their husbands to discuss their experiences with trauma after birth injury and life inside the NICU. The dads get vulnerable and discuss how their lives have been altered by such trauma, and how--at the beginning--they felt as though they had to suffer in silence. Courtney and Brittney hope that this episode helps to open up conversations between couples of all types who have experienced a traumatic birth, a traumatic NICU stay, or who are faced with trauma related to their children's disability or medical complexities. Happy Fathers Day!

As parents and caregivers, we want to share our journey and raise awareness for our children. But sometimes this can come at the cost of our children's privacy. On this episode of The Bitching and Bolusing Podcast, Courtney and Brittney talk about the importance of maintaining privacy and autonomy for children on social media, and the possible long-term implications of sharing too much. 

Episode 1 introduces you to Courtney and Brittney. We explain what to expect from future episodes, and we talk about our own journeys into motherhood with interabled children. So come Bitch and Bolus with us!