In this last year my daughter and I have faced several challenges one after another and often times several at once. First, last school year my daughter Brandi started kindergarten, right away she was evaluated and diagnosed with Autism. Less than a month later she got really sick, I took her to the hospital she had xrays taken and turns out she has pneumonia. Also with those labs, it showed that Brandi has an enlarged heart. Well, needless to say I was overwelled, we soon later discovered that she also has Graves Disease. ( a thyriod condition very rare in children her age). Just when I thought it couldn't get any worse, her father left us. I know perfect timing. Now I'm a single parent with a sick child with both physical and developmental challenges. So as we women often have to do I made it work all by myself. At any given week my daughter would have any where from 5-10 doctors appts. in one week. How am I supposed to work? So I was forced to quit, I hadn't been on my job long enough to take a paid leave. Now unemployed with a sick child, great! Just when I thought it couldnt get any worse I got the news that Brandi also has Sensory Processing Disorder. We are officially in over our heads. Between Brandi's frequent doctor's visits and weekly speech and occupational therapies it impossible for me to work. I tried to register for school and the financial aid office is so far behind that the couldn't process students applications in time for them to get books. So I had to drop those classes. I feel like nothing is going right. I am determined to turn things around. Things have got to get better, right?
Regina R. Watson
Fridley, MN
reginarw@hotmail.com