Please Help Me By Answering These Questions

[Liz2188]

Hello, my name is Liz and I have a school assignment that requires me to interview a parent who has a child with special needs. It would help me tremendously to write my report if anyone could answer any of the following questions that I have to include in my paper. Any help is greatly appreciated, thank you.

1. The parents’ view of their child’s needs.
2. What agency, group, individual has been the most helpful in meeting their child’s needs.
3. The parents’ view of the how their needs are being addressed.
4. The parents’ view the impact the child with special needs has had on the overall family.
5. How the family adapted to having a child with special needs.
6.  The parents’ greatest fears/hopes for their child
7. The age of the child.

[otheramerica]

I don't know if this will help you or not since it is a pretty mild disability, but as a fellow student I felt compelled to reply. My son does not have a severe disability and will hopefully be discharged from his speech services within a year. He has a current diagnosis of a Moderate Language Delay due to a conductive hearing loss.  He got pressure equalizing tubes (PE) put in both ears about 2 weeks ago. We have seen a change in his hearing since then (He responds to noise in situations that he didn't before, he can hear cars honking horns outside now, etc.) but no change in language output.  I'll fill out your questions. Hopefully you can use them, if not, I hope someone else responds. 

1. The parents’ view of their child’s needs: I was in denial at first because I wasn't totally paying attention to developmental milestones. The pediatrician told me that he was behind in language but she said the same thing about my first son. He ended up being fine so I thought Paul, my second, would be fine as well.  It wasn't until he started daycare around 13 months and still wasn't making any sounds that I began to get concerned.  I'm a special education teacher and spoke to one of the speech language pathologists that I work with. When she expressed concerns, I called Early Intervention services through my county and made an appointment. He qualified with a moderate language delay.
2. What agency, group, individual has been the most helpful in meeting their child’s needs.Kelly, our SLP, was the only one who would listen when I said that Paul had a hearing impairment.  I've been in special education for 6 years and am in the last semester for my masters degree from Johns Hopkins. If a person with my background has difficulty navigating the system, the system is too complicated!! No one listens to parents!  I have a much better appreciation for the families of my students have been through by the time they get to school age.  His daycare has been amazing too! None of them are certified in special education, but they have been wonderful about learning sign and using different speech strategies with him.  I am so thankful for these ladies. 
3. The parents’ view of the how their needs are being addressed. Early Intervention was slow providing services. The first SLP they assigned to us was terrible. She actually told me to stop signing to Paul or he would never learn to talk.  As soon as she said this I asked to be assigned to another therapist.  I told several people that Paul needed to have his hearing checked, but no one seemed to listen. He had passed auditory screenings but I knew that he could not hear. He was not interacting with the world in a typical way. They had only tested for a sensory loss not a conductive loss.  I finally called the director of Early Intervention services to complain. She assigned an SLP with a background in hearing loss/deafness who after seeing him for 5 minutes immediately agreed with me. They ran the tests I had been asking for and revealed a moderate hearing loss. He was scheduled for surgery the next month. Services are much better now that we have a decent SLP, but I feel like he should be getting more therapy than they are offering. He only gets 2 one hour sessions per month. If he were in school, he would be getting at least twice that. We called the insurance company but they only cover private therapy for articulation problems, and we can't afford to pay out of pocket. 
4. The parents’ view the impact the child with special needs has had on the overall family.  For the most part it has brought us closer together. My husband and I have learned to communicate about uncomfortable things. Paul's big brother realizes now that he is different from other kids. He has learned to sign some words and does his best to make sure that Paul is included.  We are very lucky because his disability does not require a lot of additional time or energy on our part.  
5. How the family adapted to having a child with special needs. My husband and I have not gone out much since we realized there was a problem. It is hard to find someone who is able to communicate in sign language. Until Paul begins to pick up language from hearing it, this is his primary means of communication. We've had to do quick training sessions with people at the church so they can understand his needs/wants. 
6.  The parents’ greatest fears/hopes for their child. My greatest fears have to do with school. I know firsthand how lazy some teachers (both special education and general education) can be. Right now everything indicates that this speech delay will resolve quickly now that he is hearing in the normal range, but anything is possible.  I am terrified of having a child in the special education system in the public schools. My greatest hope is that he will one day talk to me about a book we are reading together. His big brother asks questions and makes comments while we read. I want Paul to do the same. He has only recently been pointing to pictures in books and showing interest.  
7. The age of the child. Paul is 20 months old. 

[Liz2188]

Thank you so much. Your post actually helps me tremendously. I was having difficulties trying to find a parent who has a child under the age of four. So again thank you so much for helping me complete my project.