Special Needs Parenting Speaking Topics
I was blown away by how informative and helpful Jolene’s session was.
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Managing Your Time Without Losing Your Mind
Time management takes time, a commodity in short supply for parents of kids with special needs. In this workshop parent learn simple techniques for redeeming their time. The techniques include conducting a time audit, defining roles and responsibilities, establishing and maintaining priorities, and dealing with non-priorities. The second half of the workshop will be spent reviewing practical time-saving tips and resources specific to families of kids with special needs. Workshop participants are encouraged to share their ideas, too.
Reconciling Dreams, Banishing Guilt, and Overcoming Grief
The emotional impact of parenting a child with special needs begins at diagnosis and continues throughout the child’s life. In this workshop, Jolene identifies the emotional responses that are universal to any special needs diagnosis, including lost dreams, guilt, and grief. The manifestations of the emotions are described. Strategies and supports available to families are also be explored. The information presented in this workshop was gathered during interviews with more than fifty parents of kids with special needs, educators and health care professionals who support them.
Ten Ways Friends Can Help Parents of Kids with Special Needs:
You probably know a family with a critically or chronically ill child. Like most people watching a family struggle, you want to help, but aren’t sure what to do. This presentation is designed to help turn your heartfelt compassion into practical action. Suggestions come from Jolene’s personal experience as the parent of a child born with a life-threatening birth defect. Other suggestions were gleaned from parent interviews conducted during research for her books about parenting kids with special needs.
Keeping Track of What You’ve Got: 9 Ways to Organize Caregiving Paperwork
When a caregiver’s days are filled with therapy sessions, doctor’s appointments, IEP meetings, tracking meds, and fixing supper, who has time for paperwork? This workshop answers that nagging question by providing nine ways for participants to organize documents associated with caregiving. Attenders will learn strategies for preparing emergency packets, using calendars for record-keeping, maintaining contact and medication lists, compiling medical histories, logging insurance interactions, filing legal paperwork, and establishing documented daily routines. They will also be given a list of online resources with directions for a variety of organizational systems and downloadable forms. Participants are encouraged to share their own organization strategies at the end of the session.
Special Kids Need Special Parents
In this workshop, parents learn how to become an effective advocate for their kids with special needs. Parents learn strategies for effective advocacy in each of three settings: medical, educational, and prayer. Those attending leave with ten tips for each area covered and an extensive list of resources.
Ten Ways to Be a Healthy and Effective Advocate for a Child with Special Needs
Parents of children with special needs have to stay healthy and strong so they can be effective advocates for their children with special needs. This workshop equips parents to manage their own trauma and stress so they can advocate effectively for their children. Parents will learn about simple stress management techniques, symptoms that indicate they could benefit from professional therapy, types of therapy to consider, as well as time management and organizational methods that can reduce stress and increase their effectiveness as advocates. Those who attend the workshop will leave with an extensive resource list so they can continue to refine their skills.
Speaking
Topics
Topics
Trauma and PTSD
Much of the information in these workshops is based upon Jolene’s book, Does My Child Have PTSD? What to Do When Your Child Is Hurting from the Inside Out
Church Events
Faith-based topics perfect for parenting or women’s ministry events including spiritual disciplines, finding joy in difficult circumstances, and Scripture memorization
Special Needs Ministry
These workshops are designed to provide a complete two day training for children’s ministry staff and volunteers or other groups interested in launching a special needs ministry.
Special Needs Parenting
Practical tips on time management, paperwork, advocacy, and maintaining friendships for parents of kids with special needs
Writing Workshops
Jolene covers a variety of topics about the book writing process for both fiction and non-fiction, interviews, queries and proposals, organization, marketing, and more!
