Thus far, I feel as if I have almost researched the negative of having stress for caring for a child with a disability.  In a sense, I feel as if i have almost made myself grow sympathy for families of children with disabilities.  But this is not what parents are looking for from their child's classroom teacher.  Are there any positives in dealing with children with disabilities?  What can parents do to make it a positive experience?  How can I assist parents in reducing their stress levels?  Although I know having a child with a disability can have exceptionally rewarding experiences, all I feel I hear about is the negative stress parents deal with.  What can parents do to reduce their stress?  Parents must nurture themselves and meet their own needs as well as the needs of the child.  How can they do that?  Just knowing that I handle my own stress in different ways, there must be different ways in which these parents handle their own.  One way I have learned that seems like it could be a high stress reduce is self-care.

According to an article I found, self-care is the most effective way to reduce caregiver burnout and create a nurturing, loving environment.  Constantly, parents are sacrificing their own needs in order to prioritize their child's needs.  If parents make a plan to meet their own needs, they will be better equipped to recognize the unmet needs of their children.  This article discusses six categories of basic needs such as physical needs, emotional needs, social needs, intellectual needs, spirituality needs, and creativity needs.

http://www.disaboom.com/children-with-disabilities/self-care-why-parents-of-children-with-disabilities-must-nurture-themselves