The Special Needs Mom Podcast

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This week, I’m talking about a pattern I see often in caregiving—the heartbreaking habit of turning on ourselves when life feels too hard. I share how our minds default to “something must be wrong with me,” and why the truth is simpler: hard things feel hard because they are hard. Inside the episode: The self-blame cycle...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) In this episode, I sit down with Nikki McIntosh, founder of Rare Mamas® and host of the Rare Mamas Rising Podcast . Nikki is also the author of Rare Mamas: Empowering Strategies for Navigating Your Child’s Rare Disease , a book born from her family’s journey after her son’s rare diagnosis. We talk about the shock of thos...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This week I’m sharing a really personal story—not all the details, but the emotional experience of finding myself in a very sudden, very public, and really scary moment with Levi. It was one of those times where I could’ve spiraled, but something shifted in me. We’re talking about the sneaky nature of self-pity, how it i...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This week on the podcast I got to talk with Catherine Marston—a mom, health coach, author, and 14-time Ironman triathlete (yes, you read that right…14!). Catherine’s story is one of grief, resilience, and learning how to take small, consistent steps toward healing and strength. She shares about losing her daughter Helen,...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This episode was such a treat. I got to catch up with my longtime friend Kelly Dixon—someone who knew me way back in my landscaping days (pre-leadership Kara 😅). Kelly has a fascinating background managing ultra-wealthy households, and while she’s not a special needs mom—or a mom at all—her systems-thinking brain totall...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) I didn’t plan to end up emotionally fried by the end of summer... but there I was. I hit my limit. So, I did something radical (for a special needs mom, at least): I took myself to the beach. Alone. No kids. No caregiving. Just me, the ocean, and a much-needed van therapy session overlooking the waves. And wouldn’t you k...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This replay from the archives is just as relevant now as it was in 2022. If you’ve ever felt the crushing weight of being the one who holds everything together for your child with disabilities, you’re not alone. In this episode, I share listener reflections on what feels heaviest—like being the only one who knows every d...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This one’s light, real, and a little bit ridiculous in the best way. I showed up ready to share a few stories from the trenches—some funny, some a little gross (parenting, right?), and all with the hope that you’d feel just a little less alone in this wild life of ours. We talked about: 🧯 Levi’s new hobby with matches (...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This week, I’m joined by my friend and fellow writer, Brooke Turbyfill. We met as co-authors of The Courage to Raise , a book written by moms navigating the special needs parenting journey—and somewhere between that and a road trip in an electric blue rental car, we became fast friends. Brooke shares what it was like ent...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This episode lit me up. I had the gift of sitting down with Julie Hornok and Dr. Regina Crone—co-founders of Labeled and Loved . Together, they’ve created something powerful for moms like us navigating disability and special needs: connection, purpose, and spaces where you don’t have to explain yourself. Julie brings ove...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This week’s guest is Kim Botto, a longtime children’s and student ministry leader, TBRI® Practitioner, and all-around passionate advocate for kids who don’t always fit the mold. She’s spent decades creating spaces where every child—regardless of background, behavior, or ability—can belong, contribute, and grow. Kim and I...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This week, I’m sharing something exciting: I co-authored a new book called The Courage to Raise ! It's a collaborative project with eight other special needs moms, and I’m proud (and a little surprised) to be a published author again—especially since writing has never come easily to me. In this episode, I talk about...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This episode is a rebroadcast of episode 87 that was originally aired May 2022.  This episode I’m talking about what happens when our story gets disrupted.  Likely, we all feel this way about diagnosis, a relationship ending or some other trauma in our lives.  What narrative do you tell yourself in this special needs mom...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This episode is pulled from the archives way back in September 2021. It is episode 56 and it aired shortly after finding out my son Levi’s brain tumor had returned. It was a season full of fear and uncertainty—and that’s exactly what I talk about here: worry and anxiety, and how they show up in our lives as special needs...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) Welcome to summer—ready or not! In this episode, I share a super personal mid-summer check-in that started with a frazzled Voxer chat with my friend Nicole and ended with some surprisingly helpful advice from... ChatGPT. (Yep, really.) I walk you through a real-life day in the life: four kids, a business to run, complex...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This conversation with Erin Trier was equal parts heart, healing, and hard truths. Erin is a mom of four, a health coach, and someone who knows the weight of navigating rare diagnoses and emotional overwhelm. She shares about her son Brendan’s long, winding path to a diagnosis of Tuberous Sclerosis Complex—and what it’s...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) Sometimes the “good” moments still catch us off guard—like when progress or positive change feels surprisingly heavy. In this episode, I share how a kitchen remodel gone wrong helped me notice something deeper: the emotional tension of expecting joy, but feeling stress instead. If you're a parent of a child with spe...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) In this episode, I talk with Katelyn—a mom of three kids with different disabilities, including Trisomy 21, Aicardi-Goutieres Syndrome & Autism, whose parenting journey started at just 19. Her story includes foster care, childhood trauma, a cancer diagnosis, and learning how to feel her emotions for the first time as...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This is a rebroadcast of Episode 130 that was aired back in 2023. "In this episode, I open up about those moments when everyone assumes you're okay, but inside, you're struggling. It's a common experience, especially for us moms navigating the complexities of raising children with special needs. I sha...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) This week, I sat down with Kristin Herzberg Purdy—psychologist, rare disease advocate, and mom of two children with disabilities. KristIn shares her deeply personal story of parenting through autism, epilepsy, and a rare neurodegenerative condition. We talked about the emotional toll of constant caregiving, the push to f...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) In today’s episode, I’m sharing some personal reflections about acceptance and the emotions that come with it, especially with my son’s 16th birthday bringing up past challenges. I also share the excitement of an upcoming getaway, thanks to my friend Laura's help—talk about a surprise upgrade! The highlight of the e...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) In this episode, I'm joined by Tara Heaton, a writer, speaker, and master storyteller with over 25 years of corporate experience. Tara’s journey took a turn when her daughter, Caroline, developed encephalitis, which led to a seizure disorder and ongoing medical challenges. Tara shares how her career in sales helped...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) In this episode, I talk about the sneaky voice of self-judgment that creeps in when we’re feeling inadequate. I share a personal story of how I’ve learned to recognize and deal with these judgmental thoughts, and why it’s important to show ourselves some compassion. If you've ever felt that nagging doubt about not b...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) In this episode, I share my concern over the rising division within our special needs community. Recently, I’ve observed two sides clashing—each convinced the other is wrong. This division started with a comment made by the Secretary of Health and Human Services about autism, but what’s more troubling to me is how we’re...

Send us a text (Note: we are not able to respond but LOVE to hear from you!!) In this episode, we sit in on the Rare Advocacy Exchange virtual series. Global Genes is hosting this series in an effort to empower rare disease leaders. As moderator, I facilitated a panel that focused on the challenges and rewards of leading in the rare disease space. The conversation covered the importance of communi...