Raising a disabled child can come with challenges, not because disability is the problem, but because the world does not always cater to your child. Unfortunately, people with disabilities aren’t always included in the conversation, even though they absolutely deserve to be.
Support is important, and it helps children thrive. I myself have a chronic illness and use mobility aids because of it, and my daughter was born premature and has some short-term medical complexities at this stage in her life. If you have a disabled child, I hope that these resources will help you support them.
We Rock the Spectrum
We Rock the Spectrum is a place for children of all abilities to thrive. It’s a play gym with sensory equipment meant to help your children learn and focus on their senses. There is usually a therapist for special needs children there to aid them as they need it. They have classes and field trips, and the play gym was created by an engineer and a mother.
Judson Center
There is a Judson Center in Washtenaw County that’s well worth getting involved in. The Judson Center’s mission is, “To provide expert, comprehensive services that strengthen children, adults and families impacted by abuse and neglect, autism, developmental, behavioral and physical health challenges so they can achieve whole health, well-being and maximum potential.” They have programs that focus on autism, health, disability and foster care.
Michigan Alliance for Families
Michigan Alliance for Families has resources for your child’s disability. They can also connect you with someone to help you navigate the special education system. On their site, you can find breakdowns of different disabilities that include characteristics, education plans, technology that could assist your child and links to further support. Some of the disabilities included on their site are visual impairments, ADD/ADHD, and genetic disorders, but there are many more as well.
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Bright Star Care
Bright Star Care helps with in-home care for your child (and seniors!) They can help with baths, feedings, dressing and other needs, as well as communicate with physicians for you or your child. They also offer pediatric nursing care for more advanced needs. You can review the care team on their site, learn more about nurses and reach out for more information.
Creating Brighter Futures
Creating Brighter Futures is Ann Arbor’s leading provider of Applied Behavior Analysis therapy (ABA). They help children with Autism and other developmental disabilities. They give parents resources, assess individuals, and have multiple programs to enroll in. These can help advance your child’s social skills, developmental foundation skills and more, depending on your child’s age and needs.
Book with Ronnie
Book with Ronnie is a mobile hair service designed with neurodivergent children in mind. The travel fee is included in the price, and Ronnie comes to your house with sensory tools and understanding to help give your child a haircut in a safe space. There is even a cheaper option for family haircuts if you want to include your entire family in one go. This can be very helpful if your child doesn’t do well in loud environments like a hair salon or simply would feel safer at home.
Speech and Hearing Clinic
This clinic utilizes graduate students at Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti. It’s completely free, though they do accept donations. Some of the services provided include Speech, language, fluency and voice Impairments, developmental language delays/childhood apraxia of speech, hearing aid consultation and gender-affirming voice and communication services.
These are a few resources to help you and your child thrive. Your child deserves care and you deserve support.
