Marion Wilm

Recently, one of my co-workers was planning a trip to Europe and a parent mentioned to her that going on a trip is like having a child with a disability.  Many of my co-workers had never heard of the story written by Emily Perl Kingsley (1987)about signing up for a trip to Italy but landing instead in Holland, which described her own journey in understanding what it means to be a parent of a child with a disability.  I encourage each of you to look up this heartwarming story on the Internet.  I won't copy it here for you as it is a copyrighted story, but it is readily available on many sites. 

As for me, I LOVE to travel and if I didn't love being an occupational therapist, I would change careers and become a travel agent.  However, one of the most rewarding aspects of my profession as an occupational therapist is teaching families how to embrace and navigate the new world that they are sent to when a child is diagnosed with a disability.  I help to teach the families a new language (sensory processing, muscle tone, modulation, fine motor dexterity, oculomotor control, dysgraphia), provide them with a "guidebook" of home activities to help their child, and develop an itinerary with them (treatment plan). 

Along their journey, I give them more information so that the parent feels empowered and can now take others along on their journey (grandparents, siblings, friends, and other parents who are experiencing difficulties with a child).  A successful "trip" through therapy is when the family better understands their own child's needs, challenges, successes and failures and feels that they can continue their journey with enjoyment versus fear of the unknown. 

So...Welcome to Holland (the world of disabilities)....It may not be where you planned to go but it can be a fun and interesting place too.