Taking Care of You, Your Family, and Your Birth-Injured Child
            

Having a child is never easy, but there are certainly circumstances that can make it harder.

If the newest addition to your family requires additional attention due to a traumatic birth or birth injury, that can make focusing on your own health even more difficult. It may be difficult to adequately care for any older children you may have, as well.

Even supporting your birth-injured child may be difficult. You may have a hard time bonding with them. Your marriage and other relationships can take a toll. In the midst of recovery for all concerned, it’s vital that you figure out how best to provide care for your entire family—and for yourself.

Here’s what you need to know.

Supporting Your Family—And Yourself—After a Birth Injury

 Prioritizing these actions may make all the difference:

• Take time to grieve. Even if there’s a lot to be grateful for—e.g., your child is alive, the mother is recovering—you’re still experiencing a shocking new hardship and the potential loss of specific hopes you had for your child. You need to let yourself feel that.
• Talk to a small, trusted circle of people. Your family, your spouse, your friends, and (potentially) a therapist can all serve as valuable supports during your time of crisis.
• Seek out experts to help you and your child. From therapy to assist with mental health to skilled pediatricians and medical experts to delve into your birth-injured child’s potential life-long suffering, you’re going to need assistance—and lots of it. (Also, do yourself a favor and stay away from Internet searches regarding your child’s condition.)
• Commit to follow-up care. You’ll likely have many appointments in the weeks after the birth injury, for both mother and child. If you need to arrange childcare or transportation assistance, reach out to your network of trusted ones for support.
• Enjoy the time that you have together. This isn’t the way that you pictured welcoming a child into your family, but this is what’s happening—and you should try to grow through it together. Work with your legal advisor to pursue compensation and support for your future, and then relax as much as possible while you get to know your new child.

Taking care of your family, whatever that requires, will be your number-one priority in the months (and years) after your child’s birth injury. However, your child’s injuries can also make providing care more difficult. Your birth-injured child may face pain, deformities, required physical therapy, special schooling, adaptive devices, and more. In order to provide the best care possible for your family, you’ll need to make sure that you can meet these challenges without draining your resources.

Charles H. Thronson, Attorney at Law, is ready to help you pursue the support you and your family needs. Call our firm today to learn more about how we can help you.