Web Site Gives Emotional Support to 10,000 Special Needs Families

INDIANAPOLIS, Aug. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- This week, Paint Her in Color (http://paintherincolor.com) offered emotional support to its 10,000^th special needs family. Nearly 20% of U.S. children live with special medical, developmental, or behavioral health care needs. While their parents report poorer self-rated mental health and more restrictions on daily life than parents of typically developing children, emotional support can be hard to find.

Paint Her in Color founder Laura Spiegel knows this well. "When my daughter was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis, I felt isolated and overwhelmed. It took me a long time to wrestle down my worries and find gratitude." Spiegel now works to make emotional support available to parents everywhere. 

Since July 2019, parents from 40 countries have come to Spiegel's web site to learn how to paint their children in color. At its core is the refusal to define children by their health. "Cystic fibrosis is an important part of my daughter's life," says Spiegel. "But defining her by it is too black and white. She loves ladybugs, telling stories, and dancing with friends. She also has cystic fibrosis. And I want to paint her in color."

Paint Her in Color provides practical tips and tools to help parents balance daily care with the unexpected messiness of childhood. Weekly blogs and videos encourage parents to nurture the blessings alongside the battles and to treat themselves with kindness.

Mother and health advocate Brittany Gummere can relate. Gummere's six-year-old daughter lives with Phelan-McDermid Syndrome and is nonverbal. "Some days, I don't know whether to laugh or cry. But my daughter deserves to be celebrated, and I deserve to be kind to myself!"

Spiegel writes most of her site's blogs and partners with non-profits and children's hospitals to offer trusted support resources. Guests from the U.S. and abroad also contribute stories about raising children with cerebral palsy, pediatric cancer, and more. Some offer dual perspectives as special needs parents and social workers, psychologists, or nurses.

"Sometimes, it's two steps forward and one step back," admits Spiegel. "But we are not alone, and we can do this."

About Paint Her in Color:

Paint Her in Color offers emotional support to parents of children with special health care needs. To learn more, visit https://www.paintherincolor.com or contact Laura Spiegel at [email protected].  

Contact: Laura Spiegel     
Founder and President     
317-362-3050
[email protected]

SOURCE Paint Her in Color