Many people find their pediatrician, dentist, piano teacher, plumber, employees, employer, favorite blog, new restaurant, a new book, new website, etc. by chatting with your friends. They may be your real life friends or your virtual friends, like the people you meet on facebook or twitter.
The bigger your network, the more sources of information and referral you have. This is one of the reasons for the success of the new social network websites.
One of the problems that I run into, almost daily, is that parents of children with special needs feel very alone. Even the parents of children with one of the more frequently diagnosed disorders or challenges, like autism or down syndrome, often find themselves with no where to turn.
Many try support groups for a while, but many support groups struggle because it often serves as a place for information, but are not that great at being a day to day source for encouragement, hope, ideas. The problem with this approach to networking/support groups is that each person joins the network with the sole idea of “what’s in it for me?”
As an alternative, I suggest that the most successful networks are those where each person is focused on helping someone else; they are not focused on themselves. Does this seem backwards? It’s not, this is how it has to work.
Each person brings unique experiences, information, and perspective to the network. As you offer your knowledge, ideas, and resources, others will readily do the same for you.
So, if you are feeling overwhelmed, isolated, and without a network then find five people to start helping. If possible, find someone with a child that has challenges similar to the challenges you face and offer them the help you wish you had.
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