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Challenges faced by disabled parents
Tuesday, May 16, 2000
It's often assumed that parenthood and having a disability are mutually exclusive, which may be partly why the issues of disabled parents don't generate much public attention.
Such issues were explored in a national survey conducted by the nonprofit Through the Looking Glass organization in Berkeley, Calif. Among the results, as released in 1997:
Of the 1,175 respondents, four out of five had a physical disability. More than 80 percent had biological children. Slightly more than 25 percent had a disabled child. Almost a quarter of the respondents lived with a partner who also was disabled.
The respondents cited employment, recreation and transportation as the biggest challenges they faced as parents while they identified recreation, chasing and retrieving children and traveling outside the home as the activities with which they were most likely to need help. Respondents said paratransit services that do not accommodate adults traveling with children were a major problem. More than one-third of respondents said they sacrificed personal assistance for themselves to get help caring for their children. About half reported that they (or their partners) experienced complications during pregnancy and childbirth due to their disability.
Through the Looking Glass publishes the Idea Book, which is filled with suggestions on building accessible baby equipment or adapting existing items. For information, call (800) 644-2666. The Web site is www.lookingglass.org.
-- Patti Murphy
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