What if every milestone your child was supposed to reach came with countless curve balls? For Alexis Kaplan, motherhood quickly turned into a journey of advocacy, strength, and unwavering love as she navigated her daughter Gabby’s complex and rare health conditions....
Episode 143 | Emily’s Story – Staying Organized as a Medical Parent
Podcast Show Notes
On today’s episode of the podcast, Emily Lemke shares how to stay organized as a medical parent. Emily’s expertise comes from being a medical parent herself and a clinical social worker. She shares about her own journey navigating the world of being a medical parent and the passion behind creating The Medical Mama Compass. You will learn how to manage everything that comes with this title without becoming overwhelmed.
[1:52] Introducing her family
[2:38] Nora’s premature birth and 97 day NICU stay
[4:26] Coming home from the NICU with a G-Tube
[5:48] Finding a feeding tube solution for Nora
[7:15] Feelings surrounding taking your medically complex baby home from the hospital
[8:40] Solution focused mindset
[11:10] How to help manage the new equipment
[12:20] Learning all about health insurance
[16:00] The Medical Mama compass uses (A first time discharge MUST have!)
[16:37] Document everything, even for insurance. it is a practical way to advocate
[17:58] Keep track of your child’s progress no matter how small
[19:06] Ask questions to gain understanding
[20:08] Keep a big picture view as much as possible
[21:01] Taking care of yourself
[24:00] In order to cope you have to think about it
[26:37] What Nora has taught Emily
Connect with Emily
Shop for the Medical Mama Compass Code: CLOC15 15% off for CLOC Listeners
Whether you are a parent or professional, we want you to join our community. Sign up for our newsletter here.
Parents, download our free parent starter kit.
When you download our starter kit, you’ll learn how to:
- Give medicine to your child without it becoming a wrestling match
- Prepare your child (and yourself) for a shot so they can feel less anxious
- Create and use a coping plan for any medical appointment or procedure
The first sign of sniffles, or worse, shouldn’t send you into a tailspin. Feel confident in your role as a parent and advocate, no matter what medical situation you’re facing.
Child life specialists, get affordable PDUs on-demand here.
Shop for your CLOC gear here.
Catch up with CLOC on Instagram, Facebook and meet Katie for a Q+A every Monday at 10 AM CST.
You Might Also Like…
249:How to Talk With Children About Child Abuse [REPOST]- Jane’s Story
Knowing how to talk to kids about child abuse can feel overwhelming—but it doesn’t have to be. In this impactful episode of Child Life On Call, host Katie Taylor interviews child abuse prevention advocate Jane Donovan—who also happens to be her mom. Jane shares her...
248: MERRF Syndrome and Motherhood: Raising and Remembering Dahlia-Jessica’s Story
"We followed Dahlia’s lead—and Dahlia was not going to let this stop her.” — Jessica Fein What happens when your child’s diagnosis is so rare that no one—including your doctors—knows how to help? For Jessica Fein, navigating life with her daughter Dahlia’s MERRF...
