A Talk to Dads of the Disabled at The Stuart Centre

"Maintaining Positive Adult Relationships"

I was asked By Sheila Ramsay a Family Therapist to come out to the Stuart Centre and address 10 fathers who are participating in the “Hey Dad” program the Centre is running along with Angela a course facilitator. It is about maintaining positive relationships and staying positive in life with and around their child/children with a disability.
I spoke about the way I as a dad interact with my kids and also others I come across when with or without them. I mentioned how we interact with other adults is important and needs to be positive as this has a huge influence on our kids and everyone’s for that matter. By maintaining a positive state and being happy tends to encourage a child's sense of safety and wellbeing allowing them to grow into better adults.  As a result, the child's happiness and development also depends largely on the quality of their relationships around them. As I said to all dads there… we owe it to ourselves and our kids to live happily and positively and get the best out of life. It is up to us to lead, it is our choice and it is not that hard if we give it a go. I used some examples with images of my kids and other kids and friends of mine who have a child with a disability on how they make a positive contribution to their lives. Some very inspiring conversation ensued after my presentation as I touched a few chords for some. We were all empowered and enlightened and left there enriched by this great experience. I thank all of you for this.
Sheila presented me with a plaque for my speech and power point presentation. Sheila had previously asked me for a fee and I said please just make a donation to LeapFrog Ability so it can go toward the Eddie Cross’ 14 Hour Day For Disability. Oh yeah,… the Pizza we had afterwards was fab too. Tah.