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Joshua needs someone
who believes 100% that
everything will be ok. I try to
be that person for him. But it
is hard – I see other people’s
children reaching milestones
going to university, and I
have to accept that Joshua
is just not there yet.
Things haven’t turned out
as we had hoped for my
son Ben either. He always
struggled a bit when he
was learning to walk – we
used to laugh at his waddle!
When he was eight years
old his fingers started
swelling up, and we noticed
he often had a rash. He later
got diagnosed with arthritis
and psoriasis. He’s incredibly
active and has a huge,
unstoppable enthusiasm
for life. But he is starting
to struggle physically and
is having an operation in
summer to reset the bones
in his feet.
My youngest son Daniel has
quickly gone from being the
baby of the family to a fairly
independent 11-year old.
He has suffered along the
way – sometimes he would
go to school exhausted after
being disturbed by Joshua
in the night, and was finding
it difficult to keep on top
of his homework and his
friendships. He’s getting
more support from school
now, and is part of a young
“When you give up
work you lose so
much of yourself.”
@carersuk
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“It makes such a
difference being able
to talk to people who
understand. On the
days when