Episode 1 - Loneliness
three 30+ white women sit close on a grey sofa
In the first F**king Normal Podcast episode Lauren Fenton and Rina Teslica discuss the topic of Loneliness and how important it is to find friends who really get what it’s like to raise a disabled child, by interviewing single-mum, Genevieve Porritt.
Click here to access the full transcript of this episode
Gen says ‘you can be surrounded by people but if none of those people ‘get it’ it can be incredibly isolating. The loneliness I felt was strongest when I realised I had lost my identity, Gen had gone, only Mummy remained. Finding a community who ‘get it’, support you, encourage you, laugh with you, cry with you, rant with you allowed me to begin to find Gen again.’
Our interview with Gen discusses struggles with mental health as a result of the breakdown of her relationship with Dylan’s Dad and the added stresses of having to move back in with your parents as a new mother. Coping as a single parent of a disabled child and how that manifested in day to day life. We discuss coping strategies and trauma responses around project managing medical care, appointments and therapies, socialising and early years parenting. Gen talks to us about how important self care is for her and her healing journey through yoga and meditation.
Content Warnings
Loneliness and struggles with mental health
Not suitable for little ears
Language - lots of swearing, mentions of drinking alcohol
Guest Biography
Single Mum, Genevieve Porritt grew up in North London and had a career in the fashion industry before fulfilling a life purpose of becoming a Mum to Dylan in 2016. Dylan was born with Ullrich Congenital Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic muscle wasting condition which affects him physically.
Genevieve and Dylan’s Dad split in 2017 and they moved back to North London from Croydon, they now live in Tufnell Park and Genevieve is Dylan’s main carer, she is a passionate advocate for the importance of self care particularly within our community, she loves open water swimming, yoga and writing poetry and with any spare time she has contributes to the production of the podcast!
Resources
In the Loneliness Episode we discuss several resources which individually helped us as parents of disabled children, you can find more information and links to these resources below.
There She Goes - originally broadcast by the BBC, There She Goes is a comedy drama that shines a light on the day-to-day life of a family looking after their severely learning disabled girl, Rosie.
It is now being shown on Britbox.
Far from the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity - Andrew Solomon tells the stories of parents who not only learn to deal with their exceptional children but also find profound meaning in doing so.
Not What I Expected: Help and Hope for Parents of Atypical Children - Rita Eichenstein PhD, pediatric neuropsychologist presents strategies to help parents of special-needs children navigate the emotional challenges they face.
Hypotonia UK Facebook Group - a very supportive private facebook group for parents of children with diagnosed Hypotonia usually a symptom of another condition. Based in the UK
Other Resources
Our podcast is focussed on the experience of us as parents of disabled children and how we navigate our world, we don’t attempt to educate our listeners on our children’s conditions. However, we would like to encourage self motivated education and if you would like to find out more about the conditions mentioned in this episode please find links below:
