The Special Family Connection® Podcast

In this episode, I share laughs, silliness, and wise insights from my friend, Jon Almada. Jon was born with multiple issues, including brain damage-induced Aphasia, the inability to understand or express speech. Jon's mother would not give up on him, and aided by his grandfather, a renowned neurologist, he overcame much of his disabilities. Jon has insights that can inspire and help other parents fighting against the system for their special kids. Despite being born with Aphasia, Jon became a talented computer programmer and webmaster for a world-renowned Aerospace company that put a man on the moon. Jon is a well-known Psychic medium and paranormal researcher. He hosts the streaming show and podcasts, "SoulStreamRadio" (soulstreamradio.com & www.twitch.tv/soulstreamradio), gives helpful views and insights on tech and life on "After Burner One" (afterburner1.com), and is the owner of "GRI - Ghost Riders Paranormal Investigations." (ghostriderinvestigations.com) What do doctors know? In this case - Nothing! Listen to your heart, Never let go of hope and never stop trying Listen to Jon's show, every Saturday night at 9pm pst https://www.twitch.tv/soulstreamradio Visit his sites at: https://soulstreamradio.com/ https://ghostriderinvestigations.com/ https://afterburner1.com/ Support the show

Hear what a man raising an Autistic child as a single dad, had to endure. A kind and gentle man, who when he found himself homeless, fiercely loved and protected his special son against all odds. I had the great pleasure of interviewing Adam Murphy from the UK, who was a single dad raising Ryan, his Autistic son. He is now a husband and father of 3. Dads should all take the time to listen to what Adam says about being a man and raising a special needs child, and Ladies, it would be good for you as well. Twitter account, "Autism Care and Share" - now 15K followers and he has earned every one with heartfelt posts and advice to dads, and carers of Autistic children. Join me, Debby Wells as I share a chat with this great dad and husband. Tweets - Passionate and True https://twitter.com/autcareandshare "I'm Adam, Proud Father of 3, Full Time Carer, My Eldest Son Ryan is Autistic." "Almost 15k followers which is unbelievable just a dad tweeting about his journey with his son, trying to spread a little bit of acceptance and understanding of autism. Thankyou to everyone that follows us." "So many people are still uneducated about autism blaming and shaming the child and the parents when they misunderstand a child's behavior, This can create a stigma that can lead to parents and children feeling socially isolated ." "When it comes to Autism Everyone claims to be a expert From family to friends to the strangers on the bus, There is only one autism expert in our house , and thats my autistic son. Tea and biscuits welcome Criticism is not." Support the show

Interview with Author of, "Eddy Finds a Family" Debby Wells with Sarah McGeough Please listen in on Sarah McGeough and me as we talk about her very personal journey to have a baby. After losing her ability to have a child, waiting to adopt, the arrival of their adopted baby son. Sarah openly discusses the feelings and issues she and her husband dealt with while waiting for the adoption to be final and the changes in their lives after he arrives home. We tried for a child for 8 years. It was an immensely challenging and emotional time. We went through two rounds of IVF, an ectopic pregnancy, diagnosis of adenomyosis and sadly then a hysterectomy. We were determined to have a child so started to research adoption and decided this was something we wanted to pursue. We waited three years to adopt our son. It was a long and draining process and at times we felt like giving up. Thankfully an amazing social worker came to our rescue and within a few months we were told we could potentially be matched to a baby who had not yet been born. It was a difficult journey but we completed our family in 2016 and adopted our son. At the time we didn’t feel there were many books available to help him understand his adoption journey and so during lockdown I decided to self- publish my first children’s book, "Eddy Finds a Family" in December 2020. Writing a book has been a life changing experience for me. The first lock-down in 2020 was tough but suddenly having a goal to write a book was making me feel excitement on a whole new level. I seemed to have buried my creative side, but suddenly there it was, bursting to come out. I loved every moment and each step I took made me more and more determined to get my book out there into the world. My book is a tribute to our son which also helped as a motivator. It means so much to be able to give him this gift as his mummy. My goal was to write a colourful and engaging story so all children would be able to understand adoption in a better way. "Eddy Finds a Family" is unique as it explains both the parent and child’s journey through adoption. My son often asks, ‘How did you find me?’ and, ‘Was I lost?’ as he is interested to know how we came together to be a family. This is so vitally important. My son has been my chief editor, asking questions about the characters and commenting on the draft illustrations. It has been wonderful for him to have such involvement and having a child’s perspective has helped fine-tune the story so I have confidence it will appeal to many children and they will get great joy from the characters. I am pleased to say I have started to write the next book in the series, "Eddy Feels at Home". I have got many people engaged in ideas and it is receiving great support. It is going to be about Eddy settling in with his new family, which is something that I have never seen written about in children’s books. I love knowing my book has touched the hearts of many children and would be thrilled for The Flamingo Family to become well known in many households. A personalized signed copy of Eddy Finds a Family can be purchased via my website www.theflamingofamily.co.uk. My book is also available via Amazon as a softback. If you would like to connect then please do email me at eddy@theflamingofamily.co.uk. I can also be found on Instagram @the_flamingofamily and my Facebook page @theflamingofamilybook. www.theflamingofamily.co.uk. Email: eddy@theflamingofamily.co.uk. Thank so much Support the show

- Debby Wells The Imagination, what a gift to those who cannot walk, see or have grown too old to play. To fly, travel, find treasure and adventure without leaving your bed... Should those who cannot have a life outside the confines of their room be encouraged to actively dream and be somewhere else in order to live? Why not. Debby Wells talks about the gift of our imagination Support the show

What if schools could use their resources to set educational goals that would nurture gifts, then give students the environment to use them? Would regular ed and out-of-the-box kids be able to grow up and do amazing things? The answer has almost always been yes. Oh, man... What kind of world would we have if teachers were trained and free to find the unique talents and potentials displayed in a child's behavior? Support the show

About Anouk Beale What expertise does she have to write, especially about how to boost your health immune system? Experience is her expertise. When she was diagnosed with two incurable auto immune illnesses (secondary progressive MS and hospholipase syndrome.) she wanted to live her life in the nicest possible way. To know what to do I did lots of research. Of the research she kept notes as well as how she experienced the suggestion. made in this book. Spoken about are; the body, the mind, the benefits of happiness and how to get it, quality sleep, health benefits of common foods, Creating natural endorphins, Neurogenesis, open-mindedness, and how to create achievable goals. She continued writing fictio. As far as she remembers she loved reading and getting lost in a story. In her stories she tries to create the same possible escapism for the reader. Anouk was born in 1979 and raised in Amsterdam,the Netherlands. She grew up with her older brother. When she wasn't even 10 she told her parents that when she was big she would move abroad. She now lives in Ireland. She seeks to create wonder in the reader if what is written in the story is possible. https://www.amazon.com/Anouk-Beale/e/B07ZXKFKG4?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_2&qid=1619245066&sr=8-2 Support the show

For over two decades, Reyna practiced law mostly as a criminal appellate attorney in a public defender's office, then started a second career at 50. Reyna has now published 3 novels! Today we talk about her book, “My Name is Layla” a short fiction for tweens and teens dealing with dyslexia, learning differences, and challenge of growing up. Please purchase Reyna's book by clicking the link below. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08D1ZM4FW/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=reyna+marder+gentin&qid=1594844511&sr=8-2 Special Family Connection® 2021 Music is written, performed and produced by MikeWellsMusic.net for Special Family Connection® Support the show

April 10, 2021 Debby Wells Season 2, Episode 7 Lisa Jones is a single mom of three children with special needs. Despite all that life has thrown at their family, they succeed in life and keep a positive attitude. Lisa is always ready to advocate for her children or support them in all they want to do, as a single mom with spunk and courage. Lisa serves on the board of a mental health non-profit organization and plans to start her own family help non-profit in the future. Support the show

Today my story was inspired by an elderly man with a broad, genuine smile and a wave that made me, the recipient, feel genuinely remarkable. Some people come into your life and make a positive impact, but you may have never spoken a word to them. Maybe it's the twinkle in their eyes when they smile at you, the opening of a door for you, the offer of a place in the front of them in line if you have fewer items than they do, the kind word when you need it. My mother was a new widow standing in line at the grocery store. A woman in line behind my mother reached over to the cashier and handed her a handful of money. My mother assumed it was for a prior purchase and pulled her wallet out to pay for her purchases. The cashier smiled and said, "It's all paid for... no money needed" The woman behind my mother had noticed my mother's face, the sadness, the exhaustion, and wanted to do something nice for her. That act helped my mother as she grieved in ways this woman could never have foreseen. She trusted her gut, went with her heart, and a person she did not know became more important to her than money. Original music for Special Family Connection® is written, produced and performed by Mike Wells Music, for Special Family Connection® www.MikeWellsMusic.net Support the show

Jon is also a writeAfter three days, Jon Almada came into this world, breaking his mother's pelvis bones and sustaining brain injuries that left him with Induced **Aphasia. Doctors wanted to institutionalize Jon, but his parents, with his grandfather a Neurologist, would not listen and never gave up on him. His mother and grandfather devised therapies, stimulating activities and environments, and soon, Jon was walking and finally began to talk. What is the kid with Aphasia doing now? Jon...

Ryan Lundy, an amazing 30-Something man from Pennsylvania, shares his heart-warming and inspiring story. Ryan grew up with Non-Verbal Learning Disabilities (NVLD) and overcame the odds with his parents' unwavering love and support. Ryan's desire to have a full life now has him moving away from home, beginning a new job, making new friends, and he hopes one day to find the love of his life. Ryan Lundy: LinkedIn https://www.elsforautism.org/ https://nvld.org/non-verbal-learning-disability/ Support the show

"Whatever good or bad fortune may come our way, we can always give it meaning and transform it into something of value." Where can you start? "......Then with tears in their eyes and holding hands, they told the girls the rest of the story. You see, they said, we have no money, and the utility company will shut off all our power. We love you girls so much that we did not want to be sad and stressed through this; we wanted to show you instead........" Support the show

We all experience Sorrow, but we need to make sure we dont bathe in it, or allow it to pull us under. Joy comes in the morning. Debby Wells, with Special Family Connection, pours our her heart and shares deep feelings about what many of us are experiencing, now more than ever... Sorrow. #depressionawareness #viruscorona #selfcare Support the show

The First in a continuing series of "Me on My Mic" Talks. "Get Your Butt Out Of Your Rut" is my first episode and I use some strong language (For me anyway) because I have been in those ruts so many times myself. It is a horrible place to be when you have hopes and dreams, but they require you to do something. Have you trained your mind to think that you cannot get out if a rut you have been stuck in?? Are you like a trained animal and think that you are tethered to one path, unable to run and be free? I share some thoughts during my "Me on My Mic" podcast Support the show