We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Tamara Rachelle a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Tamara, thanks for joining us today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – walk us through the story?

Raising a child with a disability was a new and uncharted territory. I had no one in my immediate family that had autism or an intellectual disability, and I was put in a situation in which I had to learn how to be the best caretaker for my child. I had to learn about speech therapy, occupational therapy, and behavioral therapy, in a world where these services are hard to come by. It took me a while, but I was able to figure out how to highlight my daughter -Lilac’s strengths, while getting the proper services to ensure that she could self advocate as a disabled person.

Tamara, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I believe that one of the things that keeps people from getting services for the disabled child or family member is the fear of being labeled. The label of having an intellectual disability or being autistic, scares people into avoiding early invention services. Especially people of color. I make it a point to let everyone know that early intervention services are key to enriching the lives of disabled people. And if those services are readily available, please take the time to reach out and procure them for your children.

Have you ever had to pivot?

My daughter lilac experienced something called developmental regression. Which basically meant that she was developing at what is considered a typical pace and then suddenly she stopped speaking stop giving eye contact and exhibited issues with meeting developmental goals. At the time I was in my career as an IT manager for a large ad agency. I got her tested and regional center told me that she needed to have behavioral therapy. I figured I could just hire a nanny to do it, while I continued my career. They told me that she wasn’t going to be available for the services if I was not present for every hour of her behavioral therapy. And that parents had to be there once she got floortime therapy. So that was the day I went to the HR manager at my job and put in my two week notice, and I had to leave my career as an IT manager for multiple companies in order to focus on Lilac and her future.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

It took a while, but I realize that lilac was a foodie. We started to go out to new places with exotic foods and she was really into it. I decided to make a page dedicated to her love of new and exciting foods. Right now she’s doing a fantastic job and really enjoys it. I also enjoy having these moments with her.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: Livingwithlilac
• Facebook: Livingwithlilac
• Youtube: Livingwithlilac

Image Credits

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