Family Wellness & Psychotherapy Center

01/09/2025

UPDATE! We are so excited to announce that today, January 9th, at 12:15 PM EST Dr. Skowron will be speaking with a special guest, Jennifer Giustra-Kozek, LPC, CMHIMP on the Autism Awakening podcast/ Facebook Live.

Topic: Stories From a Mom Who Has Seen It All

Tune in here: https://www.facebook.com/events/587952830860985/

About Jennifer:
Jennifer Giustra-Kozek, LPC, CMHIMP is a mother, wife, board-certified Psychotherapist, Functional Medicine Mental Health Practitioner and internationally recognized blogger, advocate, and national speaker. Jennifer has seen the anxiety, and the autism epidemic unfold in her private practice and has watched the harmful impact of medication on many young clients.

The ADHD epidemic turned personal when Jennifer’s young son was diagnosed. She plunged into the world of safe and natural healing modalities outside of the pharmaceutical model. She is the author of a five-time award winning book - Healing Without Hurting: Treating ADHD, Apraxia, and Autism Spectrum Disorders Naturally and Effectively without Harmful Medication. And has also co-authored a book titled, Brain Under Attack: A Resource for Parents of Children with PANS/PANDAS.

She has been featured in the HEAL documentary, on many podcasts, news stories and her articles appear in many publications. Jennifer consults and blogs with thousands of moms through social media to teach them about alternative and natural solutions. To receive more info on how you and your family can overcome ADHD, apraxia, anxiety and more without medication visit Jennifer’s website.

➡️healingwithouthurting.com

11/06/2023

A friend recently contacted me, her young daughter was experiencing debilitating OCD. “She won’t put her clothes on. Everything is dirty. Anything I touch, she can’t touch. She is being really weird about her butt touching things. Once her butt touches clothing, it has to get thrown away. She won’t sit down or lay down because her butt will be on something. She’s washing her hands obsessively. Taking many baths per day. Everything is dirty. Anything with a black speck on it makes something garbage. She is out of her mind, in rage and hyperventilating. I may need to drag her naked to the doctor kicking & screaming. The doctors did say they may need to sedate her & do a cat scan because her behavior is so terrifying.”

End result: my girlfriends husband had a strep infection a few weeks ago, and her daughter had no symptoms, until she did.

Thank God this mom knew what doctor to consult. This is how kids end up on psych medication.

Strep can cause a host of neuropsychiatric symptoms. Sometimes it is found in the throat, sometimes in the f***s and gut. Important to keep an eye out & know what to look for. Eye blinking, tics, anorexia, depression, decline in handwriting, bedwetting and big pupils can also be signs.

Pediatric Autoimmune Neuropsychiatric Disorders Associated with Streptococcal Infections

10/28/2023

✨Hi! Interested in Family Constellations? Happening next weekend in Wethersfield! ✨

Email: Jessicanowak@elevatecounseling.net,
vitalityhopewellness@gmail.com, or
Nine28art@gmail.com

10/21/2023

I think one of the difficult things about being a special needs parent is, trying not to die.

And I don't mean *actually*.

I mean, yes – a special needs parent does have an unwavering requirement to be here forever – longer if possible – so we are actually trying not to die but also, I mean like, mentally and physically and, emotionally and spiritually, not letting this kill us.

Not letting the hard take us down. Not letting the exhaustion take over. Not letting the behaviours break you.

Because the impact that raising a child with a neuro-developmental disorder and challenging behaviour has on you, is breaking. It is! This isn't just regular parenting. We're not talking about regular, every day, everyone-is-doing-it kinda parenting.

This is Olympic level combat parenting.

And it's hard. And you're doing it alone. And there's no support or guidance, or teaching.

But there is a lot of fighting.

So much fighting.

Fighting for support, fighting for help, fighting for understanding, for inclusion, for a break, for a breath, for courage. Fighting for energy, for services, for strength to keep going, fighting for your own health and wellness needs to be met while your whole core is consumed by taking care of, and fighting for, the needs of somebody else. Fighting for acceptance.

Fighting not to break.
And breaking anyway.
Then fighting to rebuild.

And if you let it, it will take you down.

Mama, you cannot let it.

You need to be here for a long time. And not just that – you need to be well and strong enough - physically, mentally and emotionally - to carry both of you as you fight, while you're here for that long time.

So, take care of you, Mama.

Because if there's anything I've learnt along this journey, it's that,

you need to be hard to kill.

Keep going, keep fighting, I love you,

Christine x
Special Soul Mama

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09/26/2023