Parent Resignation [PDF]

Queensland Parent-to-Parent Aug. 2001

John O’Brien

Aug. 2001

Many parents resign themselves to low expectations for their sons and daughters. It is possible to describe some common signs and likely causes of this state of resignation in a way that parents will find helpful in re-framing positive possibilities for their children and themselves.

The state of resignation is a deeply felt sense that things are as good as they can be and that it would somehow be dangerous to even think about better alternative Because it has understandable sources in the social devaluation of people with disabilities and the underdevelopment of the systems intended to provide assistan few parents will avoid spending some time in the state of resignation. It can be a m that comes over parents from time to time when the work is exhausting or barrier seem to grow stronger rather than more yielding. More dangerously, it can color a parent’s perceptions and limit their range of activities for months and years.