The Pratt's Guide to Heart Warrior Parenting

When most people think of February, Valentine’s Day candies and cards are what comes to mind. With Liam in our lives, February’s additional role as National Heart Month has taken the spotlight. This isn’t just about Congenital Heart Defects, even though our family is certainly honed in on that aspect. It’s also about heart health in general. One thing I have recently learned is heart disease is the #1 killer of women- more die of this disease than all types of cancers combined. If I really think about it hard, these are people with whole hearts that go bad for a variety of reasons: genetics, for sure bear some of the weight, but a lot of it is lifestyle- what we eat and how much we move every day. Things that are in our control. I have personally turned over a new leaf in the last week or so (I guess all those Facebook ads are more effective than I previously thought)- becoming more aware of both those things in my life to begin to feel not only better about myself but to also take re...

There are days when it feels like the natural evolution of becoming a heart mom is a never-ending march towards a lonely horizon. Even as Liam grows bigger and stronger, the work it takes to keeps things moving in a forward direction gets more and more difficult. Everything is purposeful and everything takes time and energy- finding the space to step away and connect with others fades into the background of a list of things to do a mile long.  I’ve been told by other heart moms that there will come a day where my mom problems will so far outpace those of my friends that I will have to compartmentalize those issues to keep my relationships from dying and even while I resist that notion, I feel its pull. Does she really want to hear about my horrible experience with a nurse at our last pediatric appointment or how tough it is to manage my son’s needs alongside my complicated relationship with my birth mother? There comes a point when the sharing becomes dumping and then a friend tur...