Listen Now

Life doesn’t always go according to plan. No matter how much time and effort you put into planning out your life, things will often go awry, and you will be left trying to figure out how to handle it. That is what happened to us. Before we get into that, last episode, I mentioned some special training I was going through, and that I was doing stuff to help families with their financial challenges that they face. Over the last few weeks, I went through a special class with Dave Ramsey’s team, and I am now a Ramsey Solutions Master Financial Coach, specializing in connecting families of special needs kids with resources to help them get above water, and creating plans to get out of debt, and live financially free. I am guiding families to financial freedom, because life doesn’t end just because your child is disabled. I am really excited to bring this much needed and often neglected resource to our listeners. Check out my coaching services here, and make sure to include in your message that you are a listener of the Disabled Lifestyle, and what your child’s disability is so that I can find the best resources to help you. When Life Happens So, some of you that follow us may know part of the reason we have been gone was because our schedule was loaded with pre-op visits for Emily’s Scoliosis surgery, which got cancelled litteraly as she was being prepped on the day of surgery. We talk about why in the episode. So, the a few days before, our A/C went out, and we were scraping to pay for that when a tire developed a bulge the day before surgery. When it rains it pours on our house. So, in today’s episode, we talked about some of the challenges we have faced lately, how we handled them financially, as well as emotionally, and what to do to cope with these issues coming up in your life. We wanted to give a special mention to our friends Jesus and Albert from So Cool Services who replaced our A/C. If you are in the Texas Hill Country south of Austin, and need A/c work, we highly recommend them.   The post EDL 011: When Life Goes A Different Direction appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.

We all face struggles, especially when we are raising a disabled child. However, there are steps that you can take today to stop the downward spiral that your family is facing. Over the last few months, we have made some massive changes in how we are running our lives, and we have had some dramatic results. Today, I want to share 3 simple things you can do as a family to change your future, and stop spiraling out of control. Start Doing a Monthly Budget   One of the biggest mistakes that we made for years was not doing a written budget. Most of us know how to stretch a dollar pretty well. We seem to make impossible decisions that create an effect on our whole family. However, when you do a written budget, you have a plan that will lead your family to where you want to go. here are  a few simple budgeting tips to help you start today: Put it in writing Use software to make it easier. We recommend the EveryDollar App from Ramsey Solutions. It is the App we use to do our budget every month. Work Together It is a good idea to have periodic budget meetings and sit down to agree on where your money is going. If something unexpected comes up, it is time for an emergency budget meeting Account for Every Penny Make sure you account for all the money coming in and all the money going out. You want your budget to be a zero sum total. You shouldn’t be negative, but you don’t want to have extra lying around. Give every dollar that comes in a name in your budget so that you know where your money is going. Prioritize Your NEEDS We all have needs, important bills, and wants. You need to make sure you prioritize your needs first. This includes Basic Food, Shelter, basic clothing, utilities, transportation, and insurance. Then worry about the important bills like credit card payments, hospital bills, and student loans. If there is any money left, set it aside for wants, or to make extra debt payments so that you get them paid off faster.   Getting On the Same Page If you are married, you need to be making financial decisions together. When you get on the same page, you will have more focus going to the important things, and you won’t have nearly as many fights over where the money went. The statistics show that money problems are the leading cause of divorce, and by working together you can eliminate this stress from your life. However, this doesn’t mean that you have to sit down completely going over the budget for hours at a time. In fact, your budget meeting should last about 20-30 minutes. In order to do that, one of you needs to sit down and put down the basic budget, then you get together, go over it, and make changes to it. Both of you need to have input into where you are going with your money, and you both have to agree to the final budget. It takes a good 3-5 months to get the hang of it initially, but once you do, you won’t ever wonder where your money went again. Agree To STOP Using Debt EVER!   Finally, you need to agree as a couple that you won’t ever use credit or debt again. Come to an agreement to use a cash flow system, and stop using debt as a tool. Debt is the Destroyer of Your Dreams! As I have read about wealthy people, and studied what wealthy people do, I have found that one of the big differences is that they get out of debt, and avoid using it at all costs. I really recommend that you agree as a couple to get out of debt and stop taking on any new debt. It’s hard! With our special needs kids, and the mounting medical bills, equipment insurance won’t cover, and other extra costs to raising a special needs child, it seems impossible. But, it’s not. In fact, I have seen several families, including my own, break the cycle and control that debt has on our lives. You can do it, but only by budgeting well, and working together to reach the same goals. Increase your income, get rid of the payments, and save up for emergencies and major purchases. Later, I will share with you the 7 steps to financial freedom that you can use to build the life of your dreams. YOu can change your families future. If you have questions, feel free to leave them in the comments below, or email me. I left my email adress in the show. I would love to help you change your families future and live your life to the fullest, even while raising a disabled child.   The post EDL 010: 3 Simple Steps To Change Your Families Future Today appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.

Emergencies are going to happen. Count on it. When you are raising a disabled child, the likelihood of things always going right is almost non-existent. Your child gets sick or hurt, and has to go to the hospital. Over the last few years, we have had our share of emergency hospital stays that we didn’t plan for, and it created a family crisis. When you aren’t prepared, not only do you have a sick child, often you can have a financial crisis at the same time. This has happened to us more than once. However, you can prepare for emergencies so that you don’t have to go through a crisis every time your child gets sick. Today, we talk about some of our emergency plans, and how we have set ourselves up for emergency situations In today’s episode we cover: Your emergency fund and why it is important what to put in your emergency kit How to store things so that it is easy to grab and go why your emergency kit is essential to your long term peace of mind 3 ways to use your emergency kit other than an Emergency Hospital Stay and a lot more…. Make sure you download our emergency kit checklist and start putting together your emergency kit today! Don’t put it off. An emergency could come up tomorrow.   The post EDL 009: Preparing For An Emergency appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.

Family is important. However, when you are raising a disabled child, it can become a huge challenge to balance your family relationships with your extended family. We are a little late getting the podcast updated the last couple of weeks. We had some technical issues on the website that I think are fixed now. Let’s face the facts, when you raise a disabled child, you just don’t have the time or resources available to you to do everything that you want to do. It doesn’t really matter what your life was like in the past. Distance with your family to a degree is just part of growing up. Sadly, I see so many people who don’t want to grow up ( and some of them are my age and even older!) but if you don’t, you get into an unhealthy relationship. A healthy relationship with your family as a child is different than a healthy relationship with them as an adult. Often, Jessica and I disagree on what makes the relationships with our family unhealthy. For me, several years ago, I realized that I had an unhealthy relationship with my family, and so I intentionally distanced myself from them for a while so that I could work on myself and my own emotional baggage. Today, we talk about some of the things that we do, and how we approach our relationships with various family members, and what can happen to those relationships as you grow, and as you live with your disabled child. Make sure you subscribe to the podcast through our new channels on Itunes, Google Play, and Youtube. As we go through today’s episode: Learn why your family relationships may be hurting your immediate family how to balance time spent on each the one thing you need to let go of to really help yourself and your parents and siblings and a lot more. check out the episode, and start working to make your family life work, and a balance the relationships that you have. AS always, if you have a question you would like to see answered, feel free to email me james @ disabledlifestyle.com and we will feature your question on the podcast and answer you.   The post EDL 008 Balancing Your Family Relationships appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.

For all my U.S. Friends and listeners, Happy Thanksgiving. Today is a day for expressing gratitude for everything, and so, thank you. I am grateful for you coming and listening to our show. I sincerely hope you had a good Thanksgiving, and your family is all well. Over the next few weeks, we are going to talk about the family dynamics. However, the most important relationship to work on to really be successful as a family is your marriage. Now, I know a lot of people listening are single parents, but I knew going into this that not everything we talk about will fit with every single person. However, you might find some value in this if you ever think you just might have a relationship some day. In this episode, we talk about   Why Your Marriage Is Important To work On In the first half of the show today, we talked about the importance of your marriage to living with a disabled child, and how you can avoid some of the common pitfalls that we have had to dig ourselves out of in our own marriage. We will discuss: * Growing Apart as a married couple and what to do to stop it… * 2 important keys to  Making better Child Care Decisions together * Why Modeling Behavior For Your Other Children Is important in your relationship. We really wanted to stress the importance of the marriage in your family dynamics. I hope that this helps to inspire you to look deep into your relationships and see if there are things that you need to do to work on. Roadblocks to A Successful Marriage Raising a disabled child isn’t always easy, and having a successful marriage is definitely a tough battle to win. One of the things that I have found in my research over the last few years is that families of disabled children have one of the highest divorce rates. This is sad to see. However, you don’t have to just be another statistic. In the second half of the show, we talk about some of the roadblocks that we have faced, and what we are doing to overcome them in our own lives. We also shared some ideas that you might use to overcome or even avoid facing these huge challenges in your own life… In this discussion, you will learn The secrets to: * Finding time together without the kids * How we Work out the Different Values and Beliefs We were raised with * Stresses From Outside the Relationship and how to keep them from ripping you apart and a lot more… Always keep in mind, Embracing the Disabled Lifestyle is a building process. It isn’t going to happen overnight. Our family is a work in progress. As my mentor and teacher, Dr. Wayne Dyer used to always say It isn’t about being better than anyone else, or living these principles perfectly. I sure don’t. However, as yourself honestly every day… “Is it better now than it used to be?” If you can say yes to this question, then you are on your way to fully embracing the lifestyle and living your life at the highest level possible. Next week, we will talk about your relationship with your other kids, so come back, and join us.   DON’T BECOME ANOTHER DIVORCE STATISTIC! Do you feel as though your marriage is going down the pan? Do you wish there was more you could do? With one in three marriages breaking up every year and the resulting effect it has on you and your family, you should at least give yourself and your marriage every opportunity to succeed. Listen to what  my friend, and author Amy Waterman has to say about resolving conflicts and re-igniting the passion in your marriage. Apply her techniques and give your marriage a second chance… Don’t be a statistic, click here to find out more.   The post EDL 006: Why It is Important to Work On Your Marriage appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.

Finding out your child is disabled is probably the first big shock that we all face. For me, it was one of the biggest shocks of my life. It is Overwhelming! Over the last few months, I have talked to many parents just starting this journey who are facing the diagnosis of their child’s disabilities. Where do you turn, and how do you handle the emotions, the decisions, and everything that you face? Today, we are going to open up. We get raw. We get emotional, and we want to share the story of how we found out about Emily’s Holoprocencephaly. We also share how we each dealt with the emotions we felt, and how we handled the grief we felt when we first found out. In today’s episode, you will find: How to handle the grief, and what it means The biggest reason we wouldn’t accept the Doctor’s prognosis How we decided to move forward, despite the grim outlook Why I couldn’t take the burden, and what i did instead This is just the first part. We went for over an hour and a half… In this uncut episode, you will dive deeper into: how our faith has impacted our decisions why we chose not tot tell everyone, and what we did instead How a single moment changed Jessica’s focus, and impacted her emotional turmoil how to handle questioning your beliefs as you face the struggles coming your way What is wrong at 2am everyday? we are still searching for the answer to that…. 3 keys to dealing with the emotions you are feeling   Make sure you check out the full episode today, and start getting your emotions in balance. Enter your name and email below, and I will send it to you right away!     The post EDL 005: How To Handle the Emotional Roller-coaster, Finding Out Your Child is Disabled appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.

Facing a financial meltdown is something we all deal with raising disabled kids. However, you can create financial freedom, and grow with a little planning, and sacrificing in the short term to get what you want long term. “You Have to be willing to live like No one else, so that later on you can live like nobody else”  — Dave Ramsey When we live with a disabled child, we already live like nobody else. Through the trials and challenges we face with our child, we develop skills, and a tenacity, to care for our kids that most parents NEVER face. Unfortunately, we don’t always apply those skills to our families finances, and that leaves us in a whirlwind of debt, financial self sabotage, and even complete meltdown. It is one of the biggest challenges that our families are facing right now. But…. It doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, by following a few simple steps, you can build financial freedom, and create the life that you want, and even provide  even better care for your disabled child. Wouldn’t that be great? That is why I wanted to tackle this huge issue in today’s podcast. In today’s show, we talk about how to avoid the financial meltdown, and how you can leverage resources available to you right now to give you a hand up to get more aid with your child’s needs, as well as tips to manage your personal budget and increase your income. In today’s episode we cover: Financial aid resources for your disabled child Making money decisions that impact your child’s ability to get needed care A simple strategy to save you money during medical emergencies 3 HUGE steps to finding financial freedom   Make sure you check out the Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. Although I don’t always like what he has to say, he takes a pure common sense approach to building financial freedom and getting in shape. When we sat down to record this episode, we actually wend for almost an hour and a half. Even after editing mistakes and interruptions, we were left with over 1 hour and 15 minutes. However, we committed to keeping this show short to about a 30 minute show. So, if you want the full, unedited episode, simply subscribe below, and you can get the full episode. Download it, and listen to it, take notes, and start getting your financial plan in place. In the extended cut, you will discover how to improve your income from home The biggest secret to success in any job or business How to create more opportunities to grow as a family 3 Big financial pitfalls to avoid And more… Make sure you download the full episode, and start living the financial life that you deserve. Also, if you have any questions from the show or the extended version, leave a comment below!   The post EDL 004: How to Avoid a Financial Meltdown appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.

Taking care of your disabled child is extremely challenging, and can take a lot of your time. However, you also have to take care of yourself. If you don’t take care of yourself, who is going to take care of your child? Today, we explore several ideas to help you take better care of yourself. in this episode, we shared: 3 ways to take better care of yourself, without feeling guilty about not spending time with your child How to find the time you need, without your child suffering One secret that will give you the time you need How to leverage your passion to motivate you to keep going why most resolutions fail, and what to do instead How you can change your diet without killing your tastebuds These will help you start taking better care of yourself, which will help you feel better, and be a stronger parent for your child.   The post EDL 003: How Are You Taking Care of YOU? appeared first on Disabled Lifestyle.