Author: Mariah Z Leach

March is Autoimmune Awareness Month! While a person’s immune system ordinarily guards against viruses and bacteria, people with autoimmune diseases have immune systems that mistakenly attack healthy body tissue and cells. Examples of autoimmune diseases include: rheumatoid arthritis (RA), Crohn’s disease, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), Type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis (MS), and more. Many of the moms in our Mamas Facing Forward private Facebook group are living with autoimmune diseases. Here are some facts about autoimmune disease from the Autoimmune Association: Approximately 50 million Americans are living with autoimmune disease.There are more than 100 known autoimmune diseases80% of people living…

Perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of motherhood with chronic illness is helping your children understand what is going on with your body and encouraging acceptance about how your illness may impact them. How can you help them develop empathy about what you’re experiencing, especially if your illness is invisible? Where’s the line between being honest and making them worry? What’s the best way to address their concerns in kid-friendly language? This is a topic that will likely need to be an ongoing discussion in your family – and sometimes reading a book together can help! Gentle Hugs by…

Perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of motherhood with chronic illness is helping your children understand what is going on with your body and encouraging acceptance about how your illness may impact them. How can you help them develop empathy about what you’re experiencing, especially if your illness is invisible? Where’s the line between being honest and making them worry? What’s the best way to address their concerns in kid-friendly language? This is a topic that will likely need to be an ongoing discussion in your family – and sometimes reading a book together can help! CHILDREN’S BOOK REVIEW:…

Perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of parenthood with chronic illness is helping your children understand what is going on with your body and encouraging acceptance about how your illness may impact them. How can you help them develop empathy about what you’re experiencing, especially if your illness is invisible? Where’s the line between being honest and making them worry? What’s the best way to address their concerns in kid-friendly language? This is a topic that will likely need to be an ongoing discussion in your family – and sometimes reading a book together can help! Kenzie’s Little Tree…

Parenting is very demanding – and every stage of childhood presents new challenges. For parents also living with the pain and fatigue of arthritis, parenting can become even more complex. While each family is unique, below you will find a link to an article with seven strategies that might help. 7 Strategies for Parenting While Living with Arthritis (Canadian Arthritis Patient Alliance – CAPA)

In addition to reviewing lots of children’s books that discuss impacts of chronic illness, we also review grownup books that can provide us with strategies and help us learn to cope! Here is a list of all of the grownup books that we have reviewed. We will continue to update this list as we add more reviews! Desire – An Inclusive Guide to Navigating Libido Differences in Relationships by Lauren Fogel Mersy, PSYD and Jennifer A. Vencill, PHD, ABPP Fair Play – A Game-Changing Solution for When You Have Too Much to Do (and More Life to Live) by Eve…

Perhaps one of the most challenging aspects of motherhood with chronic illness is helping your children understand what is going on with your body and encouraging acceptance about how your illness may impact them. How can you help them develop empathy about what you’re experiencing, especially if your illness is invisible? Where’s the line between being honest and making them worry? What’s the best way to address their concerns in kid-friendly language? This is a topic that will likely need to be an ongoing discussion in your family – and sometimes reading a book together can help! Here is a…

No. How can two little letters feel so challenging to say? Saying “no” when someone makes a request of you can feel so uncomfortable. Or, depending on who is doing the asking, sometimes it feels downright impossible. Why Saying “No” Is So Challenging As children, most of us spent our formative years learning how to say “yes” to our parents and teachers and other adult expectations. While obviously it’s important for children to listen to the adults in their lives, advocating for yourself is a learned skill that many of us were simply never taught. Society also tends to place…

Mamas Facing Forward Stay Home Summer Camp was a project I first developed during the isolated summer of 2020. For each theme I provide a menu of options to choose from, including: virtual learning resources, easy craft & snack ideas, simple activities, books, and movies/TV to watch. Trust me, whether you do it for a full week or just for a day, there’s something magical about doing a few activities that all share the same theme. In fact, my kids kept requesting “Stay Home Camp” even when we went back to regular summer camp and vacations. I’ve also added “field…

I told this true story at a Story Collective event held at the Junkyard Social Club in Boulder, Colorado on April 30, 2022. It was some ungodly hour of the morning, before the sun had even come up. I was standing at the nursery window after feeding my newborn for the millionth time. I stood looking out into the darkness, my arms aching as I gently patted his back, when I felt a gush of spit up go straight down the front of my shirt. My firstborn was what they call a “happy spitter.” He wasn’t in any sort of…