TPP 511: Jessica Patay on Building Brave Communities for Caregivers
episode
Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
35 min
1 speaker
2 chapters
transcribed 9 hours ago
Transcript
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Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
What inspired Jessica Patay to create the We Are Brave Together community?
I'm Debbie Reber, and this is Full Tilt Parenting. Today, we're talking about the power of community, resilience, and what it really means to show up bravely in the caregiver parenting journey. My guest is fellow community builder and mom on a mission, Jessica Pate, the founder of We Are Brave Together, a global community supporting moms raising children with disabilities and other unique needs. Jessica's work is deeply rooted in her own experience as a caregiving mom to her son, Ryan, who was diagnosed with Prader-Willi syndrome and is also autistic. And her mission is all about making sure no parent has to walk this path alone. In this episode, Jessica is going to share her story and the inspiration behind building such a powerful, life-giving community for mothers.
We'll talk about the isolation that so many caregivers experience, the importance of connection and support, and what it looks like to cultivate resilience in the midst of ongoing challenges. Jessica has really created something powerful to help any mom on this journey know that they're not alone. She offers practical, compassionate insights for parents who are feeling overwhelmed and reminds moms that even in the hardest seasons, we're not alone, and we were never meant to do this by ourselves. Hey, Jessica, welcome to the podcast. Hi, Debbie.
It's so good to be here.
It's good to have you here. And I'm looking forward to sharing your vision, your mission, your passion, your work with my community. But I would really like to hear more of your story. I know your story because we've known each other for a while. But for listeners who aren't familiar with your work and your organization and you as a human, would you tell us a little bit about who you are and why you do what you do?
Yes, absolutely. I would say I'm a community builder. I just am so passionate about everybody having community, whether you're a caregiver or just every human being. I want people to have... a sense of belonging. I want people to have the benefit of life-giving friendships. And I really believe that the intersection of our lives is a gift when we leave competition and cattiness and comparison behind that. We as humans have so much to offer each other. And when you're a caregiver, as I am, I have a son with a rare genetic disorder who's about to be 23, Ryan. I say Ryan is the one who made me a caregiver, and I'll circle back and explain his diagnosis. But As a caregiver, you are in an altered universe, and I call my journey altered motherhood.
You're thrust into something new and different when a diagnosis is delivered. And it is so helpful, and it is so comforting to meet other mothers, other parents who are doing the same journey, even if the diagnoses are vastly different. We share so many commonalities in the caretaking life. So I just want everyone to have community. They say that smoking 15 cigarettes a day does the same amount of damage as chronic loneliness. And I don't want that for anyone. I don't want that for anyone. A little more about me. I've been married to my husband, Chris, for decades. We just celebrated 29 years together. Been through it all, and he's still my rock and anchor and support, and he's wonderful. I'm very, very grateful.
I wouldn't be where I am today if I didn't have Chris. who has just always been in it with me. He has been in the trenches with me. And I was a stay-at-home mom before I launched We Are Brave Together. I was a stay-at-home mom for 17 years. And he never made me feel like, you got the kids and I go to work and I provide and I provide health insurance, whatever. He was in it. And because I felt like we were in an equal partnership from the beginning, It saved us. It really, really, really has. So I'm grateful to Chris. We have three gorgeous children. They are grown-ish. My oldest, Luke, is 25, and he just moved out about six months ago. So that is so weird and wonderful. And I get these wonderful text messages that I never got when he was in college.
So it's really a sweet season, and I'm I know it's tough for him.
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Chapters
2 chaptersSpeakers
1 identifiedMore from Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
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