Derian House Childrens Hospice
Families
The hardest steps to take....
nothing can describe the ice cold fear that numbed us at being told we were facing the very real prospect that our bright, beautiful little boy was going to die....
No-one but a parent can contemplate such an incalculable loss, and most of us are fortunate enough never to have to make that profoundly emotional journey. But for those that do it’s an incredibly lonely path to tread.
It is impossible to comprehend a parent’s feelings and the emotional turmoil they must feel on being told they will never have the opportunity to experience those special moments and events in their child’s life. For a parent, counting the milestones that chart their child’s progress through life is one of the pleasures of parenthood, an expectation almost to be taken for granted. But for the parents of a child diagnosed as terminally ill, counting time becomes an equally familiar reality, albeit one with an entirely different perspective.
For them their children’s future is counted in smaller terms, sometimes in months or weeks rather than years - in taking each day as it comes. Many speak of the overwhelming sense of loneliness as they face an uncertain future. Many speak of a feeling of unreality and isolation, of feeling they are the only ones in the world treading this profoundly lonely path. Most parents will tell you its not knowing what to expect that gives rise to most trepidation on their first visit to Derian House. Many don’t want to even contemplate the idea of hospice care for their child, for they feel that to do so means admitting their child has no long term future.
All will tell you that within hours of their arrival at Derian House they know that everything is being done in their child’s. and indeed, their family’s best interests.
In spite of, or some would say, because of its role as a children’s hospice and the full implication of what that means, for a parent coming to terms with the fact that their child may only be with them for a limited time, every second is precious.
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