S2_Ep-9: We Thought We Had a Plan… Hopeful Plans vs. Hard Reality

More from Specialness Pod

1. 

   S3 · E2 · 26 Jun 2026 · 54 min

   S3_Ep-02: Does raising a special needs child really lead to an 87% divorce rate?

   After one of our Instagram reels reached more than 180,000 views, hundreds of parents shared their stories, challenged the statistic, and started one of the most meaningful conversations we've ever had.In this episode, we revisit that viral reel, correct the misinformation, and talk about what the research actually says.More importantly, we talk about what the comments revealed.Special needs parents opened up about marriages that grew stronger, marriages that fell apart, single parenting, caregiver burnout, trauma bonding, financial stress, and the daily realities that most people never…

2. 

   S3 · E1 · 16 Jun 2026 · 1 hr 4 min

   S3_Ep-01: One Phone Call Changed the Next 10 Months of Our Lives

   After nearly a year away, we're back.What was supposed to be a simple three-day getaway turned into one of the hardest seasons we've faced as special needs parents.The day before our trip, our son Cason suffered a devastating ankle injury that required surgery and months of recovery. What followed was nine weeks of around-the-clock caregiving, medication complications, mobility challenges, emotional exhaustion, and the return of struggles we thought were behind us.At the same time, we were fighting another battle: a 30-month journey through the Social Security disability system. After…

3. 

   S2 · E10 · 7 Jul 2025 · 55 min

   S2_Ep-10: We Thought We Had a Plan… Hopeful Plans vs. Hard Reality

   In this episode, we talk about the emotional aftermath of travel, how even the best vacations can take a toll—and what recovery looks like when you're caring for someone with special needs. From unexpected triggers to the slow return to normal, we share what it's really like behind the scenes.🌟 Special Shoutout:We want to take a moment to thank Special Soul Mama. If you're not already following her, you're missing out!👉 https://www.facebook.com/specialsoulmama/👉 https://www.instagram.com/specialsoulmamaShe’s a light—and we’re grateful to walk this road with her.If this episode resonates…

4. 

   S2 · E8 · 6 Jun 2025 · 6 min

   S2_Ep-8.5: Life Interrupted: When Everything Happens at Once

   We’re calling this one Episode 8.5 — a special edition update from Jeff.Life doesn’t always go as planned — especially when you're raising a child with special needs. In this honest solo update, Jeff shares why there was no episode last week and what hit their family all at once:Kim’s melanoma diagnosis and emergency surgeryAnother frustrating Social Security denialA three-hour cardio-pulmonary test for CasonA high school graduation road tripThis isn’t just a delay. It’s a glimpse into the unpredictable, exhausting, and deeply human side of life behind the podcast.💬 New episode next week…

5. 

   S1 · E8 · 20 May 2025 · 48 min

   S2_Ep-8: Mental Health Awareness Month… for Families Like Ours

   "It’s Mental Health Awareness Month… but where is the awareness?"In this powerful episode of Specialness, Kim and Jeff open up about the realities of living with mental illness in the family, especially when your child’s life is shaped by complex diagnoses like bipolar disorder, autism, and schizophrenia spectrum symptoms.💬 In this episode:✔️ Why Mental Health Awareness Month still feels invisible✔️ What people get wrong about depression, hallucinations, and “invisible” struggles✔️ The silent grief of watching life pass you by while you're stuck surviving✔️ The failure of our healthcare…

6. 

   S1 · E7 · 20 May 2025 · 1 hr 4 min

   S2_Ep-7: The Disability System Is Failing Families Like Ours

   "We’ve done everything right. But that still wasn’t enough."For over two years, Kim and Jeff Kribs have been fighting to secure basic SSI benefits for their son, Cason—who is intellectually disabled, legally under guardianship, and cannot live independently.In this explosive episode of Specialness, they read aloud from the denial letters, dissect inaccurate evaluations from government-appointed doctors, and expose the broken system that so many special needs families are forced to navigate.💬 In this episode:✔️ The exhausting maze of paperwork, deadlines, and duplicate forms✔️ False claims…

7. 

   S3 · E11 · 7 Oct 2026 · 1 hr 10 min

   S3_Ep-11: What NOT to Say to a Special Needs Parent

   Can't you control your child? You're so strong, I could never do it. God doesn't give you more than you can handle. Every special needs parent keeps a running list of the things people say, and this week we are going through ours.Jeff and Kim get into the comments they hear from strangers, friends, and family. What they want to fire back in the moment, and what they have learned to say instead to actually educate the person in front of them. They also name the comment that stings the most, the one quietly hiding inside all the others: I'm just glad I'm not you.And they end on the thing they…

8. 

   S3 · E10 · 26 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 13 min

   S3_Ep-10: They Stopped Inviting Us | The Isolation of Special Needs Parenting

   For most people, isolation is a choice. For special needs families, it isn't. It happens to you, and it comes wrapped in a grief that has no recognizable end. Jeff and Kim talk about the two things their community lives with that rarely get named together: isolation and grief, and why the two are so tightly intertwined. The invitations that slowly stop coming. The birthday parties you leave early. The milestones that hit just as hard at 25 as they did at 5. And the quiet decision so many families make to just stop going, because it is easier than being stared at. They also share something…

9. 

   S3 · E9 · 2 Sep 2026 · 1 hr 15 min

   S3_Ep-09: When Special Needs Means Mental Illness, and No One Takes It Seriously

   In the mental health world, there is no blood test. No x-ray. Just a subjective judgment that changes from one doctor's office to the next, and a family left to live with the consequences.Jeff and Kim get honest about the part of special needs parenting that society files under "dangerous" or "crazy" and refuses to take seriously. They walk through Cason's mental health journey from the beginning: the manic behavior at four, the neuropsychologist who suspected bipolar one, the renowned psychiatrist who dismissed it as "just ADHD," and the medication trial and error that made everything…

10. 

    S3 · E8 · 15 Aug 2026 · 1 hr 13 min

    S3_Ep-08: The Special Needs Grief No One Talks About

    When people hear the word grief, they think someone died. For special needs parents, the grief is different. It's the life you planned for and never got to live, and it doesn't fade. It compounds. In this episode, Jeff and Kim talk openly about the grief nobody in the special needs world seems allowed to name. The milestones that never come. The family gatherings where the gap becomes impossible to ignore. The jealousy that shows up watching friends drop their kids at college. And why, after almost 25 years, the grief has actually gotten heavier, not lighter. If you have ever felt guilty for…

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