Participating in extracurricular activities is hugely beneficial for children’s wellbeing and has been found to lower their risk of having depression and anxiety.
CoachArt is a nonprofit organization that helps chronically ill children ages 5 to 18 explore hobbies and skills through free classes, including painting, cooking, guitar lessons and martial arts.
Adults with disabilities no longer qualify for the same care, services and programs that they did as children. Instead, youth who turn 18 and their families must tackle a long checklist of tasks.
Yet with knowledge of the right resources and time to plan, this transition can be more manageable.
For children with complex medical needs, palliative care can offer physical relief and also support to families.
However, systemic failures such as a shortage of places that offer palliative care services for children, and also a shortage of physicians who do this work, lead to long wait times and administrative hurdles. The issues with the system, according to experts, can be fixed.