I hope that when you look around your house today,
you find evidence of trying.

The soccer jersey, worn only once,
because the gameplay was overstimulating.

The jeans with tags still on,
while the well-worn “soft pants”
sit in the hamper again.

The food left uneaten,
because the texture wasn’t right.

The piles of books on how to use hands
for something other than hitting.

The parenting subscriptions and sunrise podcasts,
absorbed before the world wakes.

The countless emails to doctors and teachers,
written in desperation—
hoping someone will love and understand your child
as much as you do.

Life teaches us to measure success in outcomes.
But for parents of neurodivergent children,
that cookie-cutter outcome
may never arrive by society’s standards.

Yet, if you measured success
not in outcome, but in the evidence of trying,

Perhaps you are far more successful
than you think.

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Barb Shepard is a Licensed Mental Health Counselor, OCD and Anxiety Specialist, Sober Curious advocate, and mother of two in Syracuse, New York. Any content on my website or blog is a not substitute for therapy and is for educational purposes only. I cannot provide tailored therapeutic advice unless you are a therapy client. Reading this blog or listening to audio content does not constitute a therapeutic relationship. If you are seeking therapy, visit psychologytoday.com. If you are in crisis, dial 911 or visit your local emergency room.