In collaboration with CysticLife, and approved by the CFF Educational Committee, we have created a series of pamphlets for parents of children with cystic fibrosis and professionals who work with them.
They are available as free downloads by clicking on the links below. Feel free to print and share them.
High quality, glossy hard copies of all pamphlets are available FREE to CF clinics, non-profit orgs and families.
Please use the link below to request hard copies. Include your name, mailing address, email address and phone number as well as the quantity of each pamphlet you'd like. The pamphlets are free and we are currently covering postage costs except for international shipping (free postage is subject to change).
Please note that the pamphlets as well as the individual articles are also available on www.TipsForCFParents.com.
Life After the Diagnosis: A Parent's Guide to Healthy Living with Cystic Fibrosis
Whether you have been trying to get answers for awhile or the diagnosis struck out of the blue sky like a bolt of lightning, the impact to your life is unmistakable and can be devastating. This is a very challenging time for all involved; challenging physically, possibly financially and certainly emotionally.
This pamphlet includes articles to encourage you and help you along the path to hope and acceptance as well as a glossary of terms and advice from other CF parents. Reviewed and approved by the CFF Education Committee.
Caring for Your Infant: A Parent's Guide to Healthy Living with Cystic Fibrosis
The first two years of life are very important for your child's healthy physical and emotional development. Getting the proper nutrition and medical care are essential. Paying attention to your little one's emotional development is critical, too. The ability to give and receive love are rooted in these early years.
Here are some articles to help you take care of your baby's special physical needs plus ways to build and strengthen the bonds of attachment with your baby. Reviewed and approved by the CFF Education Committee.
Caring for Your Toddler and Preschooler: A Parent's Guide to Healthy Living with Cystic Fibrosis
Charles Dickens wrote in A Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times and it was the worst of times...” The same could also be said about the toddler years!
This is a time of discovery, wonder, unbridled joy, excitement about life, and unparalleled cuteness. This is also the time for stupendous tantrums, never-ending messes, demands, epic power struggles, and fits of all kinds. It all comes in the same, small package.
Effective parenting skills are essential. Here are some articles to help you with some of the most common challenges CF parents face during these years. Reviewed and approved by the CFF Education Committee.
The Elementary School Years: A Parent's Guide to Healthy Living with Cystic Fibrosis
The elementary school years are perhaps the golden years of parenting! Kids this age are excited about life and learning, they want to please their parents, teachers, and doctors, and they are just fun to be around.
Now is the time to teach kids about CF and start the transition process. This pamphlet discusses this process as well as school issues and advice from other parents for school-age children with CF. Approval by the CFF Education Committee is pending.
Raising Successful Teens: A Parent's Guide to Healthy Living with Cystic Fibrosis
Jim Fay of Love and Logic® has said that "Teenagers are toddlers on hormones and wheels!" If you have a teenager in your home, you'll likely chuckle and agree.
The teen years can be filled with many ups and downs for the teens themselves and those who love them. The developmental quest of 12- to-18 year olds is to begin to discover: "Who am I and where am I going?" Sometimes, those answers clash with what parents and other adults would prefer! Of course, surging hormones play a role in the challenges, dramas and emotional issues of these years.
The good news is that, despite what you read in the news, most teenagers are well-adjusted and handle life pretty well. Research also shows, again despite what may be portrayed in the media, that parents continue to have a very strong influence on their teens during these years. Certainly the peer group plays a big role but parents, when they handle their leadership role and parenting responsibilities well, can enjoy loving, respectful and fun relationships with their teens and young adults.
Here are articles and tips to help parents of teens and pre-teens with cystic fibrosis navigate the choppy waters of adolescence and the transition to young adulthood. Reviwed and approved by the CFF Educational Committee.
Staying Connected as a Couple: A Parent's Guide to Healthy Living with Cystic Fibrosis
Couple relationships aren't easy and having a child with special healthcare needs can bring added elements of stress to relationships. Despite the challenges, having a child with CF can bring couples closer together. This pamphlet will show you how to stay connected.
Authors Laura Marshak, PhD and Fran Prezant, M.Ed. of "Married with Special Needs Children" have kindly contributed to this excellent resource for parents of children with cystic fibrosis. Reviewed and approved by the CFF Education Committee.
Helping Siblings Cope: A Parent's Guide to Healthy Living with Cystic Fibrosis
We have our hands full enough with our child with CF. And when we add the siblings, life can become a little overwhelming at times! Here are some tips about how to handle sibling issues when raising a child with special needs. Approval by the CFF Education Committee is pending. eeeApproval by the CFF Education Committee is pending.Approval by the CFF Education Committee is pending. Approval by the CFF Education Committee is pending. Approval by the CFF Education Committee is pending. Approval by the CFF Education Committee is pending.
