My Mom, Measles and Motherhood

We were headed out for a fun Sunday at Disneyland a few weeks ago, and I realized that I didn’t really know if I had received the recommended two measles vaccinations as a child. I had recently heard that people born before 1957 had mostly likely been exposed to measles, or had the illness themselves as a child. But I wasn’t born until 1961, and the first measles vaccination wasn’t even widely available until 1963.

My mother, sadly, has been gone for nine years. Dad is doing well at 92, but his memory isn’t as good as it once was, and besides, my Mom was the one who always took my sister and I to our medical appointments. During a visit back to my childhood home, I dig out my “Baby Notebook,” a simple college-ruled bound notebook that sold for 29 cents in 1961. There was a Family Tree, my first word (“ma-ma”) and although there were a lot of blank pages (I was the second born after all), written on the inside back cover were a list of immunizations. In faded penciled handwriting, I read that I had received the measles vaccine in 1963 and a booster in 1977. Whew! Thanks, Mom.

Like many women, I didn’t really appreciate all that my Mom and Dad had done for me until I became a parent myself. Moms everywhere can remember the early years of parenthood, with its many nocturnal interruptions, that bad feeling in the pit of your stomach when your child spikes a fever, and in general, putting the needs of the children before your own desires. This feeling of overwhelming responsibility can be even deeper, and certainly lasts longer for Moms of children and adults with special needs. To tell the truth, it’s easy to get discouraged and feel burned out.

To help Moms like me renew and recharge themselves, Navah Paskowitz of the Friendship Circle of Pacific Palisades is starting a new Women’s Support Group for Moms of Special Needs Children and Adults, starting next week, Feb. 17, from 6:30-8 pm at the Chabad Jewish Community Center and Campus, 17315 Sunset Blvd, Pacific Palisades 90272.

Navah told me that the Support Group grew out of a four-day Spiritual Jewish Retreat she organized for “Miracle Moms” of Children with Special Needs and other Differences held in January. The Moms that attended learned how to live with their own imperfections, become more resiliant and use song, relaxation exercises and meditation to help reduce stress. The overall experience gave Moms the ability to create an interior oasis to turn to in times of need, and those attending asked that a monthly “booster” be made available.

RSVP to Navah at (310) 454-7783, ext 117 or email her at navah@fcpalisades.com