'As a mother of a child with a disability, it’s very hard — we’re not all heroes'

'Sometimes, courage is about not marching on silently. It’s asking for understanding'

Eleanor O'Kelly-Lynch with her book, The Girl with the Special Knees. Photo by Owen Good of Narration

While the New Year is a time for looking ahead with hope, for Eleanor O’Kelly-Lynch, mother of profoundly disabled Lauren, age 30, the knowledge that there will be no improvement in her daughter’s condition is something to which she is resigned. 

“Things don’t change. I’ve had to accept that,” says Eleanor.