Parenting

Over 40 years ago, Kevin and Shirley Orr defied doctors and kept their baby with Down syndrome. Now, the caring roles have reversed and the real dilemma is this — what happens when Mum and Dad die? Kevin Orr remembers well the joy running through the house the first day he brought his newborn son, […]

Jaylen Arnold is just 12 years old but he’s already suffered years of abuse at the hands of school bullies. Jaylen, from Lakeland in Florida, has Tourette’s Syndrome, a neurological condition that causes him to have uncontrollable movements and outbursts, which his tormenters mock and mimic. Related: Mother’s tribute to baby born without eyes But […]

Easy access online pornography is being blamed for a surge in the sexual abuse of schoolgirls. Figures from the UK show that up to a third of sixth-form girls (aged 16 – 18) had been touched inappropriately by boys in their school, and fingers are being pointed at the internet. Related: Documentary exposes 12-year-olds who […]

Bronwyn and Scott McNamara, a Sunshine Coast couple were all set to become Mum and Dad to an adopted Ethiopian child, but in June it was announced that the Ethiopia Program, which has facilitated the adoption of more than 600 Ethiopian children over 20 years, would close. “This has been a tough decision, but a […]

As scientists may have found an explanation for autism spectrum disorders, their robot counterparts are being trained up to help kids who are affected. Max and Ben, two knee-high robots, have been dancing, interacting and playing games with students at a Birmingham primary school since March and have had great success in developing the communication […]

Five-year-olds might seem socially clueless, but they’re already busily manipulating their reputations so they seem like nicer people than they are, a new study has found. Researchers from Yale University found that kindergarteners were more generous when they knew their actions would be seen. Related: Man sues wife over ‘ugly’ baby “Much like the patterns […]

A documentary following girls as young as 12 posting images of themselves online in lingerie and imitating porn stars sheds light on how technology and pornography are shaping the sexual identity of young girls. Sexy Baby: A Documentary About Sexiness and The Cyber Age, exposes the troubling truth of a generation getting their sex education […]

Following the release of shocking figures that more than half of the UK’s hospital admissions for eating disorders were under-20 and some of those under-10, social media has copped much of the blame for contributing to the development of eating disorders in “the Facebook generation”. Teen and pre-teen eating disorders are on the rise with […]

A mother’s emotional reunion with her missing four-year-old son has been caught on camera. Riley Martin, who has Down syndrome, disappeared from his home in Nambucca Heads at midday yesterday, along with the family’s three dogs. In pictures: The beautiful faces of Down syndrome His mother Bianca Graham was in the middle of an impassioned […]

Ruby Ernest is just four years old, but she has already spent many long nights in hospital, struggling to breathe as the inoperable tumour in her lung swells. Six months after doctors told Ruby’s family that there was nothing they could do, help came from an unexpected place: a packet of tiny blue pills traditionally […]