Meet Mom Robin Suzelis

Robin, 47, grew up in Pittsburgh, PA and attended Clarion University of PA pursuing Communications. She met her husband Ted Suzelis in the summer of 1994 while working a summer job at Cedar Point, and have been married for 22 years. They now live in Canfield, Ohio with their two children, Evan, 14 and Dean, 10, who are both on the autism spectrum and have cognitive delays. While their home life can get hectic and challenging with healthcare and therapy visits, and lessons on functional and conversational speech, the Suzelis’ are always cheering each other on to do their very best every day.

10 Things to Know About Robin:

1. I’m definitely a stress eater but I’m trying to do better.

2. My guilty pleasure is watching TV, going out to eat with my husband or friends, and I never turn down a good margarita!

3. Some of my biggest challenges are time management, healthy eating, exercise and self care. With a work-at-home schedule it’s hard to step away from the computer to give myself some “me time”.

4. The biggest annoyance to me right now is simultaneously juggling work, household chores, and family needs.

5. “Got This” and “Find the Joy” are two of my personal mottos, which I got from one of my favorite autism mom bloggers.

6. What I have learned about myself during the pandemic is that I’m tougher than I thought and I won’t let anything take away from family time or my kids’ therapy time. I didn’t let my kids feel all the anxiety and I think it helped them through this difficult time.

7. I get very little “me time” but when I do it’s either a date night or watching TV.

8. Something that is working best for me right now is that I’ve been able to have time with my husband because I spent a lot of time and resources finding and keeping good childcare.

9. One thing nobody knows about me is that I’m pretty open and honest about my life to friends and family.

10. I am currently binge watching so many shows right now. Amazing Race, Pivoting and re-watching one of our favorites, How I Met Your Mother.

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• I Do Not like Being a Special Needs Parent and That’s OK
• Coping with the Life You Never Imagined
• Handling Your Child’s Diagnosis: Six Things Parents Should Do For Themselves
• A Complete Guide on Positive Behavior Support for Children With Special Needs
• 8 Ways to be a Great Advocate For Your Family Member With Special Needs
• How to Get Free From Unrealistic Expectations of Motherhood
• Father’s Perspective: Raising a Child with Special Needs
• Being United, Pampering, and Taking Care of Ourselves

This post originally appeared on our March/April 2022 Magazine