There’s a moment many medical parents know too well: the late-night scroll, the knot in your throat, the feeling that you need an answer and a hand to hold—right now. That’s where our story begins, with two moms, a Facebook group, a long hospital stay, and one honest message that turned fear into friendship.
Co-hosts and close friends, Ashlyn Thompson & Ashley Milbourne, talk about how relationships change when your child’s care gets complex, and why connecting with someone who has lived your kind of hard can be the difference between white-knuckling it and moving with steadier breath. You’ll hear how to use social groups without spiraling, how to spot the few voices you can trust, and when to mute notifications to protect your nervous system. We share the art of calibrated honesty—giving or asking for the right level of detail—and the relief that comes when someone gets your “memory anniversaries” without a long backstory.
This conversation goes beyond social media. We map practical paths to real connection through specialists’ nurses, child life teams, Parent to Parent networks, school resources, and quiet referrals that respect privacy and boundaries. We highlight why dads and male caregivers need their own lifelines, and offer simple scripts for reaching out when words are hard. Along the way we trade hard-won “cheat codes” for daily logistics, celebrate tiny wins with rituals that stick, and name the truth: support for you is support for your child, because a steadier parent advocates better.
If you’ve felt alone in the maze, we’re here to say you’re capable, you’re equipped, and you don’t have to do this by yourself. Listen for real talk, gentle structure, and the kind of friendship that holds both the fear and the fight. If this conversation resonates, share it with someone who needs a lifeline, subscribe for more, and leave a review to help other families find us. Your people are out there—let’s help you meet them.
Time Stamps:
- 0:00 Welcome & Purpose Of The Show
- 1:40 Why Relationships Change With Medical Kids
- 4:55 Ashlyn And Ashley’s Origin Story
- 10:45 Honest Support Without Overwhelm
- 15:30 Using Social Groups Wisely
- 22:30 Boundaries, Needs, And Safe Friends
- 28:30 The Weight We Carry And Memory Dates
- 35:00 Beyond Social: Finding Real Connections
Ashley Milbourne is a devoted medical mama and advocate whose daughter, Maren, was born with Bladder Exstrophy in 2020. Since then, Ashley has become a steady voice in the rare disease community, walking alongside families navigating complex medical journeys. A close friend of Ashlyn through their daughters’ shared experiences, she serves as Secretary on the Parent Empowerment Network (PEN) Board of Directors and brings both lived experience and professional expertise from her work in health insurance at her family’s company, Benefit Coordinators—helping families better understand and navigate the often overwhelming world of medical coverage.
You can hear more about Ashley’s medical parent journey in episode 20 of Empowered by Hope.
