I’m glad you landed on this page, whether it was intentional or by accident. And I wonder if “Personal growth through motherhood”–the universal theme of my memoir– is what brought you here?

“Personal growth through motherhood” is the universal theme of my memoir.

Motherhood and growth are practically synonymous, don’t you think? How can one not grow as a result of raising children? Parenting is the biggest life challenge many of us face.

It was for me. In spite of being mature and well-educated and happily married and growing up as the oldest daughter in a large family, I wasn’t prepared for the challenges of being a mom. And I didn’t know how to ask for help.

Then, another kind of growth barged into my life–my son Matthew’s brain tumor, diagnosed when he was eleven.

Perhaps you have a brain tumor story as well. Perhaps that’s our connection—you and I. 

Talk about a life challenge—my son’s brain tumor saga pushed me to the limits of what I was capable of as a mother.

Throughout my son’s brain tumor ordeal, I didn’t know how to stand up for my son because I’d never learned to stand up for myself.

It’s hard to admit, but it’s my truth. All I knew was how to be agreeable, and agreeable doesn’t cut it when doctors won’t listen.

The brain tumor saga also pushed me to write my story. Having never been a writer, I bumbled along for a few years, as I helped Matthew recover some semblance of who he was before the tumor.

Then I quit writing for years, as life with Matthew demanded all of my attention.

Now, after twenty years, the story has an ending–a happy one. At 32, Matthew is doing well and getting better all the time. And I’m back to writing.

Talk about growth. Talk about personal growth through motherhood. Talk about a working title for my memoir:

Growth: A mother, a son, and the brain tumor they survived.

I hope you’ll follow along as I close in on “The End.” To do that, find “Enter email” on your device, then (after you’ve entered your email, of course) “Click here.” You’ll receive a confirmation email, so please check your junk mail folder if you don’t see it.

I write other things, too–essays and posts about life lessons, self-acceptance, and of course, personal growth. To see them, click on “blog” in the menu bar.

Feel free to drop me a note in the comments bar, or send me an email at contact@karendebonis.com. I’d love to hear how you and I “clicked.”

In the meantime, thanks for stopping by!