When you’re first talking to the children in your life about PD, keep in mind that their initial reac- tion may be misleading, and you may not want to take it at face value. In 1993, Jaci Dumler shared her diagnosis with her son and daughter, then 8 and 11 years old. “We had a family meeting, where we just gave the top-line information — not a lot of detail at first — until the questions started coming.” She thought that nothing could affect her happy-go-lucky son. But when they recently reminisced about that con- versation, he shared with her how concerned he really had been. “Mom, I was freaking. I.
