For Parents and Carers
We provide a wide range of professional services to meet your needs. We promise to provide every service with a smile, and to your highest level of satisfaction.
We See You
We understand the challenges of caring for a child, young person, or adult with complex support needs. The hours are long, the systems can be confusing, and the emotional load can feel overwhelming.
At Waves WA, we see the burnout even when you don’t say a word. We recognise the small signs — the quiet fatigue, the worry that keeps you up at night, the constant juggling of appointments, therapies, and everyday life. We know the courage it takes to keep going, and we are here to support you.
You Are Not Alone
Our work is not just about supporting the person you care for — it’s about supporting you too. We aim to provide guidance, reassurance, and practical strategies that make life more manageable, so you feel heard, understood, and empowered.
A Poem to Reflect
We often refer to the poem “Windmills in Holland” because it beautifully captures the resilience, perseverance, and quiet strength we see in parents and carers every day. Just like the windmills, caregivers keep going despite challenges, turning effort into progress, and finding meaning in the journey.
"I am often asked to describe the experience of raising a child with a disability - to try to help people who have not shared that unique experience to understand it, to imagine how it would feel. It's like this......
When you're going to have a baby, it's like planning a fabulous vacation trip - to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make your wonderful plans. The Coliseum. The Michelangelo David. The gondolas in Venice. You may learn some handy phrases in Italian. It's all very exciting.
After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The flight attendant comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland."
"Holland?!?" you say. "What do you mean Holland?? I signed up for Italy! I'm supposed to be in Italy. All my life I've dreamed of going to Italy."
But there's been a change in the flight plan. They've landed in Holland and there you must stay.
The important thing is that they haven't taken you to a horrible, disgusting, filthy place, full of pestilence, famine and disease. It's just a different place.
So you must go out and buy new guide books. And you must learn a whole new language. And you will meet a whole new group of people you would never have met.
It's just a different place. It's slower-paced than Italy, less flashy than Italy. But after you've been there for a while and you catch your breath, you look around.... and you begin to notice that Holland has windmills....and Holland has tulips. Holland even has Rembrandts.
But everyone you know is busy coming and going from Italy... and they're all bragging about what a wonderful time they had there. And for the rest of your life, you will say "Yes, that's where I was supposed to go. That's what I had planned."
And the pain of that will never, ever, ever, ever go away... because the loss of that dream is a very very significant loss.
But... if you spend your life mourning the fact that you didn't get to Italy, you may never be free to enjoy the very special, the very lovely things ... about Holland."
Why We Love This Poem
At Waves WA, this poem reflects the resilience, adaptation, and quiet strength we see in parents and carers every day. It reminds us to honour the grief, acknowledge the challenges, and still celebrate the unique joys and achievements of life’s unexpected journeys. It’s a story of hope, acceptance, and finding beauty where you are — values that guide the support we offer.
Did You Know?
Some facts about the lived experience of the Waves staff
5 out of 6
of our team members are neurodivergent.
4 out of 6
of our team members are parents of children who are neurodivergent and living with disability.
We are a profit-for-purpose provider
all profits go back into our business to support our practitioners and help us better serve the community.
Ethos for our team
we extend the same values to our team members as we do to our participants. When people feel safe, connected, and trusted, they flourish.
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Follow us on Facebook and Instagram for encouragement, practical tips, and updates designed especially for parents and carers. We share resources, insights, and gentle reminders that you are not alone on this journey.
