We Are Brave Together Is Passionate About the Mental Health of Caregivers

Jessica Patay, founder and executive director of We Are Brave Together

By Jessica Patay
Founder/Executive Director, We Are Brave Together

May is a time to honor mothers everywhere and We Are Brave Together recognizes the particularly fierce love and devotion our Caregiving moms have for their children with all their unique and complex needs. We see how their journey of motherhood requires so much patience, personal growth and relentless advocating. We witness how mothers maintain the practice of gratitude, and how they prevail with goodness amidst hardship.

Caregiving moms face intense isolation. Mental burnout. Financial worries. Lack of sleep. No respite babysitters. Battling with insurance companies and school districts. Fear. Loneliness. Gaslighting from people who do not take the time to truly understand their plight. Exhaustion. Although we cannot change circumstances, We Are Brave Together is dedicated to positively supporting the mental health of caregiving moms.

We support these women through support groups, educational workshops, online connections, and, our inspirational and practical podcast, Brave Together.

Our extra-special offerings are on-site, weekend retreats and needs-focused scholarships. Forty eight hours of respite, rest, education, connection. And we have grown from an initial offering of one retreat per year when we started in 2017, to nine (9!) retreats that are happening in 2023!

These extraordinary women initially arrive at our WABT retreats with their extremely heavy, personal responsibility. Through education, practical resources and the opportunity for strong connections with others who are also in the trenches of altered motherhood, these same women leave the retreats with a burden that is just a little bit lighter. And they leave with permission to intentionally take care of their mental, emotional, spiritual and physical health…without “mom guilt.”

We believe that, “Connection and community are critical to not only surviving chronic hardship, but also thriving amidst hardship.” Being in community with other women who “get it” and who face similar circumstances is comforting and transformative. As one WABT mom eloquently stated, “Until you go to a retreat, you don’t realize how alone you are. And then…you realize you are not alone anymore.” We believe in the power of gathering together, and witnessing each other’s bravery, tenacity and strength.

We Are Brave Together will continue to serve and provide services and content that is intended to boost the mental health of caregivers. Burnout is a risk every day if we do not invest in daily practices that ground us, give us resilience, and help us access peace, hope and joy. Circumstances do not change. Yet, we can change our inner lives and inner selves to be able to withstand the medical and parenting storms of this life.

Caregivers are encouraged to join We Are Brave Together – www.wearebravetogether.org

Jessica Patay is mother to an 19-year-old son with Prader-Willi syndrome, a rare, genetic disorder. Jessica founded We Are Brave Together in 2017. This international community includes over 2000 moms in 50 states and 22 countries. Jessica is passionate about encouraging and serving caregiving moms everywhere; she wishes she could look every mom in the eyes and tell her, “You are not alone.”