If I Won the Lottery: How Money Could Help Me Support Families in Need

Posted byLaura JohnstonePosted inNICU & SCBUTags:, ,

Winning the lottery is a dream many of us have imagined—but for me, it’s more than just about financial freedom. It’s about how money can be a powerful tool to make a difference. It could give me the opportunity to help parents of premature babies and neurodivergent families in ways I’ve always dreamed of.

While money doesn’t solve everything, it can enable us to create systems of support that make a lasting impact on people’s lives. For me, that would mean building a network of care, counselling services, and retreats to support families navigating their unique challenges.

Supporting My Family First

Before anything else, I’d ensure my family’s needs are taken care of. Like any parent, I want to make sure my daughter’s future is secure and that we have the stability to focus on what really matters. But once my family is looked after, I would turn my attention to helping others.

Building a Team to Help Families

One of the first things I’d do is hire a team of professionals to join me in my mission. Money can’t buy passion, but it can allow me to bring together skilled people who care about supporting parents of premature babies and neurodivergent children.

This team would include counsellors, mental health professionals, educators, and advocates—all focused on creating a system of care that supports families in ways that are practical, emotional, and empowering.

Creating a Mental Health Counselling Service

The emotional toll of having a premature baby or raising a neurodivergent child is immense. Parents often experience trauma, anxiety, and burnout but may not have access to the support they need.

With financial backing, I would establish a dedicated counselling service for these families. This wouldn’t be a one-size-fits-all approach—it would be tailored to the unique challenges parents face, offering specialised mental health support and practical strategies to help them thrive.

Expanding Retreats for Parents

The retreats I’m planning through The Good, The Bad, and Your Parenting Journey would also become bigger and better. I want to create safe, nurturing spaces where parents can recharge, connect with others who understand their journey, and access resources like counselling and workshops.

With the financial ability to expand these retreats, I could make them accessible to more families, adding resources like on-site child care and covering costs for those who might otherwise not be able to attend. These retreats wouldn’t just be a break—they’d be a lifeline.

Using Money as a Force for Good

While winning the lottery might seem like an unlikely dream, the truth is that money can be a powerful tool to help people. With the right resources, I could make these ideas a reality faster—but that doesn’t mean they’re impossible without it. Every step I take, even without a lottery win, is about moving closer to these goals of support, compassion, and empowerment.

A Call to Action

Money can help create change, but so can community. If this vision resonates with you, I’d love for you to join me in building it. Follow The Good, The Bad, and Your Parenting Journey, like, subscribe, and share this mission with others. Together, we can create a world where families of premature babies and neurodivergent children feel seen, supported, and empowered.

References

• Personal experiences as a parent of a premature baby and neurodivergent family member.

• The mission of The Good, The Bad, and Your Parenting Journey.

• Planned retreats and counselling services under development.

What would you do if you won the lottery?

Published by Laura Johnstone

Hi I'm Laura. In 2023 I had a very traumatic pregnancy and in turn had a planned premature baby at 32 weeks (we had been told to expect anything from 23 weeks). With multiple visits to specialist hospitals in Southampton and London we went through a journey. Consequently I am wanting to help others that were in my position as well as talk about different and sometimes difficult parenting issues.

23 thoughts on “If I Won the Lottery: How Money Could Help Me Support Families in Need”

      1. my son & daughter in law started off by having their story on the news networks, interviews with like minded people and by doing events, and fund raising. They started small with no backing. Then found a professional who supported them with the training they offered. Collaboration with other charities.

        They have gone from Strength to strength.

        you can do it!

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I am already collaborating with quite a number of charities because one of the big things I am doing is I’m actually making a database of all of the charities that may be needed to be used in relation to the different things that I’m doing so with prematurity I have blessed Ronald McDonald House Tommys Ickle Pickles or wanting to get involved and then I’ve also got mind and a whole load of other different mental health charities well also having information for different neurodiversities and all of them have come back really positively. It’s basically because often people don’t realise that different conditions have comorbidities and so safe for example with ADHD there is often pots and hyperMobility / EDS (Ehlers-Danlos syndrome) that go with it

        Liked by 1 person

      2. It is crazy how personal experience of having a premature baby and being neuro diverse myself has really shaped what I want to do. The funny thing is if you’d have spoken to me 10 years ago all I wanted to do was be a podiatrist and educate patients but now it’s education in a different way. I’ve written a load of books. I’m just in the process of getting them on to Amazon

        Liked by 1 person

      3. That’s crazy, I mean, if I was in your position I would not have succeded like you at all. And I guess life’s experiences change what we want out of it right?
        Btw what’s your book about?

        Like

      4. So I have written several children’s books on prematurity because one in nine births are premature. I have also written about baby loss neurodivergency I have written about being deaf and dyslexic there have been quite a few few

        Like

      8. This is the thing I don’t think that I’m strong. I just don’t want anybody else to go through what I did and if I can help one person I have been through what I went through for a reason.

        Like

      9. But the fact that you’ve gone through it and are now trying to helf others through it is itself a big win tbh. I mean I know a few people who have gone through similar things and they just gave up and I can’t blame them because watching them struggle in a day-to-day basis was very difficult and ai can only imagine what they went through. And the fact that you can talk about this as a thing you have managed to overcome to some extent is very great.

        Liked by 1 person

      10. Very true, and it means a lot. If I can help one person, it’s all good. However, what I will say is if you use the right terms with AI and putting in the right parameters it can also really help as well.

        Liked by 1 person

      12. Yeah. and what I’ve done with my children’s books is I’ve actually copied and pasted pages and I’ve asked it to then illustrate and it’s come up with a jingle and all sorts of stuff however the heartfelt stuff is something that I do myself but I will then ask AI to check it to make sure that there are no errors in spelling and stuff like that because I am dyslexic.

        Like

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