Strong Anchor Consulting

08/28/2026

Thank you Star Spirit Magazine for your support!!!!

Helping families find their way. ⚓️

Strong Anchor Consulting helps Idaho families navigate the overwhelming world of disability services, IEPs, Medicaid, medical specialists, schools and community resources with confidence and support.

Founder Kristi Young brings 27 years of experience and one simple mission: make sure families don’t have to walk this road alone.

Learn more at stronganchorconsult.com.

08/28/2026

Such a precious memory -

When Dolly granted a wish from Star, Idaho.
RIP Dolly Parton.

08/08/2026

When a chart or reward system stops working, the instinct is usually to try harder — more stickers, bigger rewards, stricter consequences. I wish every family could know this reframe instead: a system that consistently isn't working usually isn't a motivation problem, it's a mismatch problem. The expectation on the chart might be genuinely out of reach for where your kiddo is right now, not something they're choosing to resist. Before adding more pressure to the same chart, it's worth asking: is this expectation actually achievable today, with the skills my kiddo currently has? Sometimes the fix isn't a better reward. It's a smaller, more achievable ask.

What's a chart or system that stopped working at your house?
I'd love to help you think through what might need to shift.

08/07/2026

Can we talk about a myth that keeps families sitting on outdated information? “We just had an evaluation, we have to wait years for another one.” Not automatically true. I wish every family could know this: if something's genuinely changed — new struggles, a new diagnosis, services that clearly aren't matching current need — you can request a new evaluation, and most systems have a process for exactly this, even outside the usual re-evaluation cycle. It might not be instant, and it might involve some back-and-forth about whether it's warranted. But “we just did one” isn't a permanent door closing.

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08/06/2026

It's incredibly common to end up with whoever's “in network” and available, not necessarily whoever's the best fit for your kiddo's specific profile. Families often don't realize they can ask for a different provider, request a specific specialty match, or in some cases pursue an out-of-network exception if there's a documented lack of appropriate in-network options.I wish every family could know this isn't settling for good enough because that's just how insurance works. It's worth one phone call to ask what your actual options are before assuming the first assigned provider is the only path.
Has insurance ever handed you a provider that wasn't the right match?
What did you end up doing about it?

08/05/2026

The therapist wants to know what the teacher said. The teacher wants to know what the doctor recommended. The doctor wants the therapist's notes. And somehow, you're the group chat holding it all together, one exhausted forward at a time. I wish every family could know this: that job isn't supposed to be yours by default. A good team communicates directly with each other — with your permission, of course — instead of routing everything through you first. It's fair to ask providers, “Can you two connect directly on this?” instead of playing relay every single time. You can absolutely stay looped in on everything without being the only wire connecting all of it.
That's genuinely what “mortar, not more bricks” means — someone making sure the connections exist, so you're not manually building them every week.
Are you the group text right now? You're allowed to hand some of those wires off.

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08/04/2026

Can we talk about the renewal letter that shows up and nobody reads until it's almost too late?Once your kiddo is approved for a waiver, the story isn't over — most programs require periodic re-verification (income, medical necessity, sometimes both), often on a strict deadline. Miss it, and you can lose a spot it took months or years to get, even though nothing about your kiddo's need has changed.I wish every family could know this: mark the renewal date the day you get approved, not the day the reminder letter shows up. Set a calendar alert 30 days out. Keep a folder (physical or digital) with the documents you'll need again — diagnosis letters, income verification, medical necessity forms — so renewal is a five-minute task instead of a scramble.Losing a waiver spot over paperwork, not need, is one of the most avoidable and most common losses I see. Don't hesitate to reach out if a renewal deadline is sneaking up on you.

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08/03/2026

Can we talk about the “sorry to bother you again” you type before every email to the school?So many parents I work with preface every single message with an apology — for asking a follow-up question, for not understanding an acronym, for emailing twice in one week. I wish every family could know this: you're not bothering anyone. You're doing your job as your kiddo's parent, and the team's job is to respond to it.That doesn't mean every email needs to be sharp or demanding — warmth costs nothing. But it also doesn't need an apology attached to it. “Following up on my question from Tuesday” does the same job as “Sorry to be a pain, just following up” — minus the part where you shrink yourself first.

Have you noticed yourself doing this?
I'd love to hear if this lands for you too.

08/02/2026

The clock that starts the second you request an evaluation — in writing.
Most states, including Idaho, run on a window (30 days) from a written evaluation request, to a signed consent for assessment. I wish every family could know this: a verbal “yeah, we'll look into it” in the hallway doesn't start that clock. An email or written request does. Families lose weeks, sometimes months, because the request lived in a conversation instead of on paper. You don't need special language. “I am formally requesting an evaluation for my child” in an email is enough to start the timeline. Then you can actually track it instead of wondering why nothing's moved. If you're not sure whether your request ever “counted,” that's worth figuring out today, not next semester.
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08/01/2026

“Once you sign the IEP, that's it until next year.”
Not true.
An IEP can be amended at any point when there's a documented need for a change. You can request an amendment meeting, or in many states agree to changes without a full formal meeting. Signing an IEP means you agreed to what was on the page that day, not that you've locked your kiddo in for twelve months. Don't hesitate to reach out if you're sitting on a plan that isn't fitting anymore.