After I lost my son while he was just an infant, the birth of our daughter Ivy was all the more a blessing. Ivy has special needs and requires around-the-clock care. For the first 10 months of her life, we lived in hospitals. We had to travel across the country to try to get Ivy the expert help she needed. It required me to leave my job and become Ivy’s primary care provider. On top of it all, we were trying to figure out how we were going to pay for my crushing student debt.

The burden of student loans is great for any person, but it is especially hard for those that are parents to a special needs child. The care that children like Ivy require is expensive. Roadblocks -- like inadequate insurance coverage, high deductibles, and sometimes having to pay costs upfront -- face many special needs families. In addition, there simply are not enough nurses when 24/7 care is needed. These factors often force parents to become the primary caregiver, making it impossible for them to return to the workforce and pay off their student debts.

My husband and I have always been hardworking and pay all our bills in full. His salary as a public school teacher and the Social Security Insurance we receive for Ivy barely keeps us afloat. At the end of the month, after our regular bills and medical expenses are paid for, there isn’t anything left to save, let alone pay down my student loans. The current options available to families like mine only delay repayment. We now find ourselves having to decide if we want to put a meal on the table or pay my student loan bill.

Ivy will need a lifetime of care -- our family can’t afford a lifetime of debt, too. I’m asking for Congress to allow student debt forgiveness for the parents of special needs children. Debt forgiveness is the only way we can truly focus on caring for the ones we love.