When Melissa Morrison (pictured above, third from left) first arrived at Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital with her daughter Finnley after a life‑changing spinal cord injury, everything felt overwhelming - and incredibly lonely. “For the first couple of months we were here, Finn and I didn’t come out of our room very much. We didn’t really have any connections. It was really hard and really lonely,” says the Oshawa, Ont.-based mom. 

Morrison recalls a simple walk through the hospital that changed everything. “I was going for a walk and I met Allyson and we just decided to go for a talk. Once I had the comfort of my own people there, everything completely changed.”

Allyson White, whose daughter Scarlett,13, has cerebral palsy was also at Holland Bloorview with her daughter who was recovering following surgery at The Hospital for Sick Children. “You know Scarlett - she’s social,” White laughs. “She wanted to meet Finnley!”

The two girls had inpatient rooms next to each other and officially connected through recreation programming and the bond was instant. “The girls connected first,” White says. “Then the moms did.” 

“Once the girls were friends, we were inseparable,” Morrison adds.

How five inpatient moms turned hard days into a lasting friendship

Over time, the circle grew. Affectionately known as the “SODR moms,” named after Holland Bloorview’s specialized orthopedic and developmental rehabilitation (SODR) inpatient unit, the group eventually expanded to include five mothers - Melissa, Allyson, Jenny, Jessica and Lexi - whose families came from across the province.

For Morrison, it became more than friendship. It was survival. “For me, it was a support group,” she says. “Unless you live in the situation, you don’t understand what life is like,” she says. 

The moms shared meals, late‑night conversations and moments of levity amid the stress. They went shopping for Christmas presents together. Ventured out to the pub on Tuesday nights. They even took their first steps into navigating accessibility together — from learning the realities of discharge to purchasing an accessible wheelchair van for Finnley. “The accessible world was new to me,” Morrison says. “Allyson was a bit ahead of the game and she really helped me out.” 

Holding each other up when everything felt heavy

Their daughters - all between 10 and 13 - fell into rhythms of hospital life: racing down hallways in their wheelchair or mobility devices on the way to the hospital’s onsite school, eating lunch together in the SODR lounge, decorating hospital rooms during the holidays and being a part of celebrity and athlete visits.

While the girls attended onsite school during the day and therapeutic recreation activities in the evenings, it gave the moms a rare chance to breathe. “It reminded me that I was still a person,” Morrison says. “Our kids are our No. 1 priority, but meanwhile, it’s easy to lose who are you are a person beyond being a mother.” 

“You think you’re the only parent going through this,” White adds. “Each child was going through something different, but we had a shared experience. We had each other’s backs.”

Sometimes, that support came simply from having a judgment‑free place to vent. “As a parent, sometimes you’re frustrated,” White says. “Sometimes you just need a safe place where someone won’t judge.”

From hospital halls to chosen family

Finnley was both the first patient in - and the last out-spending nearly 10 months as an inpatient at Holland Bloorview. “On Finnley’s discharge day, all the girls, and their moms, came back for her to say goodbye,” says Morrison. “It meant the world to us.” 

Their bond even became permanent - literally. Two of the SODR moms got matching tattoos marking where their daughters’ PICC (peripherally inserted central catheter) lines had been during their hospitalization. “Our friendship is literally inked on our bodies forever,” Morrison says with a laugh.

Life beyond Holland Bloorview 

Although all five families have since been discharged and returned home, they remain in regular touch. The girls play Roblox together almost daily. The moms talk regularly - including weekly phone calls between Morrison and White - and have already reunited for a movie night. An accessible summer reunion is next on the list. 

Coming home, however, has also had its challenges. “At Holland Bloorview, you can sort of shut off the rest of the world,” Morrison says. “When you get back home, it’s cooking, cleaning, bills, work, school - everything comes at you at once.”

White agrees. “No one really prepares you for the not‑so-easy parts of being discharged home. At Holland Bloorview everything was accessible. Scarlett actually had more independence at the hospital than she does at home. It takes some getting used to again.” 

Still, both moms say the village they found - and built - continues to carry them forward. Their advice for other mothers or caregivers navigating a lengthy hospital stay with their child? “Find your people and let them in,” Morrison says. “Find your safe place.”

“You don’t expect to find something like that in a hospital, but it’s so nice that we did,” White says.

By Erin Pooley