Jennifer Drennan seemed to have it all. She worked as a critical care flight nurse, was married to her firefighter husband, Jim, and they had a young son, Cameron. As they waited for their daughter Caitlyn to arrive, life felt complete. But in August 2010, everything changed when Caitlyn was born with stage 4 Neuroblastoma cancer. Suddenly, Jen found herself on the other side of healthcare, fighting for her daughter's life.
In her upcoming memoir, Crying is Not an Option, Jennifer shares her difficult journey through grief, anger, guilt, and the struggle to regain control. She learns that the only way to get through this lonely and uncertain time is to let go and ask for help. Now, having come to terms with her life, Jennifer is dedicated to supporting the disability community as an advocate, a parent and a healthcare professional. In addition to her advocacy work, she has created her own disability trainings for first responders and other healthcare professionals.
When she's not writing Jennifer spends time training and competing in kickboxing and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, which she enjoys as part of her daily routine.
Jennifer Drennan seemed to have it all. She worked as a critical care flight nurse, was married to her firefighter husband, Jim, and they had a young son, Cameron. As they waited for their daughter Caitlyn to arrive, life felt complete. But in August 2010, everything changed when Caitlyn was born with stage 4 Neuroblastoma cancer. Suddenly, Jen found herself on the other side of healthcare, fighting for her daughter's life.
In her upcoming...
October 11, 2025
Welcome to my blog!
Let’s just get this out of the way: I’m here to show up as myself—messy, real, sweary and unfiltered. My style and vibe don’t land with everyone. And I’m cool with that.
Like most women, I juggle a ridiculous number of roles. I’m a nurse, a fire wife, a mom (including the rollercoaster ride of being both a disability and autism mom), daughter, sister, athlete, and disability advocate. My life took a wild detour in 2010 when Caitlyn, our daughter, arrived...
True Stories: Volume VI is a wonderful collection of works produced by the graduates of The Narrative Project, an organization that supports writers in getting their books done.
This is my first published story. Enjoy!
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Blasted awake, my heart jumps in my throat. I’d been snug under a blanket, stretched out on one of three recliners in the crew “family room” at our rescue base, in the middle of a nice, warm nap. Cue three familiar warning tones from the crew...
True Stories: Volume VII is a wonderful collection of works produced by the graduates of The Narrative Project, an organization that supports writers in getting their books done.
This is my second published short story. I hope you enjoy it.
In 2010 we were looking forward to the birth of our daughter, Caitlyn, to complete our little family of three. Her soon-to-be big brother was as excited as my husband, Jim, and me, awaiting the happy day. Suddenly and unexpectantly, Caitlyn came...
The following is a scene that did not make it into my upcoming memoir, Crying Is Not an Option.
Perspective
Parenting a child with disabilities is a shit show, exhausting, and sometimes feels so unfair that you just want to scream. Or for me, beat the shit out of a heavy bag. The struggles, the relentless advocacy, the lack of control, the constant unknowns, the sheer weight of it all. But, just like every challenge in life, it’s a spectrum of experiences and emotions, and every now and...
October 23, 2025
Fair warning.
Today, I’m talking about menopause. That loud and persistent, obnoxious and annoying bitch.
So maybe not your jam. Or you don’t care.
I respect that.
Feel free to skip this.
I’d love nothing more than to just breeze past this shit, pretend it doesn’t exist too, and avoid the conversation altogether. I don’t have a choice. I’m tits deep in it. Menopause didn’t ask permission; she just blew right in and set up shop. And she continues to linger like an unwelcome...