“How I Met Your Mother” co-creator Craig Thomas talks with “Enable: The Disability Podcast” about his son, who was born with a rare genetic disorder known as Jacobsen Syndrome.
Thomas, who was working on the Emmy-winning TV show at the time, said it felt like writing for a comedy while living a drama. Those experiences helped inspire an unmade movie musical and a new book, “That’s Not How It Happened,” about Down syndrome and “the cliff” that families face as special needs children enter adulthood.
Thomas also sheds light on the “Band vs. DJ” debate from “HIMYM,” the music he had at his own wedding, and his advice for anyone who’s ever felt alone and afraid to share the challenges they’re facing.
“I didn’t want everyone to look at me differently,” he said in the episode. “At first, I felt like there was something to hide. I felt like I would be judged in some other way, my son would be judged in some other way. I didn’t want people to see him differently.”
”Start at the point where you tell everyone everything. Because you will be surprised how much it helps to do that and how it unburdens you to do that, and how you find support in places maybe you wouldn’t have thought you would.“
”That’s Not How It Happened" is available now on Amazon and other major booksellers.
“Enable: The Disability Podcast,” which highlights amazing people with disabilities and different abilities, releases new episodes weekly on YouTube and all major podcast platforms, including Spotify, Apple, Amazon and iHeart.
Follow facebook.com/enablepodcast or @enablepodcast on Instagram and TikTok for more.
About the hosts
Geoff Herbert, who was born with a profound binaural hearing loss, is a reporter, SEO Lead and content supervisor for syracuse.com | The Post-Standard. Despite being mostly deaf in both ears, he’s also worked as a DJ for 25 years, including 10 years in radio (as “DeafGeoff”) and 10 years as a wedding DJ in Upstate New York. He learned how to communicate orally with hearing aids, lipreading and speech therapy, and embraces assistive technology like visual waveforms in music programs, closed captioning/subtitles, and video calls.
Kurt Hower, who has worked at Advance Local for over 35 years, is a leader both in the media industry and in the community. He has been actively involved in leading change as the print industry has continued to rapidly evolve, while also serving on a variety of boards including the Central PA Chapter Arthritis Foundation Board of Directors where he was Chairman of Board Development and a member of the Public Policy and Advocacy Committee. Hower has ankylosing spondylitis, a rare disease that causes arthritis of the spine, and encourages others to focus on what they can contribute to society rather than their challenges.
Community at Work Virtual Job Fair
The Community at Work Virtual Job Fair offers an inclusive and accessible platform connecting a diverse, skilled talent pool with employers eager to build dynamic teams. See open jobs and more atadvancemediany.com/career-fair-2025.
Note: Views expressed in this podcast do not necessarily reflect the views of Advance Local.
