Read more about the article zPods is helping #autistic kids sleep better
My thoughts / Sponsored Post

zPods is helping #autistic kids sleep better

One of the most common questions I get from the parents of autistic kids, has to do with sleep or lack there of it. Autistic kids can struggle with sleep for a million different reasons and it's very common. Parents often find themselves sleep deprived and struggling. I can speak from personal experience in regards to chronic sleep deprivation and it's awful. It just is. Having said that, I wanted to take a few minutes and briefly share a little bit about a project I'm working on or rather, with. It's called zPods and it's so cool. zPods is a new type of bed designed for our neurodivergent kiddos and helps them to feel safe and comfortable, which naturally promotes sleep. Check out the new video they just shared. https://youtu.be/YWTp6sjGRQs…

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April 11, 2022
Read more about the article Why is my #autistic toddler becoming more aggressive?
Because You Asked / My thoughts / Reels

Why is my #autistic toddler becoming more aggressive?

Because you asked: "Why is my autistic toddler becoming more aggressive?" You're mileage may vary on this one but thisade me think of my experience with my youngest and I hope this can help someone out there. Like and follow for more 👍 https://www.instagram.com/reel/CboH0X6FAaD/?utm_medium=copy_link Transcribed for accessibility ☺️ ♥️ "Okay. So I've got this question on my autism parenting subreddit this morning. And, uh, it's from a parent who's autistic toddler is becoming more aggressive lately, biting, hitting, kicking, scratching, things like that. And they're like, Hey, why is this happening? Uh, well, the truth is like, I have no idea why it's happening.It could be a million reasons. Um, but it sounds like this kid might be non-verbal from some of the contexts that I got from the conversation.…

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March 27, 2022
Read more about the article Don’t take these things for granted
My thoughts

Don’t take these things for granted

As far as Mondays are concerned, it's been a good one. Elliott's in Spring break but Emmett isn't. That's super annoying but whatever. Emmett has his break in a month. I had a really insightful conversation today over lunch. You're never too old to learn new things or see stuff from a different perspective. So enlightening and I'm definitely better for it. I was running errands with the two youngest today and I took them to get haircuts. It went well and I didn't give bit a second thought until I got home. There was a time when something as simple as getting a haircut was anything but simple. In fact, it wasn't until the last couple of years that haircuts have been a relatively easy undertaking. I have absolutely…

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March 21, 2022
Read more about the article Mainstream Anxiety
My thoughts

Mainstream Anxiety

It's been a minute because my life has been a little overwhelming lately. I'm feeling incredibly anxious tonight, and I thought it might be helpful to write for a bit before I try to get some sleep. There's a few things going on right now that have me on edge, and I'm going to go into a few of them. This isn't going to be the smoothest article I've written, and it's not meant to be. I'm looking to purge and walk away from some of this shit I'm struggling with. The biggest thing keeping me awake tonight is that Elliott starts at a new high school in the morning. It's been an emotionally exhausting couple of months for Elliott and me. Elliott has been handling everything like a champ,…

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March 11, 2022
Read more about the article How #ABA Took Fun Off the (Little) Table
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How #ABA Took Fun Off the (Little) Table

One idea behind many ABA/Discrete Trial type programs is repetition and practice. The more opportunities, the more progress. That’s how we got to 40-hour per week programs for three-year-olds. Yeah, that is crazy, it’s not just you—and it doesn’t have to be this way. My oldest child was around two when I started to see ABA (Applied Behavior Analysis) differently. It’s a shift I am forever grateful, and it took my career on a completely new path. Around the time of this shift, my mother bought my oldest a little wooden table. It was a $40 steal at a local hardware store. The evening she brought it over, we both watched as my daughter (also her first grandchild) danced in delight around the table, sitting, getting down, switching chairs. She…

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March 4, 2022
Read more about the article You don’t know what it’s like
Because You Asked / My thoughts

You don’t know what it’s like

I pulled this request from one of my autism parenting support groups a few days ago. I'm just getting around to sharing it here, it's been on Facebook for a couple of days. Here's the actual topic request: This mom basically asked me to explain why even the simple things in life aren't so simple when you're an autism parent. I totally get this and I hope I helped.. ☺

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February 6, 2022
Read more about the article A few reasons why your #autistic child may be having #meltdowns after school?
Because You Asked / My thoughts

A few reasons why your #autistic child may be having #meltdowns after school?

A mom from one of my autism parenting support groups asked why her autistic son has meltdowns after school. This was a really good question and I wanted to share my answer here. If you're following me on IG, you may have already seen this. There could be a million reasons but I wanted to share some insight into why this may be happening. I think we, as parents, can underestimate how challenging it can be for our kids just to make it through the school day. School is not sensory friendly and there's a great deal of expectation during the school day. Simply put, school can be incredibly overwhelming for our kiddos on the spectrum and the fact they hold it together as well as they do is quite…

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January 28, 2022