Reflections
Am I more than neurodivergent?
In order to identify as neurodivergent, I have first had to understand what I diverge from.
Most people hear the term neurodivergent and hear that I am diverging from ‘typical’.
Typical neurobiology.
But...
Are your PDA children short and sharp with you in front of others at times?
This can actually be culturally and socially appropriate.
We accept that teens do this as part of their identity formation and separation from us into their transition toward a sense of self in adole...
I never want to forget.
This is an image of me, deep in the trenches, around a decade ago.
My husband would message from work each day and ask how 'things' were.
Some days, I couldn't speak. I'd send pictures. This was one...
Our child is struggling with demand avoidance and cannot complete simple, familiar tasks.
I've been reflecting on a powerful concept we discussed in our recent Q&A from inTune with PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance).
The art of living in the now, especially when supporting our children. ...
I will not wait until I’m in my last days.
So many people unconsciously spend (waste) their lives working toward what they hope will be peace, one day.
Work hard, then rest.
Main meal first, then dessert.
Wees first, then poos. (I made that...
It never gets easier
It never gets easier, nor am I ever better prepared for the moments my autistic children (and I) are exposed to another parent’s grief stricken story about their autistic child.
I was conditioned to ...
I have not yet rebuilt.
Hello, I’m here writing. It isn’t easy, and it isn’t complete.
Be patient with me, please, as I figure out a way to communicate this internalised experience, these thousands of thoughts, these physic...
When I give, I give myself.
Walt Whitman said "When I give, I give myself".
Both a blessing and a curse, this is something I am forever navigating and managing. I'm someone that loves to give, because it makes me feel good to s...
We're in this together.
I had a close friend and colleague reach out to me about six months ago to ask how I'd feel about them writing a book on parenting neurodivergent children. They know that I'm also working on this (ins...
PDAers don't make promises.
We have a saying in our family: "PDAers don't make promises".
It's a letting off the hook for all of us, because I can't tell you the amount of times adults try to bargain, not realising the demand t...