Why would you want to see a neuropsychologist for your child? Today, we had an amazing (& positive) conversation with Drs. Fredriksen and Rothman, pediatric neuropsychologists, who run a practice in Maryland. We discussed many amazing topics, including one we are asked ALL the time: How do we discuss our child’s diagnosis with them? How do we have conversations with them, teaching them about their brains and why they work the way that they do?

Their first book is available for purchase, which teaches about ADHD and they have another book about Autism in the works! The books also include interactive activities that you can do alongside your child. You can check them out below!

"Different Thinkers: ADHD" on Amazon: https://amzn.to/3XxmQ66

Website: https://www.neuropsychmoms.com/aboutus

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/neuropsychmoms/

Something light and easy breezy today, we all need a break and some laughs!

Topics covered in today’s episode:

Favorite boxed cereals and the proper way to eat them, see also: don’t be gross

Car trip snacks- the sweet, the sour, and the savory

Game show nostalgia- RIP Bob Barker, we love you forever

Cellphone wallpapers- they can tell you a lot about a person

Our favorite podcasts and TV shows that we are into right now

Have any recommendations? Email us at hello@momstalkautism.com or send us a DM

Today we talk to Michael Gold, co-founder of Future Fans, a toolkit that focuses on teaching kids and families the fundamentals of team sports in a fun and interactive way through stories, games, and toys. This method is great for all abilities, including those who learn differently than typical peers. They even won an Autism Toy Award!

We go in-depth on how the boxes work and the benefits for kids and families: shared interests, new skills, and knowledge of a sport that can lead to connections with peers and the community. Go Team!

Website with Purchase Links

Future Fans Instagram

Today we sat down with Lisa Baskin-Wright, our favorite IEP Coach to do a refresh on some IEP tips and tricks as we roll into a new school year. If you haven’t heard the first episode we did with Lisa, make sure to listen, but this will be a quick reminder for you to get you going and not create more mental load than we already have.

PLEASE be sure to check out how you can work with Lisa at the links below!

IEP Community: https://www.lisabaskinwright.com/iep-community

Coaching & Products: https://www.lisabaskinwright.com/products

Jan Stewart is a Hope ambassador and a prestigious guest on this episode. She is a highly regarded autism, neurodiversity and mental health advocate, author, and recipient of the prestigious Mom’s Choice Award®. Her best-selling memoir Hold on Tight: A Parent’s Journey Raising Children with Mental Illness describes her emotional roller coaster story of parenting two children with multiple, complex mental health and neurodevelopmental disorders. Her mission is to inspire and empower readers to persevere, have hope, and know they are not alone, as well as to better educate families, friends, healthcare professionals, educators, and employers. Her professional accomplishments and current efforts in this arena continue to supersede what is described here as she has many roles in governance. The work is never done! As a mom to two who are now adults, she shares with us vulnerably what her struggles were, the toll it took and what it looks like being on the other side, a new side, so hold on tight!

Instagram and Facebook: janstewartauthor

Website: www.janstewartauthor.com

A little bonus gift for you this week, courtesy of our friend, Danielle Bettmann, of Failing Motherhood Podcast. Danielle interviewed Shannon and Brittney on her show and was kind enough to share it with our audience too. We dive deep into the early years of diagnosis and what that looked like for each of our families: the process, the feelings, the grief, and the realizations we all came to learn as we parent neurodivergent kids. Check out this real and raw episode and don’t forget to head over to Failing Motherhood Podcast and check it out... lots of great topics and guests for all families!

Failing Motherhood Podcast

Failing Motherhood Instagram

Danielle’s website

Fellow podcaster and Parenting Coach, Danielle Bettmann, is our guest in this week’s episode. Danielle helps parents of strong-willed children meet their kids’ deepest core needs, improve behavior, and find new levels of patience. As a mom of two, Danielle is passionate about eliminating shame from parents’ vocabulary, solving power struggles, and transitioning from school to home and back again. Danielle specializes in helping families who are struggling but don’t have a diagnosis yet or whose child does not meet the criteria for a specific diagnosis. We loved chatting with Danielle and hope this conversation is a helpful stepping stone to finding solutions for your family.

Connect with Danielle and her podcast, “Failing Motherhood”:

www.Instagram.com/parent_wholeheartedly

www.Facebook.com/wholeheartedlyomaha

www.failingmotherhood.com

www.parentingwholeheartedly.com/unapologetic

www.parentingwholeheartedly.com

Recovery is necessary after going through periods of Decision and Emotional and Physical Fatigue from being a caregiver (caregiver burnout syndrome).

In this episode, our “downloading” continues but we cover and wrap up the topic of the Mental Load by hitting on these few points:

• Personal actions you can take
• How Friends, Family + Community can help
• Importance of Systems, processes can save and hold us up, as one of our faves states in her book, Kelley Coleman, “Systems are our Self Care!”