You Don’t Want a Hug, Right? The Hilarity and the Hard of Raising Humans with Neurodiversity - Ep 9: Reflections, Insights, and Fond Memories from Working with Neurodiverse Students

Ep 9: Reflections, Insights, and Fond Memories from Working with Neurodiverse Students

08/15/23 • 32 min

You Don’t Want a Hug, Right? The Hilarity and the Hard of Raising Humans with Neurodiversity

Kristen recently retired from her work at The Joshua School, a non-profit, facility school, approved by the Colorado Department of Education that partners closely with local school districts to provide the intensive services many of the students need. It was such a meaningful experience in her life and it’s something we really need to talk about.

In today’s episode, Kristen shares what The Joshua School is, what she learned there, what she added to that environment, and what she's able to offer all of you as a result of working with the population of students who are significantly impacted by their neurodiversity.

In this episode, you’ll learn...

[05:32] Kristen explains what the Joshua School is

[11:26] Kristen talks about the roles she held there, and the wonderful staff she worked with

[14:32] Kristen reminisces about the students at the school and shares a few stories that have stuck with her

[23:40] How joy is the result of feeling safe and feeling like you belong

Get full show notes and the episode transcript:

If you can’t get enough of us, and want stay up to date with our other projects and ways you can connect, join our newsletter: https://www.youdontwantahug.com/ep-9-reflections-insights-and-fond-memories-from-working-with-neurodiverse-students

In this episode, you’ll learn...

[05:32] Kristen explains what the Joshua School is

[11:26] Kristen talks about the roles she held there, and the wonderful staff she worked with

[14:32] Kristen reminisces about the students at the school and shares a few stories that have stuck with her

[23:40] How joy is the result of feeling safe and feeling like you belong

Get full show notes and the episode transcript:

Previous Episode

Ep 8: Repetitive Behavior and Restricted Interests: Superpower and Coping Mechanism for the Neurodiverse

Many neurodiverse people have special interests and engage in repetitive behaviors. These interests are a crucial way for our kids to connect with others. But sometimes their interests and behaviors can be limiting, especially in school or other social settings.

In today’s episode, we talk about why neurodiverse kids engage in special interests and repetitive behaviors with such intensity, how it can become problematic in their everyday lives, and how we can use those interests to motivate our kids to engage with the world in new ways. Plus, we’re introducing our new “What the What” segment and we hope you enjoy it.

In this episode, you’ll learn...

[09:00] People with neurodiversity engage in special interests and repetitive behaviors with high intensity for several reasons

[20:03] How this can become really problematic when they're unable to stop the interest independently

[31:26] Strategies to identify the function of the repetitive behavior and how we can use them as a motivator to help our kids engage with the world socially

[48:00] Our new What the What segment that will recap each episode

[50:10] The Last Word from our kids about their first special interests

Get full show notes and the episode transcript: https://www.youdontwantahug.com/post/ep-8-repetitive-behavior-and-restricted-interests-superpower-and-coping-mechanism-for-our-kids

If you can’t get enough of us, and want stay up to date with our other projects and ways you can connect, join our newsletter: https://www.youdontwantahug.com/

Next Episode

Ep 10: Back to School Series: How to Alleviate Stress and Ease Anxiety for Neurodiverse Families

It’s back to school time, friends, and it's such a difficult time for neurodiverse families. There’s a lot of mental and physical prep work we have to do in order to get ourselves and our kids ready for the transition from summer. If you’re in the early years of back to school time, don’t worry, it does eventually get a bit easier as you get more experience with it.

In today’s episode, we’re kicking off our back to school series. We’re sharing why back to school time is so hard for all of us, how parents need to prioritize their sanity, and the tools and strategies that we’ve used to help alleviate the stress for all involved.

In this episode, you’ll learn...

[12:15] Why transitioning back to school is so hard for us as parents of neurodiverse kids and for the kids themselves

[19:44] How to prioritize yourself and your sanity during back to school time

[30:23] The strategies we’ve personally used to ease the back to school transition for our kids

[42:17] Our What the What segment, recapping the key takeaways for back to school success

[44:27] The Last Word

Get full show notes and the episode transcript: https://www.youdontwantahug.com/post/ep-10-back-to-school-series-how-to-alleviate-stress-and-ease-anxiety-for-neurodiverse-family

If you can’t get enough of us, and want stay up to date with our other projects and ways you can connect, join our newsletter: https://www.youdontwantahug.com/