Today I’m chatting with autism mom Laura, who is a listener turned guest! Laura and shares her journey with son, Owen. When Laura initially reached out to me, one of the things she really wanted to talk about was the importance of support. Laura works for a local nonprofit that provides many awesome resources for special needs families, one of which is a monthly support group. Laura explains how after Owen was diagnosed with ASD, she decided to attend the support group herself. Laura describes herself as introverted so while it was a bit out of her comfort zone, she wanted to give it a try. The group quickly proved to beneficial for her and today she’s close friends with several members! I often talk about the importance of support on this podcast, and I truly believe it makes ALL the difference on this journey. I loved hearing Laura’s perspective on finding support (and the different forms it comes in) and I know you will too. I hope you enjoy listening!

Connect with Laura: [email protected]

Neighborhood Parent Network

https://www.npnparents.org/

Sponsored by:

Simple Spectrum Supplement

https://simplespectrumsupplement.com/

Use code AIA at check out for free shipping!

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m chatting with autism mom Jenn, who you might know as @divergentroots on Instagram. Jenn and I connected years ago and it was so great to get her on the pod! Jenn and I talked all about her beautiful family and especially her son Julian, who is on the spectrum. Jenn shares their journey and talks about their life in Maine. Our conversation covered just about every topic you can think of! From marriage to self care to Tik Tok, we cover it all. I can relate to so much of what Jenn shares on this episode and I know others will too. I had the best time chatting with her and I hope you enjoy listening!

Sponsored by:

Simple Spectrum Supplement

https://simplespectrumsupplement.com/

Use code AIA at check out for free shipping!

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m finishing up the summer series with a recap of our summer break and talking about what’s to come for the 2021-22 school year. I’ve shared previously that this was our BEST summer in years and on this episode I’m giving more context on what that really means. In short, Logan is just in a great place and watching him flourish this summer has been such a joy. I’m really excited to see how this school year goes because I feel like he’s starting off with a major leg up! Later, I’m answering listener questions which was really fun because there was no set topic- these questions are all over the map! I want to say thank you so much to everyone for listening and sticking around for all the solo shows this summer. I’ve had fun recording them (although I am VERY excited to get back to more interviews!) and I hope you’ve enjoyed listening!

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m flying solo and coming at you with another installment of the summer series! I’m talking about a topic that’s been highly requested and is very close to my heart: expanding your family after an autism diagnosis. Today I’m sharing our family’s journey and all the details on how we came to have our three incredible kids. This is a very personal topic for me and I know so many of you can relate. This is not something I’d ever want to “give advice” on, because it is so personal to every family. But I’m always happy to share our story in hopes that it can help someone. I really enjoyed taking this trip down memory lane and I hope you enjoy listening!

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today’s episode is another installment of Hot Topics and this one is all about ABA therapy! This was a highly requested topic and I understand why, there’s a lot to talk about with ABA! I’m sharing our entire experience with ABA from the very beginning of what it was like getting started, to our decision to take a pause from ABA in October 2020. Obviously there are a lot of thoughts and opinions regarding ABA therapy. This episode is not meant to sway you one or another, it really is just me talking about our experience with ABA from my perspective as the parent. I will say we were very lucky to have had an overwhelmingly positive experience and I’m very grateful for that. I’m also answering some listener questions about ABA. As always I want to say thank you so much for listening and supporting the show. I hope you enjoy this episode!

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m flying solo and giving an update on my health/weight loss journey. Once again getting very personal! Over these past few months I’ve lost over 50lbs and I continue to get LOTS of questions. On this episode I’m answering those questions and giving my perspective on losing the weight. I hit my weight goal back in April and now I’m in “maintenance” mode. I’m sharing (very honestly!) how I felt about hitting my goal and how body image issues run deep. Overall, I’ve learned A LOT over these past few months. Opening up about this journey definitely makes me feel vulnerable but I’m always happy to share if it’ll help someone else. Thanks so much to everyone who has supported me through all this and I hope you enjoy listening!

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m chatting with fellow autism mom, Erica Tenlen. Erica shares her journey with her son Finn, who was diagnosed with ASD last year. Erica was a listener of the podcast and after we connected on Instagram,

I convinced her to come on the show! After sharing with me that she really enjoyed listening, but had yet to her a story that reminded her of their own, I knew she had to be guest. It’s always my goal to share a variety of stories on AIA, I wanted Erica to share hers for that reason. I’m so glad she stepped out of her comfort zone to do so! Erica gives all the details on the unique circumstances around Finn’s diagnosis and why they are still having a hard time with others understanding and knowing the best path for Finn. I appreciated Erica’s honesty so much and I loved our conversation. I hope you enjoy listening!

Connect with Erica:

Instagram: @ericatenlen

Facebook: Erica Tenlen

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m coming at you with another Hot Topic! This episode is all about navigating personal relationships after your child is diagnosed with autism. I’m sharing my own experiences within my marriage, and with family and friends. This topic is one that comes up A LOT in my DMs and was highly requested for the Hot Topics series. In addition to sharing my own background, I also got many responses from listeners that I’m discussing as well. Navigating (and nurturing) close relationships can be a challenge even when autism isn’t a factor- so a diagnosis of ASD can definitely add another layer of difficulty. Today I’m really digging into my own personal accounts of my relationships. I also want to thank everyone that gave their input for this episode. I hope you enjoy listening!

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m flying solo with another installment of the Summer Series! On this episode I’m talking all about milestones. Milestones are something every child experiences. As parents, these milestones often come with pressure and a “timeline”. However when you have a child on the spectrum, that timeline kind of goes out the window…and that’s ok! Today I’m sharing some of Logan’s important milestones and when they happened for him. Some of these might not seem like your typical milestones, but these are the ones that stick out to me. I think it’s important as parents to remove that pressure (as best as we can!) from our children and ourselves. Once you throw away the timeline, you’re free to celebrate these amazing milestones and skills no matter when they happen. I hope you enjoy listening to this episode!

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!

Today I’m chatting with autism mom and author, Nicole Hendrick Donovan. Nicole shares her journey with her son Jack, who is now 16. Jack is the youngest of four boys and Nicole explains how around his third birthday, she could no longer ignore the signs that Jack was developing in a different way from his brothers. Eventually, Jack was diagnosed with autism but it was a long road to get there. Nicole shares how despite getting services, there was a lack of understanding on how to deal with Jack’s behaviors, especially in a school setting. All this came to a head when in 2012, Jack escaped from his elementary school leaving a trail of injured and weary staff behind. Due to his elopement and the behaviors leading up to it, he was consequently expelled. It was this incident (as well as their journey leading up to and following) that led Nicole to write her memoir, A LIFE SUSPENDED: A Mother and Son's Story of Autism, Extinction Bursts, and Living a Resilient Life. Nicole and I talk more on this episode about their story, and the difficulty of navigating the educational system with an autistic child. I loved chatting with Nicole and I know you will enjoy listening to this episode!

Connect with Nicole:

Website: http://nhdwrites.com/book/

IG: @nhdwrites

Sponsored by:

Audible

audibletrial.com/adventuresinautism

Connect with Megan:

IG: @adventuresinautismpod

FB: @Adventures In Autism Podcast

Email: [email protected]

Enjoying the show? I would so appreciate your rating & review!