Different Is Normal

Is it okay to feel grief as the parent of a neurodivergent child? Dave and Emily turn up in their pyjamas, coffee in hand, to talk honestly about the quiet grief that creeps in when you compare your kids' lives to other families'.

This isn't grief for our kids. We adore them exactly as they are. It's the micro disappointments: friendships that happen online instead of at the park, the birthday party that went wrong, the safe food cooked upside down, the drop-off that never happens. Then we flip it and share the big little wins that make it all worth it: a first solo shave, a gig with a 15-year-old who wanted Mum there the whole time, and a list in a notes app that got a family through burnout.

We finish on the question every parent of a neurodivergent teen carries: will they be okay when we're gone?

What's one big little win your family had this week?

And if you're a neurodivergent adult, or you love one, what does life look like for you after school? Tell us in the comments.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 Why we're in our pyjamas
01:20 Comparing our kids to other families
03:08 "I never had any expectations"
08:22 Grieving the experience, not the child
09:37 Friendships look different now
13:43 Wanting to go, and what it costs
16:18 The Optimus Prime birthday party
18:40 Waiting for the phone call from school
20:44 Footy, Starfish Nippers and finding a fit
26:32 The micro disappointments
30:40 The Father's Day food quest
35:32 The upside-down pizza
38:44 Why would they understand?
39:50 Flipping the script: big little wins
40:34 The camping dinner win
48:53 "Mum, I want you with me"
51:52 Movies with my son
52:47 The shower win
53:58 First solo shave
56:17 Keeping a wins list
57:47 Will he be okay when we're gone?
1:04:04 Dignity, not discipline
1:06:27 Celebrate the person, not the outcome

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#DifferentIsNormal #AutismParenting #Neurodivergent #ParentingNeurodivergentKids

What does an Education Support Worker actually do?

Dave works in a secondary school. Emily works across a primary school. In this episode of Different Is Normal, we take you inside the real day-to-day work of Education Support — and it’s a lot more than simply “helping kids in class”.

We talk about academic, social, emotional and medical support, building relationships, school avoidance, modifying learning, reporting, camps, IEPs, understanding individual interests and triggers, and working alongside teachers.

Dave shares the story of a student who returned to say goodbye after leaving his school — including a plush penguin and a moment that showed just how much their relationship had meant.

We also explore school avoidance and why progress that might seem tiny from the outside can be enormous for a student.

Sometimes success isn't completing a worksheet.

Sometimes it's getting out of the car.

Sometimes it's walking through the school gate.

Sometimes it's looking through the classroom window.

And sometimes, eventually, it's walking through that classroom door.

Emily shares how knowing a student's interests helped her connect with a child returning after three weeks away from school, turning a difficult transition into engagement and participation.

Great Education Support isn't about doing everything for a student. It's about understanding the individual, building trust, removing barriers and supporting greater independence.

If you're an Education Support Worker, what's one moment that reminded you why you do this job?

If you're a teacher, parent or student, what difference has a great Education Support Worker made to you?

Tell us in the comments.

CHAPTERS:

00:00 What does an Education Support Worker do?
00:10 A day in secondary school ES
01:29 Emily's day in primary school
02:27 Funding and student needs
03:13 The student Dave will never forget
04:01 Why Dave bought him a penguin
05:03 The goodbye that meant everything
06:16 “We lasted because of you”
06:49 The emotional side of ES
08:00 Supporting school avoidance
09:05 Getting through the school gate
10:05 Building trust through interests
11:07 From watching to entering the classroom
13:00 Celebrating the small wins
21:45 Camps and responsibilities
21:49 Reporting and observations
22:49 Modifying curriculum
23:28 Supporting complex medical needs
24:19 Documenting behaviour and progress
26:01 Why student history matters
26:39 Using interests to build engagement
28:11 Celebrating the wins
28:14 Learning from other ES staff
28:43 Why handovers matter
29:26 IEPs, interests and triggers
30:17 Why ES are integral to classrooms
31:34 Tell us about your ES experience
31:57 Something new is coming

▶️ Watch the full episode:
https://youtu.be/WqwZXnmIWsA

▶️ Subscribe to Different Is Normal:
https://www.youtube.com/@differentisnormal

🌐 https://differentisnormal.live

If conversations about neurodivergence, disability, education and the people supporting our kids matter to you, please consider subscribing.

#EducationSupport #TeacherAide #InclusiveEducation #Neurodivergence #DifferentIsNormal

48% of women with disabilities have experienced physical violence.

Women with Disabilities Victoria reports this compared with 28% of women without disabilities. It also reports that 33% of women with disabilities have experienced sexual violence.

Those numbers are confronting.

But this episode of Different Is Normal asks a different question:

What do men need to change?

Dave and Emily discuss violence against women, particularly neurodivergent and disabled women, and how dependence, communication differences, masking, compliance and unequal power can make abuse harder to recognise, report or escape.

We explore abuse that isn’t always recognised: controlling money, withholding medication or transport, exploiting dependence, coercive control, speaking for someone and using a woman’s diagnosis to undermine her credibility.

Then we turn the question onto men.

What do we laugh at? What do we let slide? What do we do when another man crosses the line? What are boys learning from us?

Why are women still being taught how to stay safe instead of men being taught not to make them unsafe?

This isn’t a women’s problem to solve. Men need to be part of the change.

What is one thing men can do in everyday life that would make women safer? Tell us in the comments.

▶️ Subscribe to Different Is Normal:
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CHAPTERS:

00:00 The statistic we need to talk about
00:47 “It’s horrifying, but it’s our reality”
01:11 Sexual violence against women with disabilities
03:32 Why disabled women face greater risk
04:27 Why abuse can be harder to recognise
06:40 What responsibility do men have?
07:36 Abuse isn’t always physical or sexual
10:21 When “care” becomes control
11:51 Do women know they’re being abused?
13:55 Gaslighting, power and hidden abuse
16:23 This isn’t a women’s problem to solve
19:26 Most violence comes from someone women know
20:56 When your abuser is also your support person
22:53 Neurodivergence, compliance and late diagnosis
23:43 Stop asking “Why didn’t she leave?”
25:16 Stop putting responsibility on women
25:40 Men need to change
29:16 Sydney Swans and the media response
31:22 What violence isn’t making the news?
33:46 Why aren’t we seeing what’s happening?
36:42 Gender inequality starts young
38:18 What are children learning at home?
39:13 Men need to call sexism out
42:45 Silence contributes to the culture
44:05 Disability used to discredit women
45:08 Why reporting can feel impossible
46:47 Emily’s experience of workplace sexism
50:01 Do women need men to “protect” them?
51:31 Why women choose the bear
53:28 Men need to stop other men
53:39 What men can change tomorrow
55:34 Emily’s challenge to men
59:11 The question every man should ask
59:55 This is a men’s problem to solve
1:00:07 Start with yourself

If conversations like this matter to you, please consider subscribing. We’re building a community where we talk openly about neurodivergence, disability and the parts of life that don’t always get discussed.

CONTENT NOTE: This episode discusses sexual violence, physical violence, coercive control and abuse.

If you or someone you know is experiencing violence or abuse in Australia, contact 1800RESPECT:
1800 737 732
https://www.1800respect.org.au/

If someone is in immediate danger, call 000.

#ViolenceAgainstWomen #Disability #Neurodivergence #DifferentIsNormal #GenderBasedViolence #DisabilityRights #MensResponsibility #CoerciveControl

What happens when a person’s disability hasn’t changed… but their NDIS funding is cut by more than half?

In the first episode of Season 2 of Different Is Normal, Dave and Emily share a deeply personal story after Emily’s sister-in-law received an NDIS plan with a 56% reduction in funding.

This isn’t a discussion about politics.

It’s a conversation about people.

We explore what these funding cuts actually mean for families, carers and people living with disability. From losing access to occupational therapy and support workers, to the emotional toll placed on unpaid family carers, this episode shines a light on the ripple effects that rarely make the headlines.

We also discuss:
• What “core funding” actually means
• Why people with lifelong disabilities are repeatedly asked to prove their disability
• The hidden cost carried by unpaid carers
• Why early intervention and therapy are investments, not expenses
• What happens when families become the safety net
• Why disability support is about dignity, purpose and belonging

Whether you’re living with disability, caring for someone who is, working in education, or simply wanting to better understand the challenges many Australian families face, we hope this conversation helps put a human face to the headlines.

We’d love to hear from you.

Have the recent NDIS changes affected you or someone you care about? What has your experience been?

Share your story respectfully in the comments below. Your voice may help someone else realise they’re not alone.

👍 If this conversation resonated with you, please Like, Subscribe and share this episode with someone who needs to hear it.

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About Different Is Normal

Hosted by Dave, an Education Support Worker and parent, alongside Emily, who brings lived neurodivergent experience, Different Is Normal explores what behaviour, disability and neurodivergence really look like beneath the surface.

Real conversations.
Real experiences.
Real understanding.

00:00 Introduction

00:49 A 56% NDIS funding cut

01:39 What core funding actually means

02:58 Why prove a lifelong disability?

06:21 The emotional impact of repeated assessments

08:45 What these funding cuts really mean

10:33 Losing support, work and independence

11:41 What happens when family becomes the support system?

15:37 Why occupational therapy matters

17:19 The hidden cost of disability

20:37 Being expected to do more

22:08 Appealing the NDIS decision

23:58 A message for Australia

#DifferentIsNormal #NDIS #Disability #Neurodiversity #Autism #DisabilitySupport #Carers #SupportWorkers #OccupationalTherapy #InvisibleDisability #Australia #NDISFunding #FamilyCarers #InclusiveCommunities #Podcast

This is the part people don’t always see.

Growing up… coping… doing “fine”.

Until one day, you realise you weren’t.

In this episode of Different Is Normal, Emily shares what it was like growing up without a diagnosis — and what happens when the expectations increase but the support disappears.

We talk about:

• growing up alongside a sibling with significant needs
• being the “capable one” — and what that actually means
• why school can feel manageable… until it isn’t
• what happens when support fades in high school and adulthood
• the pressure to succeed when you’re expected to cope
• becoming a parent and seeing things differently
• why so many people aren’t diagnosed until later

This episode is about something many people recognise:

You weren’t “fine”.

You just learned how to survive.

This isn’t theory.

It’s real life.
Real reflection.
And the moment things start to make sense.

⏱️ CHAPTERS

00:00 Finding a Common Language
00:41 Growing Up Without a Diagnosis
03:00 Living Alongside Complex Needs
06:04 When Support Falls Away
09:32 Becoming a Parent
13:27 Understanding the Brain Differently
16:19 Why This Podcast Exists
18:34 The Power of Community
20:54 Leaving the World Better

🔗 MORE FROM US

Watch more episodes here:
https://www.youtube.com/@differentisnormal

💬 JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Did you ever feel like you were coping… but something still didn’t fit?

#neurodiversity #adhd #autism #parenting #differentisnormal

This episode is different.

We’re not breaking down behaviour.
We’re not talking about strategies.

We’re answering a question we’ve been asked a lot:

Why does this matter so much to us?

In this episode of Different Is Normal, we share the story behind the podcast.

From a life-changing accident…
to an autism diagnosis…
to completely rethinking what matters.

This is where everything started.

We talk about:

• what happened to Dave before his son was born
• the moment everything changed
• the guilt, confusion, and questions that followed
• what an autism diagnosis actually means for a family
• how perspective shifts everything
• why understanding matters more than labels

This isn’t about theory.

It’s about real life.
Real experiences.
And the moments that change how you see everything.

00:00 The Birth of a Podcast: Our Journey Begins
00:56 Personal Stories: The Impact of Neurodiversity
05:35 Navigating Autism: A Parent’s Perspective
08:13 Life Changes: From Accident to Awakening
17:45 Giving Back: Becoming an Aid in Education
18:06 Perspective Shift: Understanding Neurodiversity
26:52 Living with an Acquired Brain Injury
30:12 Defining Moments: Friends, Family, and Support

Watch more episodes here:
https://www.youtube.com/@differentisnormal

What changed how you see neurodiversity?

#️⃣ #neurodiversity #autism #parenting #adhd #differentisnormal

Travelling with neurodivergent kids can feel overwhelming.

Airports. Queues. Noise. Delays.

And the pressure of trying to keep everything calm while everything keeps moving.

It is hard.

But there are things that actually help.

In this episode of Different Is Normal, we break down what is really happening during travel and what makes the biggest difference in real situations.

No theory. No vague advice.

Just practical strategies that work in planes, airports, and everyday travel.

We cover:

• the sunflower lanyard and how it can reduce stress in public spaces

• why preparation matters more than you think

• how to reduce overwhelm before it starts

• what to bring so things do not fall apart mid trip

• how to advocate without feeling like you are causing problems

• why flexibility matters more than the perfect plan

This is not about perfect travel.

It is about making travel possible.

⏱️ CHAPTERS

00:00 Travelling with Neurodivergent Kids

00:32 The Sunflower Lanyard Explained

02:59 Why Preparation Changes Everything

06:06 Making Flights Easier

08:47 Managing Sensory Load

11:28 Why Flexible Plans Work Better

14:46 Advocating for Your Child

17:35 What to Pack

20:13 Safety and Backup Plans

23:16 Final Tips That Actually Help

🔗 LINKS

Watch more episodes here:

https://www.youtube.com/@differentisnormal

What is the hardest part of travelling for you or your child?

#neurodiversity #autism #adhd #parenting #traveltips

You walk into a room.

People are laughing.

And you don’t know why.

No one explains the rules.

But everyone notices when you miss them.

In this episode, we break down what “reading the room” actually means, why it’s so hard for neurodivergent people, and what we can do instead.

We talk about:

• Hidden social rules no one teaches

• Why humour and timing are hard to read

• What it actually feels like in those moments

• How small misunderstandings build up

• Why we need to make expectations clearer

This is not about changing people.

It’s about changing how we communicate.

⸻

Chapters

00:00 Understanding Unwritten Social Rules

02:47 Navigating Humor and Social Interactions

05:57 The Complexity of Reading the Room

08:49 The Challenge of Communication

11:35 The Role of Explicit Communication

14:44 Finding Balance in Conversations

17:51 The Importance of Kindness in Communication

20:30 Bridging the Gap Between Neurodiverse and Neurotypical

23:36 Preparing for Independence and Safety

28:39 Navigating School Challenges for Neurodiverse Children

31:07 The Complexity of Reading Social Cues

34:19 The Impact of Diagnosis on Social Interactions

38:34 Understanding Social Situations and Communication

42:29 Teaching Children About Social Dynamics

46:47 Inclusion and Acceptance in Social Settings

53:30 Making Social Cues Visible for Everyone

⸻

Watch more episodes here:

https://www.youtube.com/@DiffIsNormal

In this episode of Different Is Normal, Dave and Emily explore a question that sits at the centre of many neurodivergent experiences.

Why do we spend so much time teaching neurodivergent people how to navigate the world, but spend so little time teaching the world how to understand them?

From classrooms to supermarkets, public spaces to government policy, many everyday environments are built around neurotypical experiences. Sound, lighting, routines, communication styles, and expectations can make ordinary places overwhelming for neurodivergent people.

Dave and Emily talk about the gap between these two worlds and why understanding neurodiversity should not only sit with neurodivergent people and their families. They discuss education systems, the training of education support staff, sensory environments in public spaces, and how small changes in design and awareness can benefit everyone.

They also reflect on their own experiences as parents and education support workers, and why creating environments that consider neurodiversity often improves life for all people, not just those with a diagnosis.

If we want truly inclusive communities, we may need to stop expecting neurodivergent people to constantly adapt and start learning how to meet them where they are.

00:00 Understanding Neurodiversity in Society

05:54 Education and Training Gaps

11:31 Creating Inclusive Environments

14:30 Bridging the Gap Between Worlds

https://www.youtube.com/@differentisnormal

Episode 1 – Navigating Diagnosis Day

https://youtu.be/BN3uU0H44Zs

Episode 2 – Normal Isn’t Real

https://youtu.be/NUAMr90xumY

Episode 3 – When Everyday Things Are Too Much

https://youtu.be/hKjAP-lZJ_4

Episode 4 – Why Stimming Helps Learning

https://youtu.be/MIyn0QlpZ_E

Episode 5 – Every Behaviour Is a Message

https://youtu.be/Ip2Gz62thKA

#Neurodiversity #Autism #Neurodivergent #InclusiveEducation #DifferentIsNormal

Choosing the right school for your child is one of the biggest decisions parents make.

But many families choose schools for familiar reasons:

• that’s where friends from kinder are going

• the school has the best reputation

• it’s the closest school

The reality is that different schools are better for different children.

The best school isn’t necessarily the most popular one or the one with the longest waiting list. The best school is the one where your child can participate, feel safe and grow.

In this episode of Different Is Normal, Dave and Emily walk through how parents can make informed school decisions when raising neurodivergent children.

They discuss:

• the different types of schools in Australia

• how school zones and out-of-zone enrolment work

• what IQ testing actually means (and when it matters)

• what “reasonable adjustments” look like in classrooms

• Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 funding explained

• what Student Support Groups (SSGs), IEPs and ILPs are

• how schools support regulation and participation

• what questions parents should ask during school tours

• red flags to watch for when visiting schools

• why school fit matters more than reputation

This episode is designed to help parents understand the system, advocate for their children, and find the environment where their child can thrive.

Because choosing a school isn’t about ranking schools.

It’s about finding the place where your child can breathe.

Subscribe for more conversations about neurodiversity, education and parenting:

https://www.youtube.com/@differentisnormal

Watch this episode:

https://youtu.be/bMpOEk_cp8U

00:00 Why choosing the right school matters

01:28 Touring multiple schools before deciding

02:20 The moment that helped us choose a primary school

04:49 Choosing schools based on philosophy

06:39 Types of schools in Australia explained

08:21 Why school fit matters more than reputation

11:18 Looking beyond NAPLAN and academic rankings

16:27 What IQ testing actually means for schools

17:31 Schools’ legal obligation to support students

18:08 Examples of reasonable adjustments

19:44 Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3 funding explained

25:18 Red flags to watch for during school tours

30:34 Why changing schools is okay

31:20 Student Support Groups (SSGs) explained

33:28 IEPs, ILPs and setting meaningful goals

38:22 Planning school transitions early

45:18 Reducing cognitive load for students

51:53 Fair vs equitable support in schools

56:52 Why documenting everything matters

58:22 Questions parents should ask schools

1:04:07 Out-of-zone enrolment and appeals

1:07:07 Final advice for parents

#Neurodiversity #Autism #ADHD #InclusiveEducation #DifferentIsNormal