Meet My Autistic Brain

Occupational therapy can empower autistics in our every day lives. Carolyn Gillen, an autistic occupational therapist working with neurodivergent women, breaks down how occupational therapy for autistic adults can help with: 

• recognizing hunger, thirst, and nervous system signals your body may not flag clearly; 
• navigating sensory processing that can swing between overwhelming and numb; 
• advocating for yourself in a doctor's office when your pain doesn't match your expression;
• making small, practical shifts you can actually use;
• breaking burnout into function, not willpower;
• how OT treats these as functional, fixable friction points in daily life, not personality flaws to correct.

She tells how to recognize a safe, supportive therapeutic space. She explains why coaching, burnout, and meditation might be worth a second look from an OT perspective. 

Find Carolyn at her website 

Contact page 

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Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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You did everything you were supposed to do — showed up, did the homework, tried the techniques. And it left you feeling worse…or definitely not better. This episode gets into why standard talk therapy often misses autistic people and what a version built for our brains actually looks like.

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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Email: [email protected]
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We autistics have a type of wealth, or capital, as a result of adapting, coping and growing as individuals with neurodivergent challenges. Essy Knopf, a therapist and author, has developed the Neurodivergent Cultural Wealth Framework, a valuable way to look at our neurodivergence. In this episode he explains what makes up the framework and how it enriches our lives with:

• Self-Knowledge Capital
• Adaptation Capital
• Pattern Recognition Capital
• Community Capital
• Resistance Capital
• Embodied Capital
• Passion Capital
• Identity Capital
• Meaning-Making Capital

This framework goes beyond deficit views of autistics and neurodivergents and explains how we have developed forms of knowledge, adaptation, perspective, and wisdom that are often overlooked when attention is focused solely on those deficits. This framework gives us a whole new way of looking at our lives.

Website: https://www.essyknopf.com

Check out Essy's YouTube channel 

Essy on Instagram

New book: Unscramble Your Brain: A Neurodivergent Guide to Getting Things Done, Your Way  

Other books by Essy Knopf available at https://www.essyknopf.com and book retailers: 

Book: Unmasking: What We Lose by Pretending and How to Get It Back 

Neurodivergent Game Plan

Neurodivergent Game Plan: The Workbook

The Neuroaffirming Therapy Handbook

Unmasking

Nepo

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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Linktree
Email: [email protected]
Website

Season 12 is here with new episodes! Listen for a preview of what’s to come. 

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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Email: [email protected]
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Self-help fails autistics but why? This episode reveals the not-so-obvious reason it can do more harm than good and provides some tips for what you can do instead. Hear it again.

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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Email: [email protected]
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This is a replay of an episode from 2024 where I talk to Jackie Schuld, author of What is Autism? Jackie shares her insights and knowledge about autism, how it affects her and what it was like learning she’s autistic. Listen and meet the autistic brain of author, artist and therapist, Jackie Schuld. The information is just as relevant as it was before and is a great refresher!

Get the book! https://www.jackieschuld.com/books
Find Jackie on Medium:  https://medium.com/@jackieschuld
Website: https://www.jackieschuld.com
Resource page: https://www.jackieschuld.com/artactivities

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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Email: [email protected]
Website

The regions of the brain that play a role in resilience are the areas of the brain most affected by autism. Is it possible for an autistic person to be resilient? The answer may surprise you.

Resilience assessment tool: https://www.everydayhealth.com/wellness/resilience/get-your-resilience-score/

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

Instagram
Ko-fi, PayPal, Patreon
Linktree
Email: [email protected]
Website

There’s a key to connection that unlocks the door of isolation and loneliness. Truly connecting is not possible without it. What is it? The answer is in this episode.

Remastered

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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Email: [email protected]
Website

When you can’t respond to an email or phone call, when you don’t move forward on a project, when you feel stuck in any area of your life you’re facing a “Wall of Awful.” Brendan Mahan, author of Overcoming The Wall of Awful; Why It's Hard to Get Things Done with ADHD, Autism, and Anxiety (and How to Do Them Anyway) has uncovered the reasons we face the wall. He offers solutions and tips that will get you going. He shares helpful insights and stories that you haven’t heard before. You’re not “lazy” and you don’t lack willpower. Find out what the wall is really about so you can finally do the things you want to do. 

What we talk about in this episode includes:

• Why everyday tasks can feel overwhelming
• How to recognize the Wall of Awful
• Why thinking you’re “lazy” is a dead end
• Why the ways people respond to the Wall of Awful don’t work 
• How to reduce the barrier to getting started
• How to meet your brain's basic needs to create lasting change

Preorder/buy the book (out September 1, 2026): Overcoming The Wall of Awful; Why It's Hard to Get Things Done with ADHD, Autism, and Anxiety (and How to Do Them Anyway) 

Brendan Mahan’s website 

Twitter 

LinkedIn 

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

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Ko-fi, PayPal, Patreon
Linktree
Email: [email protected]
Website

If you missed this one be sure to listen now. Or if you remember how great it was, how about another listen? In this episode you’ll hear author Jaime A. Heidel, The Articulate Autistic, talk about her book What Did I Do Wrong? An Accessible Guide to Preventing Traumatic Misunderstandings Between You and Your Autistic Loved One. Jamie has great insight into what it’s like to be autistic and how/why people misunderstand us. 

This episode has been remastered.

Jaime’s website: thearticulateautistic.com
Direct link to book on Amazon
Jamie's Instagram

Support the show

Ranked #1 in FeedSpot's 40 Best Adult Autism Podcasts 

RATED IN THE TOP 0.5% GLOBALLY with more than 1.3 million downloads!

If you're enjoying the podcast and would like to help me continue making new episodes, you can become a member of the community on Patreon at patreon.com/theautisticwoman. You can even give a gift to someone who can benefit from learning more about autism. 

If you are an autistic person who has written a book about autism or if you have a guest suggestion email me at [email protected].

Instagram
Ko-fi, PayPal, Patreon
Linktree
Email: [email protected]
Website