This is the final installment of our version of the stages of grief. We bring it all together and discuss what happens during and after the process of grieving an autism diagnosis. You've reached a level of acceptance and peace...now what?

There is a wheel of adaptation with grief, broken down into four hemispheres, all intersecting and overlapping. Dr. Nancy B. Miller first presented this concept in the book, Nobody's Perfect: Living and Growing with Children Who Have Special Needs. We hope you find her research and our discussion insightful.

You can purchase Dr. Miller's book HERE

Tell us what you think:

Why Title IX? What is an IEP or 504?

In this episode, we ask our specially informed and expert guests and attorneys about those uber-critical things. Let's meet our guests, shall we:

Susan Stone, Student & Athlete Defense, Co-Chair

Susan Stone co-chairs KJK’s Student & Athlete Defense/Title IX Practice Group. Recognizing the need for legal services to protect students, professors and individuals with disabilities, Susan handles matters ranging from special education issues to student disciplinary matters and Title IX investigations.

Kristina Supler

Student & Athlete Defense, Co-Chair

Kristina Supler is co-chair of KJK’s Student & Athlete Defense / Title IX Practice Group. Her experience is regularly enlisted for complex cases involving allegations of sexual assault, and she has worked on national defense teams representing students and executives facing prosecution in the United States and abroad. 

Enjoy the mini tool kit on Understanding IEP’s & 504 Plans here!

The idea of acceptance can give a false impression that everything is ok or that you are not struggling anymore. A better way to look at acceptance is that you have reached a certain level of resolve or can see the reality of your life for what it is now.

In this episode, we discuss the first time we reached a level of acceptance with our autistic children and how we strive to return to that place in various ways. It's a great discussion, real and raw, about the difficulty of the journey and the goodness and growth that can come from it.

We'd love to hear about your take on this discussion:

Today, we are joined by Emily O’Laughlin, one of our community members. We discuss her family’s story, trials, and triumphs. We also discuss how they helped their son create a T-shirt company and sparked his entrepreneurial spirit!

You can reach Emily here:

Website

Depression is an appropriate response to processing any grief. It is often portrayed as unnatural, something to be fixed, or to get rid of as quickly as possible. The truth is, it would be unusual NOT to feel it. There are times and circumstances when a longer period of depression may be part of your life and having discernment to recognize and know when you are depressed is essential to your grief journey. This episode explores the many sides of depression and how it has shown up in our lives. We would love to hear your thoughts and experiences as well.

Instagram: @momstalkautism

Calling all families of non-speakers or minimal speakers!

Dawnmarie Gaivian and Dr. Dana Johnson discuss the amazing breakthroughs they and others have been experiencing using spelling to communicate.

Is communication a motor skill or cognitive? Both? What is apraxia, and how does it affect a person? How does vision and reflex integration affect communication for nonspeakers?

Biggest takeaway: Always presume competence with nonspeakers. We had a great chat about what that exactly means for you and your family.

Want to learn more? Here’s ALL the links:

https://spellers.com/

Instagram

Facebook

Facebook Group

Spellers San Diego

LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dana-johnson-phd-66056a2b/

YouTube: Spellers The Movie

Docuseries Episodes: https://www.underestimated.tv/

Underestimated Book

Ido in Autismland Book

This stage usually involves feelings of guilt, whether or not those feelings are well founded. A frequent thought in this stage is the "if only" statement: "If only I would have done THIS, then THAT would have never happened," etc.

Bargaining can last a while as we sort through our emotions. It can also be fleeting thoughts that come and go as we begin to process our child's diagnosis. Moving in and out of bargaining quickly or being in this stage while simultaneously in another is common.

We can think of bargaining as our mind trying to restore or find our way back to the way things were before diagnosis. Knowing that can help us identify when we are stuck in these thoughts and hopefully propel us toward acceptance and progress.

Instagram: @momstalkautism

Email: [email protected]

The topic of “siblings” is well-requested on the podcast and today we have an amazing, heartfelt episode for you! Shannon has a conversation with Amanda Owen about her relationship with her brother, Nick, who was born with a rare chromosomal abnormality. As a keynote speaker, Amanda often speaks to parents about the sibling dynamic. She shares her SEEDS acronym that she developed to help parents reflect on their relationships with their neurotypical kids. She also shares about her non-profit, Puzzle Pieces, a Kentucky-based nonprofit that serves individuals with disabilities, offering them targeted autism services, residential living, vocational training, supported employment, behavior services, and more. SO many great nuggets in this episode!

You can find Amanda here: 

Instagram

Website & Book

On to the next phase of grief: Anger! Remember that grief is not linear, and just because we talk about it in stages does not mean that you will go through it stage-by-stage or even every stage. In this episode, we share all about anger and how we dealt with it. Don’t forget that anger does not necessarily mean raging on others but possibly having a level of anger towards yourself. This is an important part of the process, but we should not stay in for long.

Today’s episode is with a special guest, a community member, and a fellow autism mom. Sonya Bell is a mother to four children, two of those are young Neurodivergent adults. Today she shares her story as a mother in a time where advocating was much different than it is now. Sonya shares about the beginning days of her son’s autism diagnosis and how her faith was instrumental in being hopeful. She also shares about the obstacles her son has overcome to be where he is today living independently at University. She sheds light on how diet change for the whole family was crucial and how that continues to be a major part of her life as a health coach. A message of hope and encouragement to keep going as none of us know what the future holds.

You can find Sonya at the links below!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beyondradiant422/

FB: https://www.facebook.com/BeyondRadiantHC

Website: https://www.beyondradianthc.com/

Buy the book here: https://www.beyondradianthc.com/product-page/moving-forward-details-of-an-autism-journey-by-sonya-a-bell

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@beyondradiant