NeuroDiverse Christian Couples

Dr. Donna Berghauser is a Florida-licensed and Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) with over 10 years of experience in public schools and community settings.

Dr. Donna Berghauser earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Florida State University and a doctorate in psychology from Nova Southeastern University. Since 2011, she has served on the Florida Association of School Psychologists (FASP) executive board in many capacities, including President. Her professional interests include systems change, restorative practices, and culturally sensitive assessment and intervention. In her leisure time, she enjoys traveling, visiting local coffee shops, reading, and hanging out with her fluffy boy, Cosmo.

Today is a special edition of JTG. Our usual crew will be back!
Today, Dan discusses marriage, divorce, and a new marriage with John Fela of Joni & Friends. While not officially diagnosed, John has realized later in life his neurodivergent identification.

About John:
John Fela is the Ministry Relations Manager at Joni and Friends Chicago, working with churches to equip and train them to help the disabled in their communities. Prior to that, he spent almost 20 years in education, working with children from Infants to Middle School, serving in a variety of roles, including Teacher, Mentor Teacher, and School Director.

Zoom AI Summary of Conversation:

• John and his wife have a dedicated time or day to review and update their shared calendar to ensure they are both aware of each other's schedules and commitments.

• John and his wife consistently express gratitude and appreciation for each other's efforts and contributions, even for small tasks or gestures.

• John and his wife practice gentleness and empathy in their communication, especially when discussing sensitive or past-related topics.

• John and his wife continue engaging in regular devotional and check-in times to maintain a strong connection and support each other.

John lives in Round Lake, IL, and is married to his wife Faith and father to his son Christopher (ASD.) He is a public speaker, podcast guest on multiple shows, and regular contributor to Key Ministry’s Special Needs Family blog and other special needs blogs, including Hope Anew and The Mighty.

Today we took some listener questions and Dr.Stephanie asks them from neurodiverse couples to Natalie Roberts and Heather Parks. 
One key component- Neurodiversity is never THE only marriage challenge or complexity.

ntroducing Natalie Roberts and Heather Parks

Heather Parks has been in a neurodiverse relationship for over 25 years and lives in Devon, UK, with her husband and four children. Neurodiversity was unknown until 2012 when it exploded into their lives amid a mental health crisis that affected every family member. Ill from the persistent stress of trying to keep everyone afloat, desperate to find solutions, and losing hope that things would ever get better, Heather embarked on a journey in which she recovered herself and rebuilt connection firstly with herself and then in her relationship, family, and beyond. After 8 years of supporting families discovering and navigating neurodiversity, Heather certified with MasterCoach in 2020 before becoming a Positive Intelligence ® Coach. In 2021, she gained the ICF Accredited Certificate in Body-Oriented Coaching with The Somatic School in London, UK.

Heather coaches individuals struggling in their neurodiverse relationships using a nervous system approach of safety and curiosity so that they can reconnect with themselves and create conscious, loving connections with others... so they can be themselves, too!


Natalie Roberts lives in the UK with her husband Pete. She’s been married for 25 years and has known about neurodiversity, participating in it for 10 of those years when her husband discovered he’s autistic.
Frustrated and depressed by toxic online groups, a lack of hope, and virtually no solutions that actually worked in real life, Natalie took a different path. Led by her social sciences background and inspired by her incessant curiosity to find a way where there is seemingly no way, she busted neurodiversity relationship myths, reversed symptoms of Cassandra Syndrome, and began to thrive in her relationship again! 

Professionally, as an accredited and award-winning Relationship Coach, Natalie coaches individuals who are struggling in their neurodiverse relationships to reverse the individual and relationship impact of unknown neurodiversity so that they can be true to themselves and feel empowered to make positive and hopeful decisions about their present and future.
In 2020, Heather and Natalie co-founded Loving Difference to bring hope and a way forward for neurodiverse relationships to more people. Loving Difference has an online home that combines empowering coaching, a friendly community, and step-by-step guidance to be you again and flourish, with the company and encouragement of others navigating the same challenges. Heather and Natalie also co-host the Myth Busting Neurodiverse Relationships podcast.
www.lovingdifference.net
[email protected]
www.natalieroberts.com
[email protected]

Myth Busting Neurodiverse Relationship podcast is available where you listen to podcasts.

Disclaimer:
When we have guests on the ASR podcast, they are recognized for their expertise in autism as advocates, self-advocates, clinicians, parents, or other professionals in the field. They may or may not be part of the faith community; having a guest on the broader topic of autism does not reflect complete agreement with the guest, just as many guests may not agree with our faith perspective. Guests are chosen by topic for the chosen podcast discussion and are not necessarily in full agreement with all beliefs of the chosen guest(s).

Dr. Stephanie and Carrie talk about Carrie's journey in marriage and family navigating Autism. We speak about the limited opportunities that exist for those on the spectrum beyond high school and steps to consider to help your teen and young adult become more independent in life after high school.

Carrie Cariello is the author of What Color Is Monday, How Autism Changed One Family for the Better, and Someone I’m With Has Autism. She lives in Southern New Hampshire with her husband, Joe, and their five children. Carrie is a regular contributor to the Huffington Post, TODAY Parents, the TODAY Show, Parents.com, Love What Matters, and Grown and Flown. She has been interviewed by NBC Nightly News and has a TEDx talk. She speaks regularly about autism, marriage, and motherhood and writes a weekly blog on her website. One of her essays, “I Know What Causes Autism,” was featured as one of the Huffington Post’s best of 2015, and her piece, “I Know Why He Has Autism,” was named one of the top blog posts of 2017 by the TODAY Show.
  
https://carriecariello.com/

You can access her blog/essays and her Ted Talk.

Today, we discuss a few topics in today's podcast. Dr. Stephanie talks with Jenilee about their family's journey with autism on the mission field. While in church ministry and mission work the three teen girls are diganosed with ASD, ADHD, AuDHD. She realized not only were her kids neurodivergent, but she was in a neurodiverse marriage and family system.

What additional challenges to ministry or being on the mission field may come with a neurodiverse marriage and family?

Are churches or ministry organizations equipped to help neurodiverse marriages and families serving in the ministry/mission field?

About Our Guest:
Rev. Jenilee Goodwin
Professional Life Coach

As a certified professional life coach (ICCI), a certified autism coach (NCDD), and an ordained minister (AG), Jenilee has over 20 years of career ministry experience. Serving in stateside churches and overseas missions, Jenilee brings lived experience, problem-solving skills, compassionate support, and creativity into each coaching session. Jenilee asks hard questions while listening, guiding, and coaching clients in their unique life situations. Jenilee is trained in the Equipping Profile, a personal development coaching tool that helps discover growth points and possible barriers to growth. Through one-on-one and group coaching, Jenilee uses the Equipping Profile, book studies, and even some homework to establish personal development plans, helping clients move forward healthily.

With many in her immediate family on the autism spectrum, Jenilee has a special call and place in her heart for moms of kids on the spectrum and for NT wives going through the difficulties of ND marriages. Even more specifically, I have a passion for these women who are also in full-time ministry or missions. There are very few places to share the full story. In coaching with Jenilee, you can share every single page of the story.

In addition to the above skills, Jenilee loves reading, writing, coffee, going for walks, and watching history documentaries.
You can connect with Jenilee daily on Instagram @jenileerachel or through her website, jenileerachel.com

Dan and the guys talk about AI, Perry's new book FAIK and applications to real life.

Today, Dr. Stephanie interviews Sarah Casburn.

They will chat about:
ABA or not ABA?
What is the controversy about ABA?
Do nutrition and diet impact Autism?
What is sensory enrichment therapy?

Sarah Casburn is a late-diagnosed autistic woman and autistic mom who combines her 20 years of personal and professional experience in a variety of areas, including Early Childhood Education, Autism and Behavioral Science, Sensory Enrichment, Nutrition, and Children’s Ministry, to support families and volunteers in a fresh approach. She is the founder of Crown Family Wellness (Neuroscience & Nutrition for Neurodiversity), which supports children and adults, and a Ministry stream dedicated to supporting church communities all across Canada and the USA.

Find out more at:
https://www.crownfamilywellness.com/about

We continue to discuss the book Dan did not read before publication and what he learned from each chapter when we received our author's copies of Uniquely Us.

Pre-order yours today at https://www.christianneurodiversemarriage.com/uniquelyus

Today, Dr. Stephanie and Carolyn discuss self-concept, self-identity, and self-esteem as key ingredients to building social communication skills. Carolyn's curriculum starts from a neurodiverse-affirming lens that is strengths-based and effective.

Carolyn Long is an SLP and the creator of the Social Optics curriculum.
https://mysocialoptics.com/

Bio:
Carolyn Long, MCD, CCC-SLP, has worked in school districts, private practice, and healthcare for 23 years. She is passionate about using nonverbal and verbal communication to create and navigate social relationships.
She developed Social Optics, a neurodiverse-affirming social communication curriculum, in 2015 and the software in 2022. She believes in the inclusion of student voices in the development of interventions that lead to better outcomes based on engagement, research, and data. She lives in Montana with her husband and 2
amazing teenage daughters. She enjoys fly fishing, horseback riding, and watching others plow snow.