Have you ever finished a conversation and immediately realized you didn’t remember anything the other person said? Do you sometimes feel as though you have fallen between the cracks of your own thoughts and you can’t seem to focus long enough to connect with others? You’re not alone. Edward S. ("Ted") Brodkin, M.D., a board-certified psychiatrist, author, and director of the Adult Autism Spectrum Program at Penn Medicine and Ashley A. Pallathra, M.A., a clinical researcher, therapist, author, and doctoral candidate in clinical psychology at the University of North Carolina, join this episode to discuss how we can improve social connectedness and find attunement.

During the episode, the pair share where they met and began their collaboration on the study of connectedness, and walk us through what goes into a neuroscience research study. They also share details from their conducted study on developing a program for adults in the spectrum regarding social functioning, share the framework of their book Missing Each Other: How To Cultivate Meaningful Connections, and define attunement along with its four key elements. Furthermore, Dr. Brodkin and Ashley talk through the importance of listening to yourself and your needs in retirement, summarize mutual responsiveness, and unveil their advice for people going through the transition of leaving the workforce.

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