Hello all! It was wonderful to meet Taylor earlier to discuss life with schizoaffective disorder. I’m grateful to him for sharing such honest insights into what schizoaffective disorder (SZA) is like, how substance use may influence the development of psychosis in people who have a predisposition to psychosis, a glimpse into his internal world with SZA (e.g. what hallucinations and delusions feel like and how they can change depending on the situation), experiences with the healthcare system and medication, positives that have come from having SZA, and the value that people with SZA bring to the world/appreciating the way that people with SZA think outside the box. Taylor also discusses how music, hiking, and fishing have been therapeutic experiences for him.

Timestamps:

00:00 - 1:29: What do you most wish people understood about SZA?

1:30 - 6:22: How did SZA develop for you? What traits/symptoms do you currently have?

6:23 - 7:55: Experience with misdiagnosis

7:56 - 10:44: Most challenging part of having SZA

10:45 - 11:54: Positives/personal growth from having SZA

11:55 - 13:44: Experiences with the mental healthcare system

13:45 - 16:07: How music and hiking have been therapeutic

16:08 - 18:14: Advice to friends/family of people with SZA

18:15 - 20:44: Closing thoughts

Disclaimer: This video is for educational and informational purposes only. It aims to reduce stigma and promote understanding about mental health conditions and substance use. The views expressed in this video are those of the interviewee.

#schizoaffective #mentalhealth #neurodiversity #neurodivergence #interview #schizophrenia #hallucinations #delusions #bipolar

Hello all! If you are a neurodivergent person who would like to be interviewed (in February this year or onwards!) we'd love to hear from you at [email protected] . Sometimes our email goes to spam, so if you haven't heard back from us in a week or so, we might be in your spam folder!

Hello all! I was very grateful for the chance to interview Ace earlier today, who is a teenager with schizotypal personality (STPD)! We discuss the overlap between autism, OCD, and STPD, how having STPD has influenced his experiences with school and work, and both the joyful and challenging aspects of SPTD.

00:00 -3:08: Earliest signs of schizotypal personality

3:08 - 8:48: How did you realize you have STPD?

8:48 - 12:48: STPD and experiences in school

12:48 - 15:38: STPD and experiences with work

15:38 - 18:08: Advice for clinicians who want to work with people with STPD

18:08 - 20:58: What do you find the most joy in?

20:58 - 25:38: What is the most challenging part of having STPD

25:38 - 28:00: Strong sense of self

#schizotypal #mentalhealth #neurodiversity #neurodivergence #interview #ocd #magicalthinking #wellbeing

Hello! I was very grateful for the opportunity to interview Robert Simms earlier this week on neurodivergence and people pleasing as well as neurodiversity-affirming healthcare and culturally safe therapy for Indigenous neurodivergent individuals. Robert also discusses different types of boundaries and general guidance for developing boundaries.

Robert's website is: www.embodiedresilience.ca and his socials can all be found at https://linktr.ee/embodiedresilience

Timestamps:

00:00- 1:40: Signs that a neurodivergent individual is struggling with people pleasing

1:41 - 3:33: Trauma in growing up neurodivergent and how this leads to people pleasing

3:34- 6:34: Indigenous neurodivergent individuals and pressure to people please

6:35 - 9:02: Advice/suggestions for developing boundaries

9:03 - 11:33: Robert's journey to becoming a mental health professional

11:34 - 13:20: Advice to clinicians working with autistic patients or patients with ADHD

13:21 - 15:37: Creating cultural safety when working with Indigenous individuals in therapy

15:38 - 17:44: Broader shifts in the neurodiversity movement

17:45 - 18:17: Final thoughts

#neurodivergent #neurodiversity #neurodivergence #peoplepleasing #mentalhealth #therapy #culturallysafetherapy

Hello! I'm very excited to share this interview with A about schizotypal personality-- thank you to A for sharing your times, experiences, and insights with me!

We discuss schizotypal traits, the internal world in schizotypal personality (and hyperphantasia), paranoia and experiences at university, pathway to a diagnosis and experiences with psychiatric care, how schizotypal personality is perceived where A lives in Asia, parts of life and schizotypal personality that A enjoys and advice for clinicians/therapists who are working with patients with schizotypal personality.

Timestamps:

0:00-1:00: Traits of schizotypal personality

1:01 - 2:15: Internal world in schizotypal personality

2:16 - 3:47: Perception of schizotypal personality where A lives in Asia

3:48 - 9:30: Earliest signs of schizotypal personality, path to a diagnosis

9:31 - 11:43: Schizotypal personality and experiences in school/work

11:44 - 12:50: What do you wish others understood?

12:51 - 13:59: Advice for clinicians/therapists

14:00 - 15:18: Schizotypal personality and friendships/relationships

15:19 - 17:10: What do you find joy in?

17:11 - 18:30: What do you find most challenging?

18:31 - 20:44: Final thoughts

#schizotypal #neurodiversity #neurodivergence #mentalhealth #therapy #interview

Hello! I'm very grateful to Becca Gibson, LCSW-C, LICSW at Wired Differently Therapy (https://www.wireddifferentlytherapy.com) for sharing their time and insight on therapy for autistic individuals-- therapy, self-disclosure, and balancing therapeutic boundaries (e.g. being flexible and accessible but also ensuring therapy doesn't become overly blurry or confusing) are topics that are of particular interest to me and Becca is an incredible source of knowledge on all of these!

We talk about how a "blank slate" approach with no disclosure can be confusing for autistic patients but, simultaneously, how certain types of degrees of disclosure may be distracting or confusing for the client (e.g. lead to worrying about the therapist's wellbeing). We also discuss feedback in therapy, how therapists can seek ongoing trainings, and the challenges or stigma that autistic therapists may face in the field.

Timestamps:

0:00 - 4:45: Self-disclosure with autistic clients

4:46 - 10:00: How to tell if self-disclosure is helping a client?

10:01 - 17:30: How to create an environment where feedback is welcome?

17:31 - 24:30: Common challenges when receiving feedback?

24:31 - 30:45: Repairing a rupture

30:46 - 38:17: Signs a therapist might benefit from neurodiversity-affirming training

38:20 - 47:00: Advice for autistic therapists

47:01 - 51:05: Final thoughts

#autism #autistic #neurodiversity #neurodivergent #therapy #therapists #interview #mentalhealth

Hello! I greatly appreciated the chance to interview Ryan on life with schizotypal personality! We discuss Ryan’s (very unique!) pathway to being diagnosed with schizotypal personality, positives and challenges of life with STPD, experiences with the mental healthcare system, and parenting with schizotypal personality.

00:00 - 1:21: What do you wish people most understood about STPD?

1:22 - 3:36: How did you realize that you have STPD?

3:50 - 6:27: Experiences with mental health providers

6:38 - 9:16: Advice for clinicians working with schizotypal personality

9:20 - 11:30: Positive aspects/traits of STPD

11:31 - 13:55: Most challenging part of STPD

13:56 - 15:23: Schizotypal personality and parenting

15:30 - 17:03: Final thoughts/lack of firsthand perspectives

#neurodiversity #schizotypal #mentalhealth #interviews #mentalhealth

Hello all! This video is on a topic that I've been thinking about for awhile-- it's really a combination of two topics: 1. What would a fully accessible universe look like? How would it impact everyone, including neurotypical or non-disabled people?; and 2. What is neurotypical privilege, what are the complexities of it, and to what extent is it really a "privilege"?

Additionally, I have been thinking about how things like bullying and discrimination likely hurt those who are perpetuators in addition to those who are victims.

Timestamps

0:00 - 1:29: Introduction

1:30 - 6:59: Examples of privilege/advantages

7:00 - 10:24: Utilitarian reasons for including everyone

10:25 - 11:44: Inherent value of including everyone

11:45 - 12:39: Unknown unknowns

12:40 - Does bullying hurt the bully?

#neurodivergent #autism #disabilityjustice #disability #privilege #socialjustice #autistic #mentalhealth #neurotypical

I was excited for the opportunity to interview my friend Stephanie Robertson about her journey navigating mental health and neurodivergence. Our conversation covered topics like misdiagnosis and ADHD, her experiences in law school, mental health and neurodivergence in the workplace, DEI, disclosing neurodivergence, and the power of authenticity.

Timestamps:

00:00 - 11:20: Experience with misdiagnosis

11:21 - 18:00: What changes would you like to see in the medical system?

18:01 - 21:30: Positive aspects to being neurodivergent

21:31 - 35:45: Supporting neurodivergent individuals throughout the work cycle

35:46 - 44:40: Including neurodivergence in DEI

44:41 - 54:35: Disclosure of neurodivergence in academia

54:36 - 56:40: Other thoughts

#neurodiversity #neurodivergence #ADHD #mentalhealth #disabilitypride #inclusion #authenticity

I was very grateful for the opportunity to interview Dr. Muhammad and her child about life as a neurodivergent family. They discuss neurodivergent joy, challenges and positives of being a neurodivergent family, and what it's like to navigate the school system and accommodations (as well as the need for reduced bullying).

Dr. Muhammad is also the founder of the North Carolina Black Disabilities Network: https://www.nc-bdn.org/

0:00 - 1:50: Favorite part of being a neurodivergent family

1:51 - 4:15: Different types of communication in the family

4:16 - 10:00: Challenges of being neurodivergent

10:01 - 13:10: What parts of neurodivergence bring you joy?

13:11 - 19:10: What has your school experience been like?

19:11 - 22:00: What do you appreciate about each other?

22:01 - 25:50: Creating the NC Black Disabilities Network

25:51 - 31:00: Bullying and other topics

#autism #neurodiversity #neurodivergence #neurodivergent #disability #autisticjoy #neurodivergentfamilies #neurodivergentschool #interview #bullyingawareness