How did you teach your child to wear a mask to protect themselves from Covid-19? Children, at all different stages in their lives, need to be able to communicate about how their bodies feel when they're sick, and they need to be able to take medicine or vitamins. Inside this episode, I share some strategies and resources for helping you figure out medical issues for children with autism.

For the fourth step of the Turn Autism Around approach, I'm going to share some easy ways to collect data so that you can begin to identify patterns and trends in a child's behavior. This vital step should not be skipped since it will help you adjust therapy or even just the child's environment to improve behavior, health, and speech.

In rapid succession, Jennifer N.'s four children, ages 13, 8, and 3-year-old twins, were all diagnosed with autism. To compound her situation, she was living in Holland, where at the time there was only one BCBA in the entire country. Hear how she navigated this rough beginning to become a BCBA herself, and how she successfully launched all four of her children into adulthood.

All three women on my panel today began as speech-language pathologists before becoming board-certified BCBAs. Armed with this unique combination, they are passionate about bridging the two complementary specialties in a way that empowers parents and benefits children. Listen to their thoughts on how SLPs and BCBAs can better collaborate to improve the lives of children with autism.

Dr. Temple Grandin joins me to talk about her greatest concerns for the autistic community and the benefits of early intervention for children. She looks back on her life to recount the people who were instrumental in helping her turn autism into an asset that's served her well in her career in the livestock industry.

My husband, Dr. Charles Barbera, remembers how Lucas was diagnosed a little differently than I do, but we have a delightful conversation talking about some of the challenges of navigating an autism diagnosis for our oldest child. As a physician and an autism dad, I appreciate Charles's perspective on our journey together.

Studies have shown that kids with autism need 20-40 hours of ABA therapy a week. I get it. That sounds daunting to parents. I'm going to show you strategies to create a positive environment so that it's easier to teach, engage, and connect to your child in your own home.

With only 700 developmental pediatricians in the country, I was glad to connect with Dr. Cheryl Tierney to get her unique insights on how to navigate an autism diagnosis. Cheryl is passionate about teaching parents how to help their children with autism sleep by themselves, and you'll love her ABA approach to solving common problems people face every day.

Is it possible that your child's delays are simply part of the "COVID Kid" phenomenon? Casey C wasn't interested in having her concerns brushed off by her provider, so when they told her that her son's regression was normal, she started looking for answers herself.

How will you know if your child is making meaningful progress in their therapy program? In this podcast, learn how to make realistic goals that are tailored to meet your child at their level, and that are designed to help them steadily improve.