This episode is the first chapter of my memoir, told out loud.

When my kids came back to live with me, my son Ste’ce was six, in pull-ups, nonverbal, and already diagnosed with autism and an intellectual disability. I didn’t understand what that meant yet. Not because nobody told me, but because I was overwhelmed, surviving, and didn’t have the language for what was happening in my own body.

In this episode, I talk about those early months. The accidents. The school calls. The memories that wouldn’t stop replaying. The shame I didn’t know how to name. And the moment I realized we were already playing catch-up without a map.

This isn’t advice or research. It’s lived experience.
If you’ve ever looked back and wondered what you missed while you were just trying to survive, this chapter is for you.