Today on the show Monique interviews Rebecca Gannon. Rebecca is a Neurodivergent Psychologist with a Masters in Educational and Developmental Psychology. Their clinical work focuses on Autism and ADHD assessment for adults as well as supervising other Psychologists and allied health professionals in neuroaffirming practice skills. Rebecca is Aboriginal, a parent, a partner, and their long-standing special interest just happens to be Autism.   On this episode Monique and Rebecca...

In this week’s episode we are thrilled to chat to Michelle Marques about her experience with depression and Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation, plus a million other things. Michelle is an Autistic and ADHD writer with a background in journalism and a Master’s in African American studies. Her writing and research focuses on gender, sexuality, race, neurodiversity, and pop culture.    We chat about:   Michelle’s experience of learning about her neurodivergence and the hidden cost of ADHD...

This week on the podcast Monique interviews the incredible Associate Professor Josephine Barbaro. Josie is a late identified Autistic ADHDer. She is a Principal Research Fellow and Psychologist at the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre, La Trobe University, Melbourne. She is the Research Director of Identification and Diagnosis of Autism, and Clinical Director of the Victorian Early Assessment Clinic, providing neuro-affirming, transdisciplinary assessments for neurodivergence in children...

A note to our listeners: In this episode we chat about self-harm. Some of our listeners may prefer to skip this one.   Happy Monday! In today’s episode Monique interviews Joanne Seymon; AuDHDer Occupational Therapist, and co-founder of Kaiko Fidgets. Jo is passionate about developing appropriate sensory tools for teens and adults, with a focus on harm minimisation and emotional regulation. She uses both her lived experience and her background in occupational therapy to match sensory needs...

On this week’s episode Monique interviews Marie Camin about stimming. Marie is a multiply neurodivergent clinical psychologist, researcher, and a neurodiversity advocate. Marie is currently completing her PhD on Autistic stimming at La Trobe University and she is a Founding Committee Member of the OTARC Autistic Advisory Group; she believes strongly in contributing to a more accurate and affirming understanding of Autistic experiences through co-production with the community. She loves...

This week on the podcast we interview ADHDer and physiotherapist Shan Morrison. Shan is a Specialist Women’s, Men’s & Pelvic Health Physiotherapist and fellow of the Australian College of Physiotherapists. She has practiced exclusively in pelvic health for 30 years, and is the director of Women’s & Men’s Health Physiotherapy: a private practice based in Melbourne that exists to restore pelvic health and empower every person to live their best life. Shan’s clinical passion is being...

Today’s guest is ADHDer psychologist Dr. Celia Falchi. Celia works in private practice in Wellington, New Zealand. She works with predominantly neurodivergent clients across the lifespan, specialising in trauma work, and she engages in advocacy work within the profession, including being on the Education Committee for AADPA. Celia is also mum to two AuDHDer neurodivergent kids, who are 10 and 13 years old. In this episode Celia shares some personal details about her kids, and Celia’s kids...

A note to our listeners – this episode briefly mentions suicide, so some of our listeners may decide to skip this one.   This week on the podcast Monique interviews Jodie Wilson, who is an AuDHDer veterinarian, researcher, author, and mum (not necessarily in that order!). Jodie advocates for diversity inclusion within the veterinary industry through her work with the Veterinary Kaleidoscope and she also works as a researcher at the Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre at La Trobe...

Menopause! It happens to roughly half of the human race, but it continues to be shrouded in mystery for many people. In today’s episode we discuss this very important transition. We cover: Why are we doing an episode on menopause? The social aspect of the menopause transition. An overview of our sex hormones and how these change during the menopause transition. Early and premature menopause. Common signs and symptoms of peri-menopause and menopause. The effect of peri-menopause on our mood,...

On our final episode for season 4 we welcome Claire Johnston to the podcast. Claire is a citizen of the Red River Métis Nation, who lives on the land of their ancestors in Treaty 1 Territory, also known as Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. They are a Métis beadwork artist and are currently mentoring under Métis artist and Knowledge Keeper Jennine Krauchi.   Claire is a proud autistic person who finds immense joy in working with their hands. They believe their ability to work intricately and...

This week we chat with Jennifer Kemp about perfectionism. Jennifer is a Clinical Psychologist based in Adelaide, Australia. She is the author of ‘The ACT Workbook for Perfectionism: Build Your Best (Imperfect) Life Using Powerful Acceptance & Commitment Therapy and Self-Compassion Skills’ as well as several e-books, which are linked below. Monique and Jennifer are currently co-writing a book on Neurodivergence and Self-Compassion, which is due to be released in 2024.   In her private...

Happy Monday! This week we chat about Acquired Brain Injury (ABI). We cover what is an acquired brain injury and what can cause an ABI, how does ABI fit within the neurodivergence umbrella, and the prevalence of ABI in Australia. We explore what are some of the cognitive manifestations of ABI and what can impact how an ABI manifests, identity shifts that can occur with an ‘acquired’ neurodivergence and the role of grief and compassion, and factors to consider in recovery.   Access the nun...

This week we welcome Chantell Marshall to the podcast, who some may know through the social media handle @shylittlepixie. Chantell is an autistic woman, who lives with selective mutism, severe social anxiety and c-PTSD. She spends most of her time at home with her plants and her foster kittens. Chantell shares her personal journey through autism and mental health openly on social media; Chantell says that she finds this rather bizarre because in person she often cannot speak two words to a...

Today’s guest is Adina Levy. Adina is an AuDHDer, speech therapist, professional educator, and podcaster. She runs Play. Learn. Chat., and her podcast is called The Exploring Neurodiversity podcast. Adina loves intertwining her personal and clinical experiences with the lived experiences and perspectives of other neurodivergent people. She is dedicated to helping professionals and families to better understand the unique interests, individual strengths, and support needs of neurodivergent...

This week we chat friendships – this was a huuuuuge topic! We cover understanding your friendship needs and how these might change over time, different ways of connecting and forms of friendships, maintenance and management of friendships over time, and factors specific to neurodivergent women and afab folk in friendships. We also chat through the impact of attachment and personal triggers on friendships and how to engage in healthy conflict management and boundary setting in...

Content warning: In this episode we talk explicitly and directly about sex. Please be mindful of this if you usually listen with children around.   This week we welcome Talisin Switch to the podcast. Talisin is a neurodivergent sex worker and educator, specialising in BDSM and queer exploration. They consider themself to be a person with one foot in theoretical academics and the other in practical experience and use an integrative approach to their work. They're passionate about further...

This week’s episode is all about personality – what is personality, what factors impact the formation of personality, and how can we measure it? We also chat about personality disorders, unpacking what these are, how they are formed, and how personality disorders fit within the neurodiversity spectrum. We deep dive into Borderline Personality Disorder and Narcissistic Personality Disorder, as exemplifiers.   A note for astute listeners – early in the episode we are discussing temperament...

This week’s guest is author and educational and developmental psychologist, Sandhya Menon. Sandhya is an autistic ADHDer. She was born in Singapore, is of Indian-Swiss heritage. She moved to Naarm/Melbourne in Australia after high school, where she lives and works today.    Sandhya has written the book The Brain Forest to help children understand neurodiversity and inclusive practice. Her upcoming book, The Rainbow Brain, is the first children's book of its kind to outline both autism and...

This week we welcome Genevieve Hall back to the pod to chat with us about her experiences with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD). Genevieve is a writer, marketing consultant, and creator of the Demimonde Jewel Shop. Her special interests include gemstones, bees, and starting new hobbies (ideally a niche crafting skill). On any given day Genevieve will be either powered or frustrated by her ADHD, and PMDD has been a familiar and unwelcome visitor over the years.   On this episode we...

This week we talk to Cynthia Spleen, aka @plasticmessiah, about self expression. Cynthia is a neuroqueer Mauritian creative based in Naarm. They identify as an autistic and nonbinary person, and have been drawing obsessively since they first picked up a pencil. Cynthia paints, makes music and comics, tattoos, writes, and performs.   We chat with Cynthia about identity and labels, fashion, creativity, unmasking, the centrality of interest and passion in their life, family relationships, and...

Season 4 is here! We kick off the season with a very chunky episode on Autistic Burnout. In this episode we cover what is burnout in general, the difference between optimal and peak performance, what is Autistic Burnout and what are the signs, what causes and what exacerbates Autistic Burnout, preventative and recovery strategies, and what burnout can signal to us.   Find the study on autistic burnout that we mentioned here.   Want polished copies of our episodes in pdf article format?...

On our last episode for Season 3 we answer your questions! We cover:   Questions around diagnosis, including the process of getting a diagnosis, grief and identity issues around late diagnosis, when to tell kids about their diagnosis, and the pros and cons of diagnosis Why is it that some neurodivergent people seem to ‘thrive in chaos’ and others need clear structure, routine, and processes? Imposter Syndrome Strategies for removing sensory and practical barriers to self care. Can...

This week we welcome Clem Bastow to the pod. Clem is an autistic author, cultural critic and screenwriting researcher from Naarm/Melbourne. Their work appears regularly in The Guardian, The Saturday Paper and The Big Issue, and their debut nonfiction book ‘Late Bloomer’ was published by Hardie Grant in 2021. They are currently completing a PhD in screenwriting and Autistic experience at RMIT, and they have taught screenwriting at University of Melbourne and short story at RMIT.    We chat...

This week we have Barb Cook on the pod. Barb is a neurodivergent author, speaker, and advocate, best known as founder of Spectrum Women Magazine and leading editor and co-author of the book, Spectrum Women, Walking to the Beat of Autism. Barb works in her own practice, the NeuroDiversity Hub in Gympie, as a Developmental Educator, Integrative Nutritionist and a Neurodiversity Employment Consultant for neurodivergent adults.   We chat with Barb about advocacy, including her journey to...