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 ADHD in one person. Sandhya is a sought-after speaker at autism conferences and has spoken at Reframing Autism, Autism from the Inside Out and Yellow Ladybugs. Understanding intersectionality is an important part of her work, committing herself to the pursuit of anti-racist, neurodiversity-affirming and queer-inclusive education, acknowledging it is a process and journey. 



We cover a huge amount of topics in this episode, including Sandhya’s professional work as a psychologist and author, her experiences as a BIPOC woman, an immigrant, and a neurodivergent woman, cultural difference in the experience of neurodivergence, Sandhya’s experience of how autism and ADHD live together within her, ‘ikigai’, and Sandhya’s top tips for others.



More from Sandhya:
Check out Sandhya’s website, Onwards and Upwards Psychology, here: https://www.onwardsandupwardspsychology.com.au/
Grab a copy of ‘The Brain Forest’ or pre-order Sandhya’s book ‘The Rainbow Brain’ here.
Sandhya also recommended the book ‘Living Sensationally’ by Winnie Dunn.



Want polished copies of our episodes in pdf article format? Grab them here.



Thanks for listening to the show! We will be back with Season 5 in February 2024. You can stay in touch over the season break by following us on Facebook and Instagram, or by joining our Patreon community. Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts for Season 4, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.



Contact us at ndwomanpod@gmail.com, or visit our website: www.ndwomanpod.com

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 ADHD in one person. Sandhya is a sought-after speaker at autism conferences and has spoken at Reframing Autism, Autism from the Inside Out and Yellow Ladybugs. Understanding intersectionality is an important part of her work, committing herself to the pursuit of anti-racist, neurodiversity-affirming and queer-inclusive education, acknowledging it is a process and journey. 
 
We cover a huge amount of topics in this episode, including Sandhya’s professional work as a psychologist and author, her experiences as a BIPOC woman, an immigrant, and a neurodivergent woman, cultural difference in the experience of neurodivergence, Sandhya’s experience of how autism and ADHD live together within her, ‘ikigai’, and Sandhya’s top tips for others.
 
More from Sandhya:
<ul>
<li>Check out Sandhya’s website, Onwards and Upwards Psychology, here: <a href="https://www.onwardsandupwardspsychology.com.au/">https://www.onwardsandupwardspsychology.com.au/</a></li>
<li>Grab a copy of ‘The Brain Forest’ or pre-order Sandhya’s book ‘The Rainbow Brain’ <a href="https://www.onwardsandupwardspsychology.com.au/shop">here</a>.</li>
<li>Sandhya also recommended the book ‘Living Sensationally’ by Winnie Dunn.</li>
</ul>
 
Want polished copies of our episodes in pdf article format? Grab them <a href="https://www.ndwomanpod.com/transcripts">here</a>.
 
Thanks for listening to the show! We will be back with Season 5 in February 2024. You can stay in touch over the season break by following us on Facebook and Instagram, or by joining our Patreon community. Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts for Season 4, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: <a href="http://www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod">www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.</a>
 
Contact us at <a href="mailto:ndwomanpod@gmail.com">ndwomanpod@gmail.com</a>, or visit our website: <a href="http://www.ndwomanpod.com">www.ndwomanpod.com</a>

A podcast for neurodivergent women, hosted by clinical psychologist Monique Mitchelson and clinical neuropsychologist Michelle Livock. Covering Autism to ADHD and everything in between, we aim to educate and inspire women who think differently.

The Neurodivergent Woman

The Immigrant Experience and Neurodivergence with Sandhya Menon

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 under 3 years. Josie’s research interests are in the early identification and diagnosis of Autism, family health and well-being following a diagnosis, and Neurodiversity Affirming research and practice.



In this episode Monique and Josie cover:


Josie’s path to understanding her own neurodivergence.
The heritability of neurodivergence and the importance of taking a whole-family approach to supporting neurodivergent kids.
Josie’s work on early identification of Autism and the development of the SACS early identification screening tool and the ASDectect app.
Josie’s research and work into closing the gender gap in early diagnosis of Autism.
Why early identification is so important and addressing concerns parents can have around ‘labelling’.
How to share a diagnosis of Autism with your child.
Debunking the myths around overdiagnosis of Autism.



Things we mentioned:


The Victorian Early Assessment Clinic.
The SACS early identification screening tool training
The ASDectect app
Conversation article co-written by Josie and Marie Camin on talking to your child about their diagnosis. 
Conversation article co-written by Josie and Dr Nancy Sadka debunking the myth around overdiagnosis of Autism. 
Books to use as a conversation starter to introduce neurodivergence to a child include The Brain Forest and The Rainbow Brain, both by Sandyha Menon, and Round World Square Me by Chelsea Luker. 



You can contact Josie via email at veac@latrobe.edu.au or find her on her socials here.



Want polished copies of our episodes in beautiful and readable pdf article format? Grab them here. 



Enjoyed the episode and want to support us further? Join our Patreon community! Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts from Season 4 onwards, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.

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 under 3 years. Josie’s research interests are in the early identification and diagnosis of Autism, family health and well-being following a diagnosis, and Neurodiversity Affirming research and practice.
 
In this episode Monique and Josie cover:
 
<ul>
<li>Josie’s path to understanding her own neurodivergence.</li>
<li>The heritability of neurodivergence and the importance of taking a whole-family approach to supporting neurodivergent kids.</li>
<li>Josie’s work on early identification of Autism and the development of the SACS early identification screening tool and the ASDectect app.</li>
<li>Josie’s research and work into closing the gender gap in early diagnosis of Autism.</li>
<li>Why early identification is so important and addressing concerns parents can have around ‘labelling’.</li>
<li>How to share a diagnosis of Autism with your child.</li>
<li>Debunking the myths around overdiagnosis of Autism.</li>
</ul>
 
Things we mentioned:
 
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.latrobe.edu.au/otarc/veac">The Victorian Early Assessment Clinic</a>.</li>
<li><a href="https://www.latrobe.edu.au/otarc/research/autism-detection-diagnosis/social-attention-communication">The SACS early identification screening tool training</a></li>
<li><a href="https://asdetect.org/">The ASDectect app</a></li>
<li>Conversation article co-written by Josie and Marie Camin on <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-talk-to-your-child-about-their-autism-diagnosis-the-earlier-the-better-193942">talking to your child about their diagnosis</a>. </li>
<li>Conversation article co-written by Josie and Dr Nancy Sadka <a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-rates-of-autism-should-be-celebrated-but-real-life-impact-not-diagnosis-should-determine-ndis-support-217921">debunking the myth around overdiagnosis of Autism</a>. </li>
<li>Books to use as a conversation starter to introduce neurodivergence to a child include The Brain Forest and The Rainbow Brain, both by Sandyha Menon, and Round World Square Me by Chelsea Luker. </li>
</ul>
 
You can contact Josie via email at <a href="mailto:veac@latrobe.edu.au">veac@latrobe.edu.au</a> or find her on her socials <a href="https://linktr.ee/drjbarbaro">here.</a>
 
Want polished copies of our episodes in beautiful and readable pdf article format? Grab them <a href="https://www.ndwomanpod.com/transcripts">here</a>. 
 
Enjoyed the episode and want to support us further? Join our Patreon community! Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts from Season 4 onwards, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: <a href="http://www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod">www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.</a>

Early Identification with Josephine Barbaro

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 to the right sensory support. In this episode Jo shares some personal details about her son Kai’s mental health journey, and Kai has given his consent for these details to be shared.



In this episode Monique and Jo cover:


How Kaiko Fidgets came to be and Jo’s path to diagnosis and understanding her own neurodivergence.
What actually is ‘Occupational Therapy’ (OT) and how can OTs work with neurodivergent folk?
Different sensory needs and ideas around supporting sensory regulation.
When pain is used as a regulator – Jo’s approach to this and some options for harm minimisation.
Understanding and managing the cumulative effect of sensory load.





Find Jo on her website (www.kaikofidgets.com), through her socials (@kaikofidgets), or reach out to her via email (jo@kaikofigets.com)  



Want polished copies of our episodes in beautiful and readable pdf article format? Grab them here. 



Enjoyed the episode and want to support us further? Join our Patreon community! Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts from Season 4 onwards, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.



Contact us at ndwomanpod@gmail.com, or visit our website: www.ndwomanpod.com

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 <a href="http://www.kaikofidgets.com">Kaiko Fidgets</a>. 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 to the right sensory support. In this episode Jo shares some personal details about her son Kai’s mental health journey, and Kai has given his consent for these details to be shared.
 
In this episode Monique and Jo cover:
 
<ol>
<li>How Kaiko Fidgets came to be and Jo’s path to diagnosis and understanding her own neurodivergence.</li>
<li>What actually is ‘Occupational Therapy’ (OT) and how can OTs work with neurodivergent folk?</li>
<li>Different sensory needs and ideas around supporting sensory regulation.</li>
<li>When pain is used as a regulator – Jo’s approach to this and some options for harm minimisation.</li>
<li>Understanding and managing the cumulative effect of sensory load.</li>
</ol>
 
 
Find Jo on her website (<a href="http://www.kaikofidgets.com/">www.kaikofidgets.com</a>), through her socials (@kaikofidgets), or reach out to her via email (<a href="mailto:jo@kaikofigets.com">jo@kaikofigets.com</a>)  
 
Want polished copies of our episodes in beautiful and readable pdf article format? Grab them <a href="https://www.ndwomanpod.com/transcripts">here</a>. 
 
Enjoyed the episode and want to support us further? Join our Patreon community! Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts from Season 4 onwards, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: <a href="http://www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod">www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.</a>
 
Contact us at <a href="mailto:ndwomanpod@gmail.com">ndwomanpod@gmail.com</a>, or visit our website: <a href="http://www.ndwomanpod.com">www.ndwomanpod.com</a>

Sensory Regulation with Joanne Seymon

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 animals, pop culture, and anything creative.



This episode is jam packed with goodies! Monique and Marie cover:


Community as a key part of the neurodivergent identity.
Marie’s experience as a neurodivergent clinical psychologist and her path to discovering her own neurodivergence.
A side quest on special interests.
Everything stimming – what is it, how is it understood (both from a community perspective and based on the DSM), and many examples of what stimming can look like.
The evolution of thinking in the psychological field around the purpose of stimming and responses to stimming.
Harm minimisation approaches for stimming that is harmful to self or others (please be aware that self-harm is mentioned here, and so some listeners may decide to skip this).
Marie’s advice for other neurodivergent folks trying to function in a neuro-normative way.





Want to learn more about Marie or get in touch with her? You can find her through her website here, or on Instagram @mariecamin.



Check out her digital downloads and ND Pride stickers here!



Want polished copies of our episodes in beautiful and readable pdf article format? Grab them here. 



Enjoyed the episode and want to support us further? Join our Patreon community! Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts from Season 4 onwards, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.



Contact us at ndwomanpod@gmail.com, or visit our website: www.ndwomanpod.com

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 animals, pop culture, and anything creative.
 
This episode is jam packed with goodies! Monique and Marie cover:
 
<ol>
<li>Community as a key part of the neurodivergent identity.</li>
<li>Marie’s experience as a neurodivergent clinical psychologist and her path to discovering her own neurodivergence.</li>
<li>A side quest on special interests.</li>
<li>Everything stimming – what is it, how is it understood (both from a community perspective and based on the DSM), and many examples of what stimming can look like.</li>
<li>The evolution of thinking in the psychological field around the purpose of stimming and responses to stimming.</li>
<li>Harm minimisation approaches for stimming that is harmful to self or others (please be aware that self-harm is mentioned here, and so some listeners may decide to skip this).</li>
<li>Marie’s advice for other neurodivergent folks trying to function in a neuro-normative way.</li>
</ol>
 
 
Want to learn more about Marie or get in touch with her? You can find her through her website <a href="https://www.mariecamin.com/">here</a>, or on Instagram @mariecamin.
 
Check out her digital downloads and ND Pride stickers <a href="https://www.mariecamin.com/category/all-products">here</a>!
 
Want polished copies of our episodes in beautiful and readable pdf article format? Grab them <a href="https://www.ndwomanpod.com/transcripts">here</a>. 
 
Enjoyed the episode and want to support us further? Join our Patreon community! Patreon subscribers receive basic episode transcripts from Season 4 onwards, access to a monthly live zoom hang out, 50% off our episode articles, plus bonus monthly content (depending on subscription tier). Check out our Patreon page to support us, as we aim to make quality mental health care information accessible to everyone: <a href="http://www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod">www.patreon.com/ndwomanpod.</a>
 
Contact us at <a href="mailto:ndwomanpod@gmail.com">ndwomanpod@gmail.com</a>, or visit our website: <a href="http://www.ndwomanpod.com">www.ndwomanpod.com</a>

The Immigrant Experience and Neurodivergence with Sandhya Menon

The Neurodivergent Woman

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