Self-Care – Isaac's Autism in the Wild

Episode 83 | Choosing A Therapy Provider

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | February 22, 2021

In this episode of ISAAC’s Autism in the Wild we discuss choosing a therapy provider. Generally therapy providers are on a long waitlist and you take what you can get. With Covid-19 shaking up schedules we have a rare opportunity to access providers and appointments that were not previously available. With this new opportunity comes its own challenges. How do you choose between several therapy clinic options? We are joined by two autism moms with different therapy needs and backgrounds who discuss the path they took to formulate their child’s therapy schedule.

References:

Previous Podcast: Episode#66 Navigating Wait Lists

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Episode 79 | Self Care During a Pandemic

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | January 11, 2021

This week ISAAC’S Autism in the Wild checks in with a few parents to see how they are keeping sane during these insane times. We are now over 9 months into the COVID-19 pandemic and discuss how our own self care looks as we have settled into the new normal. We discuss alone time, sleep, hobbies, social media and more. We also explore how our thoughts on self care have changed as we’ve adjusted to the decline in social interaction.

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Episode 77 | Parent Support

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | December 29, 2020

In this episode of ISAAC’s Autism in the Wild we discuss support options for parents with children on the spectrum. Thanks to technology there are many more outlets for parents than there were in the years past. We discuss these opportunities with a couple of autism parents; Phara, mother to a young adult male, and David, father to a school-aged girl. We talk about the emergence of facebook support groups, programs through local non-profits (including The ISAAC Foundation’s Parent Nights Out), and focus on the emotional aspects of parenting a child with special needs.

References:

The ISAAC Foundation Parent Support Opportunities

Arc of Spokane: Parent to Parent Program

DADS Move: Support Groups

Facebook Groups: There are a ton of specialty groups out there, just search by keywords (autism/asd/special needs/neurodiverse/etc. local to your area.

*tip*If your child is diagnosed as ASD 1 be sure to look up “asperger” as many of these groups were formed when asperger was still a clinical diagnosis.

Asperger Experts

Asperger Parents

Special Kids of Spokane

You Too? Support in Spokane for Parents with Special Kids

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Episode 76 | Masking & Bullying

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | December 21, 2020

On today’s episode we talk with executive function coach Becky Garder of “A Life of My Own.” We discuss the common defense mechanism many people (including the autistic population) use to “fit in,” known as masking. Or the idea that if you change or “mask” your identity in order to fit in with those around you. Masking can make social interactions less painful/tense. Although this method can seem to help in short periods of time, the long term affects are disastrous to self esteem. Today we discuss with Becky, what masking is, what it looks like, and how to redirect to avoid burnout.

References:

Blog describing Autistic Burnout that was read part of in the podcast:

“Autistic Exhaustion”

by Rhi (July, 17, 2019)

https://autistrhi.com/2019/07/17/exhaustion/

All posts found here: https://autistrhi.com/

This article showcases how autism can be seen through another, strengths-based/neurodiversity, lens

Uniquely Human (A Different Way of Seeing Autism) – July 1, 2016

by Barry M. Prizant

https://www.amazon.com/Uniquely-Human-Different-Seeing-Autism/dp/1476776245/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=uniquely+human&qid=1607632922&sr=8-1

And, btw, this book is a great Xmas gift for people!! Just saying…..😏

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Episode #39 | Should Parent’s Participate in Weekly Therapy

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | March 23, 2020

In this unique episode, we virtually connected our guests (due to the need for social distancing) to discuss the pros and cons of participating in weekly therapy visits. In this episode, we talk about:

the benefits and potential gains when parents participate in weekly therapy;
the challenges associated with participating in weekly therapy;
how to keep partners/spouses involved in therapy when they work outside the home;
Using therapy time as self-care time;
What to do if your provider prevents you from participating in therapy.

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Episode #11 | Caregiver Self-Care

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | September 13, 2019

Our focus this week is on caregiver self-care. Self-care is difficult for any parent to fit into their day – but it often becomes more challenging for parents of special needs kids when respite care is hard to come by. In this week’s episode of ISAAC’s Autism in the Wild Podcast, a small group of moms joined me for a lunch hour to discuss:

What does caregiver self-care look like?
Reconciling mommy guilt.
Creative ways these moms have been able to sneak self-care into their day.
Dad vs. mom self-care.
Setting boundaries to protect your self-care activities.
How much self-care is needed per week.

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