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1. Supporting Neurodiversity as a Speech Therapist with Ryann Sutera, CCC-SLP image

1. Supporting Neurodiversity as a Speech Therapist with Ryann Sutera, CCC-SLP

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Overview:

In this episode, we chat with Ryann Sutera, CCC-SLP about her passion for neurodiversity support, language acquisition, and connection building with clients and parents.

If you want to learn more about neurodiversity, Ryann recommends checking out these people & resources below:

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Transcript

Introduction and Guest Overview

00:00:00
Speaker
Hey, hey, my name is Parker Middeltenberg, your host of Passion Skill Money, where we explore how you can blend passion with profit. Each episode features an inspiring story, highlighting unique journeys of crafting lifestyles and careers that are not only fulfilling, but also financially rewarding. All right, let's dive in.
00:00:18
Speaker
I'm here with

Educational Background and Career Journey

00:00:19
Speaker
Ryan Suterra, speech language pathologist. How's it going? It's going so well. Thank you for having me. Yeah, I'm so excited to have you. I met you, or actually I saw your content on Instagram for the first time via my friend Leanne, your friend Leanne, also an SLP. And whenever I saw your videos for the first time, I thought, okay, I've got to have run the podcast to talk about autism and supporting the spectrum and your work in the SLP space. So I'd love to kind of hear about your background and how you got into, to be a speech language pathologist.
00:00:48
Speaker
Yes, of course. Well, first, thank you. That's

Transition to Social Media and Content Creation

00:00:50
Speaker
so sweet. But yeah, I studied at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, where I got my bachelor's of science and my master's of science. And after graduation, I worked in the Delaware public school system in their autism support classrooms for three years with Leanne that whole time. Shout out Leanne. She's an amazing speech language pathologist. And me and her
00:01:14
Speaker
We're really tag teaming those classrooms and navigating a lot of challenges in that school system. So we were working there together and after the school day, I would work at EBS Children's Institute in Westchester for a few hours after the workday and
00:01:34
Speaker
Then it got to a point where me and Leanne just decided the next thing is, is we're ready for the next thing. And so we left the school this year in May or in June rather. And at that point I was already making my own treatment materials, a little bit posting on my teachers paid teachers. And I started to make some videos as well. Nothing was popping off or anything, but, um, started posting to a Tik TOK Instagram.

Motivation Behind Social Media Videos

00:02:04
Speaker
and YouTube, and I started working part time in four different places just to keep the caseload, you know, to keep my week busy. I do early intervention work through the state, and I continue to work at EBS Children's Institute in Westchester. I work at a clinic called Communiverse, which is located in Concha, Hopkins, where I'm an independent contractor.
00:02:30
Speaker
And my last job is with Fox Rehab. So I'm seeing the geriatric population as well as kiddos as well.
00:02:38
Speaker
It's a home health company that primarily supports people who suffer from language, memory, cognition, voice and swallowing deficits as a result of TBI, ALS, Parkinson's, stuff like that. Wow. I had no idea that you fully ran the game. Based on your videos, I thought it was mainly just focused on in the educational space. That's cool to know that you fully take it all from
00:03:05
Speaker
I'm trying to keep my skills sharp, but I would say that my heart and my passion is primarily diversity affirming practices. And I see kids mostly regarding those issues. Wow. So tell me about when you started your Instagram and TikTok, what made you think, okay, I want to start making videos and this is how I'm going to show up in

Understanding Autistic Terminology

00:03:26
Speaker
this space.
00:03:26
Speaker
It was solely to teach and to be helpful because in the public school system, I was getting the same questions from teachers, from parents, kind of over and over and over again. And I thought, oh, if I could make a video about this and send it to them, it would just be so much easier than having to keep explaining, keep explaining.
00:03:46
Speaker
And so it was kind of funny because I made some videos, I was sending them to some teachers and then I realized that TikTok is a really easy way to edit videos and make them. I had an account because my little cousin downloaded it on my phone and we would make like stupid dancing videos, whatever. So I had it and I was making it and I was like, oh, you know what? I can post it on here too.
00:04:10
Speaker
I changed my picture and my name and then I saw that they were starting to get some views and there were autistic people and parents of autistic people commenting on them and I was just like, oh, this is, you know, actually helpful. This is answering extremely valid questions that struggling parents have or struggling neurodiverse people have.
00:04:36
Speaker
That was why.

Challenging Autism Stereotypes

00:04:38
Speaker
And it also was a creative outlet for me too, but within the parameters of speech and language topics. So I like having a little bit of structure. Yeah, right. Totally. I love that. Speaking of, I want to get the nomenclature right. So I'm glad you already mentioned autistic person or autistic people. Can you go into the differences and what's the best way to talk about that? Is it, uh, can you also say a person with autism or like, what is the, I guess the ways to talk about it and not talk about it?
00:05:06
Speaker
I mean, I think intention is all that really matters. And I think most autistic people would agree. If you say something incorrectly, like, I wouldn't even say it's incorrect, but saying an autistic person is more accepted in the autistic community just because it is defining their processing and knowing like who they are.
00:05:33
Speaker
or as a person, not that they're diagnosed defines them, but they're not a person with autism. Autism is how their brain is, if that makes sense. Yeah, totally. Yeah. I think you did a great job in one of your videos when you were describing the spectrum as not a left to right type of almost binary system. It's more of like a pie chart. And I loved the joke that you made when you were talking to this, you know, in this dramatization with this mom.
00:06:01
Speaker
And you're like, how? Yeah, right. How severely neurotypical are you? And I thought that was such a good representation of, of really changing people's perspectives of it's not mild or severe. There are so many, the brain is so complex. And so it's really, you know, honestly incorrect to talk or not specific enough to talk about it on a binary type of scale. So I loved that, that video in particular.
00:06:29
Speaker
Yeah, it's still common to see that in the documentation that's written by professionals to have professionals say it and especially amongst Facebook groups and stuff like

Recognizing Gifts in Autism

00:06:42
Speaker
that. Yeah. Child autism is like, Oh, God makes you cringe a little bit. But it's not their fault. It's just a lack of information being out there. And so
00:06:52
Speaker
Yeah, I highly encourage people to, if you know it, put it out there. You know, get the information out. Yeah, and I think that's actually something that you do really well is explaining things in a very open, non-judgmental way.
00:07:08
Speaker
It's purely from an educational point of view and there's a lot of humor in it and I find it super interesting. There's no one in my life that has autism that I know of or that's been diagnosed officially, but I think since there's such greater awareness of people with autism, even love on the spectrum on Netflix, it's being talked about more and I think it's important for us to know. Being gay myself, I feel like it's also similar to sexuality in a way where
00:07:33
Speaker
There's so much complexity to the brain and to love and all of these things. And so the more we can educate people on what it is and how to talk about it and how to support people. And not even just supporting, I think there was one post you made in particular where you said, let's not just focus on supporting people with autism, let's also recognize their gifts.

Meeting Individuals Where They Are

00:07:54
Speaker
I mean, there are so many aspects to autistic people and their talents. Like, for example, deep knowledge of a subject matter
00:08:02
Speaker
I would just go with someone who like knew everything about airplanes. And I'm thinking like, you know, I don't know what I didn't keep up with him, but let's say he went on to be an engineer. I mean, he would know everything about this airplane, you know, like we need people like that. And I loved your, you had another video about historically, like these people, uh, these are gifts were praised and were supported for a long time because like they had really great pattern recognition sometimes or similar. So it's like,
00:08:29
Speaker
It's the type of content that you make that I really like. It's not just about how to support people, but how to recognize and leverage their gifts and put them up in the places that they need to be. So I thought that was great. Thank you. Yeah. I want to say real quickly, I love your content as well. I've been listening to podcasts and I think you're a great interviewer, great communicator. So it's very easy to listen and very educational. I appreciate it. Of course.
00:08:54
Speaker
But I agree with you, I think my main thing and the thing that I want people to take away the most is meet people where they are at, not where you expect them to be. Because where you expect them to be is a you thing, right? And to not embrace how they are, just how they are. And I am also a spiritual person as well. And I believe that we are put here
00:09:23
Speaker
to be ourselves wholeheartedly and everyone in your life should embrace that. Do what they can to support that. So yeah, it's not about changing. It's just about helping others meet their personal goals.
00:09:39
Speaker
Yeah, for sure.

Gestalt Processing in Autism

00:09:41
Speaker
I think you do a great job too with the whole nomenclature aspect. So like talking about echolalia or gestalt phrases and these types of communication patterns are not neurotypical. And so people want to judge them because they don't understand them and people don't know the name for them. And I thought a great one that you did, you were singing in the closet about the Lizzie McGuire thing and it reminded me
00:10:08
Speaker
I can't remember the song, but it reminds me of like, like people talk like for Gestalt processing or Gestalt phrasing, where like the Krusty Krab pizza is because they're doing, they're like, yeah, like, and, and I'm thinking I do that, you know, it's, it's like, yes, I'm sorry, please finish. No, it's okay. I was just saying like, I just love how you give a name to the,
00:10:33
Speaker
to the type of behavior that people may recognize but understand like why is this happening how is their brain processing this and if you shut it down it's exactly like you do like slapping the tape on their mouth and that's how they are communicating and so you don't need to shut down people's way of communicating because then that silences them so yeah
00:10:53
Speaker
Yeah, that's definitely a great point. And I want to note that the echolalia, especially delayed echolalia, which a lot of people also call referencing, quoting something that they have seen before, it's not exclusively a neurodiverse or autistic trait. Obviously, we all do it. I mean, me and my brother talking quotes nonstop. You know what I mean? Right.
00:11:16
Speaker
And that's the thing, but I think the difference is, is it a primary form of communication for you? And is it almost like an itch you have to scratch? Like it just has to come out because it's kind of where your brain immediately switches to.
00:11:33
Speaker
So I think and also you can be the spectrum has a bunch of different characteristics and you can have a lot of those characteristics on the spectrum and not be autistic. Yeah. Yeah, just so interesting. Yeah, I think that makes a lot of sense because I mean,
00:11:49
Speaker
I've heard people talk about, oh, I think I have like a twinge of autism, quote, quote. And just like you said, that doesn't mean you don't have that diagnosis and you can exhibit behaviors that maybe autistic people have. But that doesn't mean that you're on the spectrum. It's a perfectly normal way of communicating.
00:12:07
Speaker
Yeah. And again, with intention, like I know that most people who are saying that are not trying to be offensive, you know, they just are really like, I do that too. I mean, I have a lot of comments on that video that are just like, I wonder if I should get tested. And I always say like, if you, you know, you know you best. And so if you think you should go ahead, but you know, even if you

Underdiagnosis of Autism in Girls

00:12:30
Speaker
are like, who cares? It's good to know, but still.
00:12:35
Speaker
Speaking of diagnoses, let's talk about the diagnosis with boys and girls, because from my conversations with Leanne, especially, I've heard how boys under the DSM, I guess, it's easier for people to recognize and assess boys as autistic versus girls as much. And I wanted to kind of go into, it's not maybe that the rates are different. Actually, you tell me, why is it that girls are under diagnosed with autism and not getting that support?
00:13:04
Speaker
That's a great question and something that I had to educate myself on even before this podcast because most of my clients are boys. I really only have a few girls and when I went on the National Autistic Society website to look for material on it, what they basically said was,
00:13:21
Speaker
girls are more likely to mask. So it's often assumed that they have less social communication difficulties. And really, a theory behind it is that there is the existence of a potential female autism phenotype, meaning that the way that they present and the characteristics that they have don't really fit into the traditional profile of autism. Most of the assessments
00:13:50
Speaker
were based on studies that were performed on boys. Even the National Autistic Society website, they can't put an exact reason. They even say there is no exact reason, but we do know that because they are possibly masking more, that it leads to anxiety and overwhelms them, and then they're misdiagnosed with mental health issues. It's a very sensitive topic that
00:14:18
Speaker
I think the only way to really fix it is just to listen to autistic voices and educate yourself as much as you can on the things that they are putting out there and their experiences. So it might be easier to identify that phenotype. Yeah. Gosh, that's so interesting. Do you mind explaining for those who don't know what masking is and what that

Impact of Masking on Mental Health

00:14:42
Speaker
looks like? Yeah. Masking is a performance. It is.
00:14:47
Speaker
when an autistic person feels that they must put on this neurotypical face and hide the things that make them different, hide their characteristics of autism, and it is so exhausting for them to do. For example, this is just one example too, but a lot of times autistic people have difficulty
00:15:10
Speaker
reading into non literal phrases or stuff like that. And so someone says something, and it's a phrase that they just didn't understand, or you're not supposed to take literally, but they have to, they do the thing literally. And it's kind of like shamed like, how, how, why did you do that? And they'd be like, Oh, you know, I was just kidding, something like that, or do not do anything and just pretend like they know what's going on. Or if they really
00:15:39
Speaker
um, have difficulty adjusting to a different plan. Like let's say you had a plan for the day, a schedule for the day with your autistic friend and you're like, Oh, and Rachel's coming along and they're just like, Oh gosh, that changed my whole plan, but I have to mask. Like this is okay. Oh, Rachel's coming along and we're going to this different restaurant. And then we're going to go to this club after, and it's just changes everything. Their abilities are transition and their comfortability with the situation, but they just.
00:16:09
Speaker
They don't want to be a burden. So they mask. Gotcha. Yeah. And it's, it can be very overwhelming. Yeah, I'm sure. Speaking of overwhelm, I want to talk about stimming and in that type of, I would love for you to explain it actually talking about overwhelm, like what it is. Yeah. So stimming can definitely being overwhelmed can cause stimming. It also can just be a well, a way to self soothe or process or self stimulate. So.
00:16:37
Speaker
There's different kinds of stims. A lot of times you'll see autistic children move their hands or move something in front of their eyes, like a visual stim. So there's like a motor stim, a visual stim. Sometimes they like the pressure, which is that tactile stim. And so if there's something that is overwhelming them, they'll go to their stim to self-soothe.
00:17:01
Speaker
if there's something that not even overwhelming in a negative way overwhelming in a positive way to like, yeah, so excited for something they might resort to their stem. And also if they're feeling like, Oh, I just need to get through this moment, or I'm just bored. It's just
00:17:17
Speaker
they process that visual stimulation, that tactile stimulation, maybe differently than a neurotypical person would. So it's kind of like you as a neurotypical person don't really understand what they're seeing, feeling, but I don't think you have to. It's just so necessary. Just let them stem. Right, right, right. I love that.
00:17:39
Speaker
I feel like the the the core through line that I feel like I've seen through your videos too is literally like just let people be and don't control them. Yeah, right because because or else it'll contribute to masking like it's like let people communicate they want the way they want to stem self soothe be just be and I feel like
00:18:04
Speaker
That's one of the biggest takeaways for me, and especially when we eventually have children. Even for neurotypical children, the through line is just don't try to control these behaviors that maybe you don't like or that you were shamed for. So you have the choice to not shame these children or adults for things that they want to express.
00:18:26
Speaker
Yes, it's to me, it feels obvious because it's like, oh, you don't want to deal with your feelings behind a person expressing themselves this way. It's it's selfish. You don't want to deal with how you feel about it. So you want to try to change them. And yeah, I
00:18:45
Speaker
I never used that word. I would never want to shame people with that word, but I don't even think it has to be that negative. I think you can just say something for what it is, and then you can process that. Yeah. Have you, in your experience, noticed any connection with... Because I

Late Autism Diagnoses in Adults

00:19:03
Speaker
feel like a lot of your work is not only just supporting children, but supporting the Spectrum page, but it's also the parents and the educators, like you said,
00:19:11
Speaker
Have you noticed where there have been some adults that you've worked with or parents that have received a late diagnosis with autism? I have communicated a lot with those, mostly women. On TikTok, I have a few people that I message regularly. We send things back and forth and talk about topics and that's been one of my favorite parts of it.
00:19:33
Speaker
mostly women are usually diagnosed late and it's because they've masked so well throughout their lives and then they finally see something that just validates their experiences and they're like, oh, I am autistic. So yeah, I talked to
00:19:51
Speaker
a few parents and just supporting them because they also usually have children who are autistic as well. So yeah, I do see that for sure. Yeah. That's so interesting. Cause I'm thinking about, you know, if you receive a late diagnosis, it's probably so much more helpful when supporting your child because you're thinking, Oh, I know how I used to be not controlled, but, um, yeah. And so like, then you have the choice to do that to your child or not. So, um,
00:20:21
Speaker
Speaking of expression, I want to talk about AAC devices and their use and supporting them and their importance.

Role of AAC Devices in Communication

00:20:33
Speaker
My favorite topic. I love talking about AAC. Awesome.
00:20:37
Speaker
So yeah, if you don't mind, I'd love to start with the autism and language processing and then it goes into. Yeah, sure. Let's do that. Okay. Yes. So I really don't enjoy talking in absolutes because the reality of autism is that everyone presents wildly different with varying strengths and weaknesses, just like neurotypical people. But in general, autism spectrum disorder affects the
00:21:00
Speaker
development of language and pragmatic skills. So at its core, it affects the autistic individual's ability to process information. And the processing model for your brain is that you receive something that stimulates your brain, either visually or auditorily or tactilely, and you filter out the irrelevant information, like a bright light or a background noise, something that doesn't have to do with the experience.
00:21:29
Speaker
and you integrate sensory input and you integrate what you already know into that and then you formulate a response and then you rhetorically respond. So an autistic person might have difficulty with the filtering due to sensory differences or they may have an amazing ability to integrate what they love into
00:21:51
Speaker
what you're talking about. But then when it comes to actually getting it out, it's, it's a lot to formulate and process that response. So it gets kind of stuck somehow. And then the anxiety around the social communication can set in and just forget it when, when anxiety shifts the brain to survival mode, to fight or flight, it just mucks up the work. So how do we support them? We can provide them with AAC.
00:22:19
Speaker
And the research on processing profiles of autistic people demonstrate that they have an increased speed and can receptively and expressively communicate quicker with the support of a visual. So even gestures, sign language, written text, just images by itself or a speech-generating device all provide those visual aids. And to me, it's imperative to give them those supports. What does the AAC stand for?
00:22:48
Speaker
augmentative and alternative communication. Okay, so it's not always a device. Yeah, no, it's, I mean, even texting is a because it's a way to communicate that's not verbal. Yeah, and even gestures or sign language, like, you know, we point to something and that communicates something, right? Yeah, right. Yeah, that's great.
00:23:09
Speaker
Well, I don't want to sweat too fast. I want to go into the use of AAC and educating, because obviously people who need AAC devices are receptive to it, usually, I would assume. But it's the educators or the parents that you really have to say, hey, let them use this. It's been all summer. Have they been using it? Or have you been letting them use it? Let's talk about that and that importance.
00:23:34
Speaker
or my favorite topic is that I have this conversation at least once a week with parents. And it's understandable, again, lack of information, no judgment. But there's just a lot of misconceptions about it. I've heard parents say, I don't want my child to become dependent on it and lose the motivation to talk even though
00:23:53
Speaker
all the research does not support that and actually suggests that AAC devices do not impede natural speech development and are great supplements to speech development and or I've heard it was just too difficult for me to navigate and done.
00:24:09
Speaker
could definitely be true. But it's just about practicing, you know, and it's, you don't have to even be perfect at it. But if you're showing your language learner that you are willing to communicate with them through it, how validating is that? And how alarming is that? And where I hear like, Oh, my child is too young. And the reality is, there's no prerequisites for using AAC and
00:24:36
Speaker
it's suggested to assume competence, which means that you wanna make as much language as possible available to them so they have the potential to say anything that crosses their mind. Yeah, right. Yeah. That's so good. So then

Parental Challenges with AAC Acceptance

00:24:51
Speaker
I'm thinking what other challenges besides allowing or encouraging people to let their children use AAC devices do you encounter typically and that you find yourself educating parents on or educators on the most? I think it's mostly
00:25:05
Speaker
the fear of judgment from other people, which obviously we're all worried about that, right? When it's your child and you just feel so protective over them and you don't want people to treat them differently. I mean, I don't have a child, but I can
00:25:24
Speaker
assume how they would feel about certain things. And they tell me, you know, and it gives them a lot of anxiety. And so you just want to be as gentle with them as possible. But again, it's just about support them where they're at, not where you expect them to be. You want them to get to level five.
00:25:44
Speaker
speaking independently. Well, they're at level one. So let's do two, three, four, before we get to level five, right? Right, right. So yeah, I do see that a lot, unfortunately. Yeah. Speaking of meeting people where they're at, and putting this neurotypical structure on them to like, fill out,
00:26:04
Speaker
I want to talk about eye contact because I've noticed and I've seen this on Facebook, especially where parents, there's this one YouTuber in particular that I'm thinking about where she was so heartbroken that her child used to look at her in the eyes and would have just such deep staring and like connection with the way that she was perceiving connection.

Rethinking Eye Contact Norms

00:26:25
Speaker
And then he stopped doing that and then started exhibiting more autistic
00:26:29
Speaker
behaviors and received the diagnosis and everything. And she wanted to put that pressure on him like, look at me again, look at me in the eyes. It's, you know, when you're talking to me. And I know there's a lot of pressure for that to happen. But can you talk about why yes or no to the importance of eye contact? And why? I guess I'd want to just, I don't want to like, force the conversation somewhere. But let, I want to hear your perspective on that. No, I think it's such a valid
00:26:56
Speaker
question and so many people's experience. And so it's just my personal belief that eye contact is not necessary. And you also have to ask yourself, what's more important? Is the person I'm talking to my loved one, is their comfort more important or is my comfort more important?
00:27:18
Speaker
So you feel comfortable when they're staring at you and connecting with you. Okay. That's, and that is a beautiful thing. And for that to go away, your feelings are extremely valid about that. That is sad, especially if you feel like that was just such a moment, but now it's not and things change. So if you, if it's making the person uncomfortable to do that,
00:27:43
Speaker
what is more important and they can talk to you without looking at you. I think neurotypical people were definitely, even your parents, make sure you look them in the eye when you shake their hand and it's respectful, whatever.
00:27:59
Speaker
That is just such a neurotypical viewpoint. Yeah. Yeah. It's not affirming for the neurodiverse. For sure. Even when I think about, you know, as a neurotypical person myself, I think about we are animals and that we are the only animals that value eye contact. Every other animal species, I direct eye contact as a form of aggression.
00:28:22
Speaker
Yes, literally. And there were some studies that dogs, when dogs look at other dogs, they don't, if they look at them directly, that's aggression, but they actually mask for humans. And they know that eye contact is important for humans and they will do it in a non aggressive way. I was like, that is so beautiful. But I just wanted to throw that out there as like,
00:28:42
Speaker
We think it's normal, but if we're considering ourselves animals too, the broad spectrum of the animal kingdom, it's super weird and not normal. It's super weird. I love that. I always say there's no normal. There's an average. We can take a study of a bunch of people and see what the average was, but the pure existence of something that differs from the average means that there's no normal. They exist. Right, right, right. It's amazing.
00:29:12
Speaker
So I guess just to round this out, I'd love to kind of hear your thoughts on, you know, you're giving this platform on Instagram and on YouTube and in your daily life. What are the biggest takeaways that you would like for, I guess, maybe let's say for the children and I guess adults that you work with, what you would love for them to know, and then for the people that support them as well?
00:29:36
Speaker
Oh,

Supporting Neurodiverse Children

00:29:37
Speaker
it's a great question. It's a really big question. It's a great question for the kids. I don't even know so much if it's about saying something to them as I just want them to feel safe. I want them to feel comfortable, accepted, and
00:29:57
Speaker
They can just be themselves without worry. I don't even think words are necessary. You can just do that just by being there and validating them. But for the parents, I don't want them to mistake supporting for coddling.
00:30:16
Speaker
A lot of times people are like, I just want to push them to be social. I want to push, push, push. And I do get it. I grew up where, you know, I was given those challenges as well. Like, oh, you don't want to order the restaurant while you're gonna. And it did help me get over the anxiety of that, right? But it's not necessary. I don't believe, I believe that you can
00:30:43
Speaker
support and make someone feel as comfortable as they can in situations that scare them and it's not coddling. Being able to co-regulate with the person who's learning that new skill rather than just kind of pushing them in the deep end. Other thing would be do not try to change people without their consent.
00:31:07
Speaker
And that's hard for littles because obviously they can't really understand why they go to speech therapy for one example. But if they are old enough, if they have the receptive ability to understand, make sure that their goals are personally relevant to them.
00:31:25
Speaker
That's so important. I didn't even humanize the experience and the support that you give. I didn't even consider that. So I think that's a really great point. Are you taking them to get support because you want them as a parent too?
00:31:44
Speaker
Back to your videos about intrinsic motivation. They're the ones receiving support, so their goals need to be aligned with the parent's goals. Let me say that differently. The person who's receiving the support, I feel like their goals, like you said, if they have that receptive ability, it comes first. Yeah. Yeah.
00:32:05
Speaker
It's not really going to stick. Right. Exactly. What's the point? Yeah. Back to the parents' comfort level. Yeah. Supposedly, Parker, I want you to learn how to pogo stick. And you're like, what? And I'm just like, yeah, it's important that you learn to pogo stick. And you're just like,
00:32:22
Speaker
Okay. It'll probably take you a while because you're just like, why am I doing this? Right. That is so funny. I love it. It's amazing. So tell us,

Resources and Social Media for Support

00:32:32
Speaker
let's say, you know, there's someone out there listening that has a loved one in their life that they believe may have autism or has officially received a diagnosis and is looking for support. How could they get in touch with you or someone similar to you if they're a different part of the country or around the world?
00:32:48
Speaker
I'm so glad you asked this. So I want to shout out some accounts if that's okay. Yeah, let's do it. Because my biggest suggestion would be follow as many neurodivergent people as you possibly can. And there's some Instagram accounts neurodivergent underscore Lou L-O-U therapist N-D-C spin and stomps.
00:33:12
Speaker
nigh, period, functioning, period, autism, a underscore different, underscore spectrum.
00:33:20
Speaker
Life with C55, the letter C, and the Period Autistic Period Girl are perfect Instagram accounts to follow. Amazing. That would be my biggest suggestion because we're scrolling social media anyways. Yeah. Right, right. I'll put those in the show notes so everybody can have it available. Oh, great. Tell us about how we can connect with you and get support from you.
00:33:46
Speaker
Sure. I have a YouTube page, a TikTok page, and an Instagram page. They're all at support underscore the underscore spectrum.
00:33:57
Speaker
And you can message me anytime on there. I also am working at a clinic communiverse in Concha Hawken where I'm a private contractor or independent contractor, I mean. So that is the best place to go to if you're looking to receive services from me because I have direct control. Otherwise, it goes through the other clinics, whatever.
00:34:19
Speaker
Right, right. Awesome. Great. Well, thank you so much for joining. I encourage everybody to go to those Instagram pages, to go to Ryan's Instagram page. There's so much. You can just find yourself in a rabbit hole, just scrolling. Like, oh my God, I had no idea what echolalia was, or just all phrasing, or just autism in general. I thought it was a really great video, the history of autism. Thank you. Yeah, so highly encourage everybody to visit those links and reach out to Ryan if you need support. Thank you, Parker.
00:34:49
Speaker
Yeah, thank you so much. Appreciate you being here today. Hey there. Thank you so much for joining me. I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did. If you've made it this far, I ask that you please rate and review this podcast wherever you're listening, because that's how podcasts grow. DM me on Instagram at ParkerMed with 2D, so ParkerMIDD on Instagram to let me know what you want to hear next. Take care.