Neurolicious - by Mummel Road
Parenting is a tough gig—but parenting a child with additional needs brings unique challenges, emotions, and incredible moments of growth. Mummel Road is a space where personal experiences meet professional insights, creating a supportive and informative podcast for parents, caregivers, and those navigating the world of disability.
Hosted by Emily, a mother of three—one of whom has a disability—and a dedicated professional supporting families of children with additional needs. Plus her co host, Kylee, a paediatric occupational therapist who herself has a diagnosis of ADHD. This podcast blends real-life stories, expert knowledge, and meaningful conversations to empower and uplift listeners.
Whether you're searching for guidance, solidarity, or just a reminder that you're not alone, you'll find practical advice, heartfelt discussions, and strategies to navigate parenting with confidence and connection.
There’s something for everyone on Mummel Road—because the journey is easier when we travel it together.
Follow along on socials @mummelroad and tune in each week for a new episode
Neurolicious - by Mummel Road
Tight Spaces, Big Feelings: Building Bridges Through Mealtimes and School Struggles
In this episode of the Neurolicious Podcast, hosts Emily and her step in co host daughter Annabel, discuss two prevalent challenges faced by families: mealtimes in small homes and school refusal. They emphasize the importance of connection over the physical setting of meals and explore the complexities of school refusal through a neuroaffirming lens. The conversation highlights strategies for creating predictable environments and fostering emotional support, particularly for neurodiverse children.
Mealtimes don’t require a perfect setting—they can happen anywhere, with connection at the heart. We appreciated the recent Mamamia Parenting Outloud episode, which explored the unique challenges faced by families navigating limited space during mealtimes. This is a conversation close to our hearts, as we support families in similar situations every day. At Mummel Road, we’re committed to breaking down barriers and thinking creatively to help families foster meaningful connection, no matter the size or layout of their home.
Predictability in mealtimes helps build routine.
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Mummel Road Community Programs is a registered charity offering adolescents on the autism spectrum the opportunity to engage with their community in a meaningful way. To learn more about our charity or donate please read more here
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If you are wanting to share your story with the Neurolicious Community, please reach out to us at info@mummelroad.com.au
Hi, my name's Emily. And
SPEAKER_01:I'm Annabelle.
SPEAKER_00:We are the Neuralicious podcast today. In the latest Parenting Out Loud episode from Mama Mia, who we love, they touched on two really relatable challenges, mealtimes in small homes and school refusal. And honestly, these are two things we hear all about all the time from the families that we help in a clinical capacity. Tonight, Kylie was actually caught up with her work. So she's working with clients tonight. So stepping into her seat as co-host on the Neuralicious podcast is Annabelle. She is my 10-year-old daughter and a wealth of knowledge when it comes to mealtimes and school refusal, although she loves school. But what she can give us an insight into is coming from a family of neurodiverse children, Her eldest brother has a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder level 3, intellectual disability and ADHD. So she sees every day the challenges that we face and she's pretty much number one when it comes to knowing how to make really sensible adaptions and adjustments to the home to keep everyone on track. Is that right?
SPEAKER_01:Yes.
SPEAKER_00:Yes. So meal times. Annabelle, in our home, where do we eat our dinner?
SPEAKER_01:Sometimes we eat it on our big table. It's a circle and that's where we have time where we talk about the day and sometimes if my siblings are at school, sometimes we just have it at a different table. Okay. So it
SPEAKER_00:doesn't always have to be at the big round table. Where are the other places that we eat dinner in our home? At the bench, at the white table and yeah. Great. So when I'm serving up dinner or making dinner, do we chat about things even if you're at the bench?
SPEAKER_01:Yes.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. So that time of the day, we're often close to each other. I'm sort of near you, but it's also a great time to talk, isn't it?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:but we're not always sitting down. That's right. Now your other brother, he doesn't enjoy sitting down a lot, your middle brother. He likes to eat pretty quickly and then get up off his chair, doesn't he? Yes. Yes, and that's something that we have to work around as well. We can't sit down for a huge amount of time when we eat, but when we do we try to have a quick conversation. But it's not all about sitting around the dinner table. That's really interesting, Annabelle. You're very good at this. So I feel like we should touch back on the topic that Mamma Mia Parenting Out Loud were discussing, which is for families that don't have a huge dining space or a dining table, how can they build in predictability and consistency around mealtimes to have that connection? Some things that we were talking about were parents not necessarily focusing on the table, but more of the connection. So your dinner might be on the couch. It might be on the floor. You might have lap trays. You might put a picnic blanket down. You might sit on cushions. You might stand and eat. It's not about necessarily the location of the food. It's about the connection. So many of the families that we support clinically focus on tiny snippets of connection, more than anything else. And I think this is really important with meal times. Predictability is everything, isn't it? Annabelle, at home, do we eat roughly around the same time every day? Yes.
SPEAKER_01:It depends on what time we'll get and from sport.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, that's true. We have quite a busy routine at home. The idea, though, that when we start dinner, it's a bit of a team effort and we all pitch in is really important. I really like the idea that at dinner we can focus on the connection with people rather than sometimes the amount of food that we eat. A lot of the families that we support in our clinic find eating some foods can be really challenging. And we always prioritise having a sensible goal. So that might be 10 seconds of being together around some kind of food. It might be sitting down for a long time but not focusing on the food. So there's a huge range of goals that our families that we work with are working towards. Now, school refusal. This is a huge topic and often misunderstood. Annabelle. Do you love school?
SPEAKER_01:Yes.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. Annabelle is one of these people that would love to be there. But I think she's seen some kids who find school can be a little bit tricky and it's not an easy place for some people to be. School refusal is quite a misunderstood topic and working through a neuroaffirming lens, we see school refusal not as a behaviour to be fixed but more of as a communication tool. For many children on the autism spectrum, school environments are overwhelming. They're loud, fast-paced and very unpredictable. Not wanting to go to school is often a sign that their nervous system just doesn't feel safe. Our job is to look at that scenario through a curious lens, not a corrective lens. We really need to understand the why. What's the load on their sensory system? Do they have a predictable morning routine? Are there safe people at school that they can connect with? Sometimes success looks like reducing days or building back gradually and supportive strategies at home and at school can increase their capacity and attendance over time. Annabelle. Are there people at your school that you feel safe with?
SPEAKER_01:Yes.
SPEAKER_00:Teachers and friends. What do you like most about school?
SPEAKER_01:In writing.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, that's a good one. I also don't want to underestimate the power of co-regulation. With us at home, we know if one of our kids is feeling a little bit wobbly and we try to co-regulate before we try to direct. or to correct. This is the same with school refusal. So in those tricky mornings, we always encourage families to lean into the co-regulation rather than coming from a lens of you're doing something wrong and we need to fix it. If mornings are chaotic and emotional in your home, try slowing things down. Sit together, connect together and often connect over a thing that your child might feel safe and interested in first. Those few minutes of calm can completely shift a child's lens for their upcoming day. So whether it's shared meals in a tiny space or navigating school distress, the message is you're not alone and there's always gentle, doable ways to support your child. In this episode of the Neuralicious podcast, your go-to podcast for neuroaffirming parenting strategies, I'm teaming up again with my daughter Annabelle. She's the brains trust when it comes to things like what we do at home and how we can make school a bit more fun. Annabelle, your oldest brother has autism spectrum disorder. What does that mean to you? How does that impact you?
SPEAKER_01:Sometimes when we go on holidays he has to have a break and go into our hotel and just go on mum's phone and sometimes it can be a bit annoying because I really want to do a lot of things while he's just laying in bed.
SPEAKER_00:Totally get it. Yeah, holidays are a time of... Lots of fun. And it can be super frustrating if someone wants to lie down. That was really a great honest answer, Annabelle. Thank you for that. As a sister of somebody on the autism spectrum, I think you're very good with your friends and at school with being a good friend and a co-regulating partner. And I'm really proud of you for that. Annabelle, what's your favourite place to eat your dinner at home? The bench.
SPEAKER_01:Why? Is that the case? Because
SPEAKER_00:I just like it. You just like it. Do you think that you're in the middle of the action? There's a lot going on. You can see everything.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I like it too. It's a real focal point of our home. Even though we do have a table to sit at, we do like the bench in our family, don't we? I've really loved unpacking these two really important topics today. Why mealtimes can feel overwhelming for families and how to navigate school refusal. There's sensory, social and emotional layers at play with both of these topics. We feel that strategies to support acceptance and to reduce anxiety can help with both mealtime chaos and also school refusal. We encourage people to move away from pressure and move towards connection. And we always encourage creating calm, predictable environments at home, particularly in those tricky times of the day, like in the mornings and the night times. Let's focus on the... Bless you. It's been fabulous having this conversation today. Kylie's fill-in co-host, Annabelle, has done a wonderful job. I think you should be a regular on the podcast now. I
SPEAKER_01:agree.
SPEAKER_00:What topic would you like to talk about on the Neuralicious podcast, Annabelle? Great. I think we should do sport. We've got a few sport ones coming up, but I think that we should include you in that. What sports do you like to play, Annabelle? Basketball, swimming, soccer and tennis. Amazing. You're busy. Well, we will dive headlong into those sporting topics in our next podcast of Neuralicious. Until then, we always encourage you to be kind to yourself. Annabelle, can you be kind to yourself?
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. All right. Bye for now.