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Welcome to the neuro nurture podcast, dedicated to equipping and supporting families, navigating the world of autism and neurodiversity. I am your host, Kirsten Sullivan, who is on a mission to help autism families go from surviving to thriving. Welcome to the show. hey there and welcome to the very first episode of the NeuroNurture Podcast. Wow. I can't actually believe that I'm saying those words. I am just so thrilled to be here. I'm so excited to be embarking on this new journey with you. Thank you for taking time out of your busy day to tune in. I know that we all have these crazy chaotic schedules. So thank you for tuning in. Thank you for being here. And whether you are a parent or caregiver or an educator, or just someone who's really passionate about autism and the world of neurodiversity, you know, I really hope that this podcast can be your go to resource for understanding, embracing, and really educating. Empowering the lives of neurodivergent minds. Now, I want to take this episode just to tell you a bit more about myself, my background, and just the nature of these episodes and how they will be structured and what we will be diving into. Now, in every episode, we will be exploring a range of different topics, you know, ranging from moving beyond behavior to enhancing skill acquisition, to setting up environments that. Meet your child's needs and, and meet them where they're at, you know, whether it's be at school or at home to improving social skills, emotional regulation, and just general overall wellbeing. So welcome. My name is Kirsten Sullivan, and I am the founder of NeuroNurture, where I provide holistic intervention and support for autism families and neurodivergent children. Now, I just want to tell you a bit more about my background and my history. So I studied psychology and social development through the university of Cape town during my undergrad and my honors, and I specialized in developmental psychology and this is really where my passion and my love for human development, human behavior, and the human brain really evolved and came into fruition. I went on to complete my master's also at the university of Cape town, where I specialized in autism education and different therapeutic interventions looking at it from a South African point of view and specifically in the Western Cape. So after I graduated with my honors, I worked as an ABA behavioral therapist and a school facilitator for a number of years. This is really where my passion and my love for working with autistic children really evolved. I was able to discover a profound appreciation for the unique qualities and perspectives that autism brings to our world and the qualities that I hadn't really fully understood before. This only happened once I was able to really connect with a child. I was able to dive into their world and, you know, see things from their perspective and realize why they were doing what they were doing. I noticed these incredible qualities come to light, you know, qualities like deep compassion, empathy, yes, empathy. It is such a huge myth that autistic individuals do not have any empathy. They do. It's just maybe shown differently or shown in a way that is not typical to the general population. I also noticed qualities such as creativity, autistic flair, attention to detail, the sort of intense focus, and also this need for loyalty and openness and honesty. But what I also started to realize while working in this field as an ABA behavioral therapist was that there was this crucial and critical gap and this gap was not being filled. There was this critical piece of care that was missing that Wasn't being provided to autistic children. And, you know, I saw this in the school field when I was a school facilitator. I saw this in the medical field. I saw this even in the home environment while being a therapist that. Things were not linking up and there was this piece that was missing and I wanted to dive in deeper. I wanted to explore this more and it really sparked my interest on, you know, how can we provide the best care for autistic children? So before we dive a little deeper, I just want to clarify some terminology and in our discussions, I will use children with autism and I will also use autistic children interchangeably. I respect that everyone has their preferences and these terms are used to include and not exclude the rich diversity within the autism community.,although I also, I often refer to children because that's where much of my experience lies, but this in no way lessens the significance and understanding of supporting adolescents and adults on the spectrum. And so I just wanted to put this little disclaimer in because I know that the role that language plays and the terminology we use really shapes how we, we view autism and especially, you know, it's very pertinent these days on social media. Before I commenced with my master's, I also spent years really deepening my knowledge and gaining a lot of experience in various other forms of autism therapies. So I also have qualifications in the early start Denver model, ESDM handle therapy, sensory integration. And then obviously the APA, and I'm also a qualified DR floor time practitioner and a certified autism specialist registered with the IBBC S board in America. And I'm also a qualified counselor where I have worked in the school setting., and I've also worked with children and adults in areas such as trauma, loss and grief and the autism spectrum. Now, I just want to add in a little bit of a fun fact to kickstart our journey. Did you know that autistic individuals, they often have exceptional abilities in pattern recognition and attention to detail, and this can lead to incredible talents in areas such as art, music, maths, and computer programming. But I also just want to say that, not every single autistic child, autistic individual has these incredible superpowers. You know, I think that the media and. And social media, and a lot of how sort of neurotypicals perceive autism and autistic individuals is that, you know, they all have some sort of superpower or they all these sort of geniuses. To just put it out there that not every autistic individual has the, this sort of incredible talent in one area. Now, yes, we do see that it is more prevalent, but, a lot of autistic individuals don't, and so in the next episode, we will be jumping into redefining autism and you know, what autism really is. I would like to provide slightly a different perspective on autism and maybe just broaden your horizon on the definition of autism. Because I really think that it sets the foundation for how we perceive autism, how we view autism, and you know, it will really enhance your understanding of your child. And really once we have that deep understanding and only once we have that connection, can we really build from there? So keep an eye out for that. Thank you for joining me today. I am so looking forward to exploring and delving into all of these different topics and really the incredible world of neurodiversity. If you don't already follow me on Instagram, let's be friends. My handle is at neuro nurture underscore. I would love to connect, please slide into my DMS. I always love meeting. New faces. I love meeting awesome families, neurodivergent individuals. So pop me a message. Let's connect. together, let's nurture the neuro nature of every individual and making each journey as rewarding as it can be. You have been listening to the NeuroNurture podcast. Remember to subscribe. And if you have enjoyed this episode, please leave a five star review. This will help other autism families find podcasts like this to help them navigate the world of autism and neurodiversity. Until then, take care and celebrate neurodiversity in all its forms.