Two Sides of the Spectrum

100 Episodes

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Learn Play Thrive Updates

2024-08-2102:58

Coming soon: The Neurodiversity Affirming Treatment Planning Party (FREE!): learnplaythrive.com/partyThe Learn Play Thrive Podcast Study Group: learnplaythrive.com/groupTrainings for Parents and Paraprofessionals: instagram.com/learnplaythriveparents (website launches next week!) View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Unmasking Autism in Action with Dr. Devon Price

2024-08-0752:071

This episode dives deep into some of the more foundational questions around being Autistic and neurodiversity, tying this into the larger systems we are embedded in. Our guest, Dr. Devon Price, helps us explore the concepts of masking and authenticity and how we, as professionals supporting Autistic people, can push back against these pressures. Dr. Devon Price is a social psychologist, professor, author, and proudly Autistic person. He has written 'Unmasking Autism' and 'Laziness Doesn't Exist'. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Part-Time AAC Use with Dr. Alyssa Hillary Zisk

2024-07-1749:201

In this episode, we talk about why and how part-time AAC use can support authentic participation for many autistic people. We also explore Dr. Alyssa Hillary Zisk’s insights on teaching AAC from their perspective as an engineer, as a researcher, and as an AAC user.Dr. Alyssa Hillary Zisk is an Autistic part-time AAC user, using a variety of text-based tools. They are the AAC research team lead at AssistiveWare. Their doctoral dissertation was on brain computer interfaces for people with ALS. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Nigh Functioning Autism: From Shame to Empowerment with Tiffany Joseph

2024-07-0322:47

In this episode with autistic AAC user Tiffany Joseph (they/them, she/her), we cover functioning labels, AAC access, how race intersects with disability in the Autistic community, aggressive behaviors, and so much more. But the thread that runs throughout the conversation is empowering our clients to participate more authentically in their daily life. Tiffany Joseph, or TJ, is an Autistic educational consultant, and runs the Instagram and Facebook pages 'Nigh Functioning Autism', where they post about AAC, being Black and Autistic, epilepsy, ADHD, OCD, and more. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Strengths-Based Approaches: How to Deeply Center Passions with Dr. Kristie Patten

2024-06-1947:111

In this episode (a repeat of one of our earliest episodes, episode 4), Dr. Kristie Patten takes us to the foundations of what it means to be strengths-based and the impact that it has on the lives of our Autistic clients. Dr. Kristie Patten is Counselor to the President and professor of occupational therapy at NYU and the Principal Investigator of NYU Steinhardt's NEST Project, supporting New York City Public Schools’ largest inclusion program in the United States for Autistic students. In this episode Dr. Patten shares why it's really easy to be a bad therapist and really hard to be a good one (plus some concrete steps to take to help get us there!) View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Autism & Interoception with Kelly Mahler

2024-06-0534:171

In this episode (a repeat of episode 44) we dive into interoception, our ability to understand the messages we are getting from inside our bodies. Our guest, Kelly Mahler, makes the connection between interoception and truly neurodiversity-affirming therapy practices. Kelly Mahler presents internationally on interoception and has authored 12 resources, including The Interoception Curriculum. This episode covers how a deeper understanding interoception can help us support authentic self-regulation for our autistic clients. It’s a must-listen for any professional who supports Autistic clients. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Cultivating Freedom and Authenticity in Daily Life Through Culturally-Affirming Practices with Heather Clarke

2024-05-1540:59

How can we center the needs of our Black Autistic clients? And how can we create spaces that allow for joyful, authentic participation for all kids? Heather Clarke has a deep analysis of the barriers that exist - especially for Black Autistic youth - and a vision for how we can move towards making our spaces safer, more inclusive, and more joyful. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Strengths-Based Goal Writing in Action with Rachel Dorsey

2024-05-0135:36

Many of us have never seen strengths-based, neurodiversity affirming goal writing in practice. In this episode, Autistic SLP Rachel Dorsey walks us through the ins and outs of how to write truly affirming goals for our Autistic clients that contribute to their well-being, not to burnout. Check out the newest version of Rachel’s CE course, Goal Writing for Autistic Students, (co-taught with an incredible team of OTs and SLPs) at learnplaythrive.com/goals. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

The Power of Presuming Competence with Ido Kedar

2024-04-1726:43

Ido Kedar is a non-speaking AAC user who chronicles his experience in therapies both before and after he learned to type to communicate. In this re-airing of episode 9, Ido shares concrete advice on how therapists can be more respectful and effective when supporting non-speaking Autistic clients. Ido Kedar is an autistic-self advocate and the author of two books. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Reclaiming our Wholeness with Honey Schneider

2024-04-0301:08:14

What is “neurosupremacy” and “neuronormativity,” and how does this differ from the idea of “neruotypicality”? What does peer counseling offer that traditional therapy misses? How can creativity help us break seemingly firm limits set by the systems of power and oppression that exist around us? In this episode, Honey Schneider helps us see the path to reclaiming our own wholeness, and to helping our clients do the same. Honey Schneider has an MA in Mental Health Counseling from NYU. They're white, disabled, and transsexual. Honey currently works as a peer coach. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

The Cultural Model of Disability and Empowering Practice Frameworks with Bryden Carlson-Giving

2024-03-2051:56

Our practice frameworks are supposed to guide our work…but what happens when their authors of our practice framework haven’t analyzed their biases? In this episode, we discuss how ableism is built into the practice framework of occupational therapists, and what it looks like to do something totally different. Today’s guest, Dr. Bryden Carlson-Giving, wrote the first neurodiversity-affirming practice framework for OTs – and there’s something to learn from it no matter what field you work in. We also dive into the cultural model of disability, the limitations of evidence-based practice, and so much more. Dr. Bryden Carlson-Giving is a queer, neurodivergent, and disabled occupational therapy practitioner who developed The EMPOWER Model. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

More Than Motor Milestones: Affirming Physical Therapy and Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration with Iris Warchall

2024-03-0656:37

We talk a lot about neurodiversity-affirming practice…but what does this look like for physical therapists? Should their work be guided by developmental milestones? Is it ethical to use physical prompts and assistance? How do you know when toe walking is really a problem? And how exactly should we go about finding affirming physical therapists for referrals? Join Autistic PT Iris Warchall in episode 89 to tackle this and more. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Transforming the Parent Experience with Jen Schonger

2024-02-2151:531

When this episode first aired, it was just directed at OT practitioners. But it’s simply too full of insight to not share again with our broader audience. Jen Schonger is the part time operations manager at Communication FIRST and the mom to two daughters, one of whom is Autistic. In this conversation, Jen shares her insight about the important blind spots many providers have, and the concrete ways we can support parents to develop an empowering understanding of their Autistic kids. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Preparing Autistic People for the Lives They Want to Live with Dr. Monique Botha

2024-02-0701:07:51

As professionals, we are always working towards something with our Autistic clients. But are we working on the things that will truly help them lead the lives they want to live? In this episode, Autistic researcher Dr. Monique Botha helps us dive into the nuance, meaning, and impact of this question. They also help us identify what research should guide our practice as professionals, and what research we can leave behind. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Trauma-Informed Practices for Your Neurodivergent Clients - with Lisa Hoeme and Sharon Hammer

2024-01-1746:21

We all know by now that feeling safe is foundational for learning, healing, and growing. But what does it look like to cultivate safety for our Autistic clients who have experienced trauma? LPCs Sharon Hammer and Lisa Hoeme help us get into the nitty-gritty of what trauma-informed care looks like in the context of neurodiversity. Get on the waitlist for their new CE course at learnplaythrive.com/trauma View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

The Holiday Dragon +A Gift from Us to You

2024-01-0302:24

Happy New Year! We're giving away a FREE 1.5 hour continuing education course by Autistic psychologist Matt Lowry to every professional who wants to watch it. It's called Understanding the Autistic Neurotype: A Deep-Dive from an Autistic Psychologist. It's registered for ASHA, AOTA, NASP, and ASWB CEUs and it's available on-demand from January 10 - February 21, 2024. Fill out the form at learnplaythrive.com/summit and to grab your spot! We'll be back in two weeks with a new episode. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

AAC for All: Here’s How We Do It! with Karina Saechao

2023-12-2045:48

In this conversation, Karina Saechao helps us understand what it looks like now for multiply marginalized kids to try and access and use AAC, and what concrete steps we can all take to try and change that. Karina gives the best advice to therapists on the ground who are collaborating with parents and teachers to improve access to communication for our clients. Karina Saechao is an SLP, researcher, scholar, and activist who's really passionate about increasing equity, access, and outcomes related to research, clinical practice, and course curriculum. She’s also a PhD student and a speaker at the upcoming Learn Play Thrive continuing education summit. Check it out at learnplaythrive.com/summit View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Creating Gentler Approaches to Feeding Differences with Marsha Dunn Klein

2023-12-0656:251

So many therapists are grappling with how to reconcile our feeding therapy training with what we are learning from Autistic adults. On the podcast, we’ve heard that systematic desensitization - even when it’s play-based - can feel like torture. We’ve learned that what looks like progress towards accepting new foods can actually be Autistic masking. And we’ve learned that family meals simply aren’t best for every child. In this episode, Marsha Dunn Klein, creator of the Get Permission Approach, shares with us her own journey towards aligning her work with neurodiversity-affirming practices. We dive into what this looks like for her, what she’s learned from interviewing Autistic adults, and what affirming feeding therapy can look like in your work. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Culturally Responsive Care with Native Clients with Joshuaa Allison-Burbank

2023-11-1559:39

At Learn Play Thrive, we are recognizing Native American Heritage month with an episode that centers how we can support the well-being of our Native clients. In this episode, Diné and Acoma Pueblo SLP Dr. Joshua Allison-Burbank helps us dive into Native views on disability, cultural responsiveness for therapists who are supporting Autistic people on reservation or off reservation, and ways that non-Native folks can build trust and connection in their relationships with their Native clients. To keep learning from Joshuaa, join us in the 2024 Neurodiversity CE Summit at learnplaythrive.com/summit. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

Strengths-Based OT and Self-Determination In Action with Kelsie Olds "The OccuPLAYtional Therapist"

2023-11-0101:00:27

Most of us who are trying to work in a way that is aligned with our values have so many moments of doubt. Are we actually doing a “skilled intervention”? Is the work we are doing truly making an impact on the child’s life? Are we inadvertently causing harm? Is there something we should know but don’t know that would help more in this situation? One of my favorite things to do is to find therapists who have really done the work to align their work with their values. Kelsie Olds (she/they) exemplifies this. In this episode, we dive into the details of Kelsie’s practice as a school-based OT and their journey to where they are today. View show notes and transcript at learnplaythrive.com/podcast

The Bishop's

Amy Van Zile

#box-pro-ellipsis-17322452411903{-webkit-line-clamp:2;}Two Sides of the Spectrum

The Bishop's

Amy Van Zile

Two Sides of the Spectrum