There are a lot of different opinions and feelings about the neurodivergent experience during the holiday season. The reality is that they will be vastly different for each individual, and there isn’t a right way to experience the holidays.

In this episode, Patrick Casale and Dr. Megan Anna Neff, two AuDHD mental health professionals, dive into the complexities of navigating the holiday season as neurodivergent individuals, offering valuable strategies for managing stress, setting boundaries, and finding moments of connection.

Top 3 reasons to listen to the entire episode:

1. Understand the challenges of masking or unmasking publicly and at holiday events, as well as the importance of setting boundaries to protect one's energy and sensory needs during gatherings.
2. Identify strategies for managing stress and anxiety during the holiday season, including ways to do self-care and prioritize value-based activities. 
3. Learn how to release expectations, find compromise, and create moments of joy and connection that result in more meaningful personal experiences in cross-neurotype relationships and prioritize well-being for every neurotype.

We all have different likes and dislikes, as well as perceptions and experiences, so do your best to release any expectations around how you should experience and feel about the holiday season, and try to create an environment and experience that honors your unique wants and needs. 

Resources:

One of Dr. Neff’s first blog posts ever written was on navigating their first holiday season after the discovery that they were Autistic, so if you want some more Autistic holiday musings here you go:

• Autism and the Holidays: Reflections: neurodivergentinsights.com/blog/neurodivergent-holiday-reflections

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A Thanks to Our Sponsor, Gifted Learning Lab!

✨ Gifted Learning Lab:

We would love to thank Gifted Learning Lab for sponsoring this episode.

If you’re raising a bright neurodivergent kid and you’d like to feel more confident and less stressed as a parent, you can get free parenting resources and supportive coaching from The Gifted Learning Lab and Dr. Danika Maddocks. The Gifted Learning Lab is designed for parents of emotionally intense or sensitive gifted and twice-exceptional kids and teens, including those who are autistic, PDAers, ADHDers, or otherwise neurodivergent. 

Danika is a former gifted kid and a late-identified autistic who combines intuition, compassion, and humor with practical strategies that help you build a calmer and more connected family life. She has supported twice-exceptional kids and families for over a dozen years as a teacher, therapist, award-winning researcher, and parent coach. 

If you’ve tried other parenting advice without success, The Gifted Learning Lab might be right for you - all the ideas and strategies are tailored to the strengths, needs, and characteristics of intense gifted and twice-exceptional kids. Danika helps you understand your kid’s intensity from the inside out so you can connect with your child during tough moments and know what they need to thrive. 

You’ll learn to work with your child’s brain and you’ll feel more confident letting go of traditional parenting approaches that aren’t a good fit for your child or yourself. If you’re also neurodivergent yourself, you can use many of the strategies and tools from The Gifted Learning Lab to bring more ease and compassion to your own life too.

Right now, The Gifted Learning Lab is offering a free email mini course to help you defuse and prevent power struggles with your gifted or twice-exceptional kid - in an affirming, supportive way. If you feel stuck in endless negotiations or arguments, check out the free power struggles mini course at www.giftedlearninglab.com/power.

Mentioned in this episode:

Hurricane Relief for WNC communities

This money will go to nonprofits who are boots on the ground. It will go to struggling individuals who do not have enough money for gas to get out, or who do not have enough money to provide their basic needs right now. Donate to Patrick's GoFundMe to help provide urgent aid for WNC communities affected by Hurricane Helene. Visit: atppod.com/wnc