TPP 372: Dr. Megan Anna Neff on Self-Care for Autistic People

I’ve done one episode just about self-care for this show — it’s a solocast from five years ago where I shared twelve strategies and ideas for creating a sustainable, doable self-care practice. I’ll have a link to that in the show notes page for this episode.

Today’s episode is about self-care, too, but the focus is on self-care for autistic people, and joining me is return guest Dr. Megan Anna Neff of Neurodivergent Insights. Megan Anna has just published a brand new book called Self-Care for Autistic People: 100+ Ways to Recharge, De-Stress, and Unmask! which she wrote to help autistic people accept themselves, destigmatize autism, find community, and take care of physical and mental health.

I really enjoyed going inside this book because, as we discuss, self-care is so much more than what it appears to be on the surface. Megan Anna considers self-care to be a collective effort that includes the well-being of the community, a framework that really resonated with me. So we talk about that, along with other ideas from Megan Anna’s book, including how internalized ableism can hinder self-care, considerations for navigating self-care for individuals with PDA, and insights into co-regulation, sensory considerations, and how advocacy and accommodations in the workplace can also be forms of self-care.

About Dr. Megan Anna Neff

Dr. Megan Anna Neff (she/they) is a neurodivergent Clinical Psychologist and founder of Neurodivergent Insights where she creates education and wellness resources for neurodivergent adults. Additionally, she is co-host of the Divergent Conversations podcast.

As a late-diagnosed AuDHDer (Autistic ADHD), Dr. Neff applies their lived experiences from a cross-neurotype marriage and parenting neurodivergent children to their professional focus. They are committed to broadening the mental health field's understanding of autism and ADHD beyond traditional stereotypes. This personal-professional blend enriches their work and advocacy within neurodiversity.

Dr. Neff is the author of Self-Care for Autistic People and a forthcoming book on Autistic Burnout. Additionally, she has published in several peer-reviewed journals on topics ranging from neurodivergence, place attachment, relational psychoanalysis, social psychology, and integration of spirituality into psychotherapy.

Passionate about distilling complex research into visually accessible formats, she translates research into visual pixels which you can find on her website, Instagram, and digital workbooks. Additionally, Dr. Neff is passionate about community building and creating digital communities by and for neurodivergent individuals.

Things you'll learn from this episode

• Why self-care should be approached with self-attunement and an understanding of one's own needs
• Why self-care is a collective effort that includes the well-being of the community
• How internalized ableism can hinder self-care and why it’s important to address it
• Ideas for navigating self-care for individuals with PDA regarding autonomy, co-regulation, and sensory considerations
• Ways to practice self-care in the workplace, including self-disclosure, documentation, and setting realistic expectations

Resources mentioned for Self-Care for Autistic People

• Dr. Megan Anna Neff’s website
• Self-Care For Autistic People by Dr. Megan Anna Neff
• * A special bonus offer for Tilt Parenting community *
• Divergent Conversations Podcast
• Neurodivergent Insights on Instagram
• Neurodivergent Insights on Facebook
• Dr. Megan Anna Neff on LinkedIn
• Dr. Megan Anna Neff’s Link in Bio
• Dr. Megan Anna Neff on Diagnoses and Misdiagnoses (Tilt Parenting Podcast)
• Sarah Wayland
• Is This Autism? A Guide for Clinicians and Everyone Else by Dr. Donna Henderson and Dr. Sarah Wayland

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