Traveling with an autistic child can be amazing. It can also leave you wondering whether you've completely lost your mind.

Especially when you're about to put your seven-year-old on a snorkeling boat in the ocean. Or strap her into a helicopter.

Yes. A HELICOPTER.

Carrie recently took Zoe to Maui, and this wasn't exactly a sit-on-the-beach-and-relax kind of vacation.

Zoe loves water. Pools, lakes, you name it. But snorkeling in the ocean with an autistic child? That's an entirely different level.

Carrie was worried about saltwater, sharks, new surroundings, and if the whole adventure would end in a meltdown.

Turns out, Zoe had ideas of her own.

She wasn't interested in wearing flippers. Her snorkel ended up on her forehead. But once she discovered she could look underwater and see fish (hi, Nemo!), a whole new world opened up.

And Carrie? Still thinking about sharks. The whole trip.

Then there was the helicopter ride. What if the noise was too much for Zoe? And what if she threw the toothbrush she was holding at the pilot? (Yes, a toothbrush. Don’t ask.)

We also talk about knowing when to call it a day, and why sometimes the best thing parents can do is stop and take the win instead of pushing for more.

Carrie shares what worked for Zoe, what she worried about, what surprised her, and why she feels these experiences are worth trying when they're right for your child.

If you've ever wondered what it's really like traveling with a child with autism, especially when you're introducing new activities, dealing with sensory overload, or wondering how your child might react, come hang out with us.

We can't promise there won't be sharks.

But at least nobody threw a toothbrush at the helicopter pilot.

Because autism can be serious without every conversation about it having to be.

Come hang out with us:
Instagram: @autismrewrittenshow
YouTube: Autism Rewritten
🎧 Listen & follow wherever you get your podcasts

So... ABA therapy for children with autism. People have feelings.

When Zoe was diagnosed with autism, Carrie was approved for 40 hours a week of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy in their home.

Forty. Hours.

That's basically a full-time job happening in your living room.

Carrie tried two different ABA companies. The first experience was... not good. The second was much better. Eventually, though, she decided traditional ABA services weren't the right fit for Zoe.

So what happened?

That's what we're talking about this week.

We also talk about the people who can suddenly become regular fixtures in your house, including BCBAs and RBTs.

Carrie's second BCBA worked with them through Zoom but never actually met Zoe in person, which gets us talking about how much you can really see and understand through a screen.

And we all know Zoom isn't exactly an accurate representation of reality.

Nice top? Check.
Shorts under the table? Maybe.
Cat hair on your socks? Sure.

But underneath the ridiculousness is a question a lot of parents probably ask themselves about autism therapy:

Is this actually helping my child?

We talk about why Carrie prefers working on skills with Zoe in everyday life, including restaurants, grocery stores, airports and all the other places where things don't happen according to a perfectly controlled therapy plan.

She also explains why she refused to use candy as a reward during potty training, even when ABA providers wanted her to.

And because this is Zoe we're talking about, we also have a birthday restaurant story involving extreme happiness, multiple walks, a couple of screams and some startled diners.

She's having a GREAT time, people. Chillax.

This isn't an “ABA is good” or “ABA is bad” episode. It's Carrie sharing what ABA therapy for her autistic child actually looked like, what worked, what didn't, why one ABA company was much better than another, and why she eventually decided to quit using traditional ABA services.

If you're considering ABA therapy for autism, already have an ABA provider coming into your home, or have found yourself wondering “Will it help?”, come hang out with us.

Because autism can be serious without every conversation about it having to be.

QUICK ABA GLOSSARY
ABA: Applied Behavior Analysis
BCBA: Board Certified Behavior Analyst
RBT: Registered Behavior Technician

Come hang out with us:
Instagram: @autismrewrittenshow
YouTube: Autism Rewritten
🎧 Listen & follow wherever you get your podcasts

If your autistic child isn't talking, how long is speech therapy supposed to take before you actually see progress?

When Zoe was first approved for speech therapy once a week for seven months, Carrie genuinely thought that meant they'd do the therapy, Zoe would start talking in that timeframe, and they could check that off the list.

Yeah. That's not quite how it went.

Carrie also gets into something every autism parent eventually figures out: a good therapy day and a productive therapy day aren't always the same thing. Sometimes Zoe made it through the whole session. Sometimes 15 minutes was enough and it was time to go.

So how do you know if speech therapy is actually working?

That's where expectations get tricky. Progress for a nonverbal autistic child doesn't always show up as suddenly talking in sentences. Sometimes it's a word. A request. A song used to communicate. Or sometimes it's realizing your child has been finding ways to tell you things all along. And then, one day, you look back and realize just how much has changed.

So if you're searching for answers about speech therapy for autism, wondering whether speech therapy can help a nonverbal autistic child, trying to figure out how long speech therapy takes, or quietly asking yourself “Is this even working?”... come hang out with us.

We're talking about what speech therapy really looked like for Zoe, the expectations versus the reality, and how she went from nonverbal to an unreliable speaker.

We also somehow end up discussing whether Bubbles the cat is the reincarnation of Carrie's mom. As one does.

Because autism can be serious without every conversation about it having to be.

🎧 Next episode: ABA therapy. And yes, we know. People have feelings. 😬