I am not ashamed to admit this, as I'm sure there are parents out there that feel the same way and may feel that it is shameful to say this, but there are times I wished my son didn't have autism. Phew. There, I said it and I welcome the condemnation I deserve... I could … Continue reading Don’t Panic – Tips for Parenting a Child with Special Needs
The Inside
The Autism Uprising – The Revolution is at Hand…
I have become one of those parents who are trying to change the world to a more understanding place because of my son. For those parents of children with autism around the world, I have also taken up arms and I'm willing to lead the fight against the insensitivity of the neurotypical homo sapiens (now … Continue reading The Autism Uprising – The Revolution is at Hand…
Psycho-Social Education – Forget Numbers
I teach. That's what I am trained to do. But is that all there is? Is that all teachers do, impart knowledge? Well, no it isn't. We do so much more, but we are simply paid to teach. I'm not going to wax lyrical about the horrors of the profession. Others have done so … Continue reading Psycho-Social Education – Forget Numbers
The Institutionalisation of SEN Learners.
A few months ago, I had the opportunity to be invited to a council meeting to discuss using wellbeing models to lower exclusion rates in Hackney schools. As a staunch supporter of structured wellbeing models, I was particularly interested in the council's plans on implementation and understanding what their proposed model would look like. … Continue reading The Institutionalisation of SEN Learners.
A Friend in Deed…
Friendship is a tricky thing. Webster defines a friend as 'a person who has a strong liking for and trust in another person', which is a fair description. However, how many of you take the time to really reflect on what a friendship is? There are elements missing from Webster's definition (individuals should add … Continue reading A Friend in Deed…
Busy Lives
It's been a long time since I've put fingertip to keyboard for the whole blog thing. (WordPress just told me it's been 126 days.. Yikes. Ed.) I keep meaning to, but I've been way too busy. Well not really. When I coach people who tell me they are way too busy to make a positive … Continue reading Busy Lives
Pain of the Emotions
Living with the pain of depression
The Power of Power
My favourite comic when I was younger (ahem, a couple of years ago... Ed) was Spider-Man. I was, and still am, a big fan of his. The reason I liked him so much was he reminded me a lot of myself. I was a cocky little bastard growing up and often bit off more than … Continue reading The Power of Power
The Fuck It Principle (FIP)
"God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." Reinhold Niebuhr Firstly, I liked to apologise for the profanity. It is not my usual mode of writing, but this is a principle I have invested a lot … Continue reading The Fuck It Principle (FIP)
Being Normal
"I sometimes feel broken, as if someone dropped me and then trampled on the pieces." We live in absolutes and abstracts. If I said the word 'chair', we are almost guaranteed to share the same mental image. But if I said a 'beautiful chair' there is a great possibility that we have different mental images … Continue reading Being Normal
Small Steps to being a Giant
Small means insignificant, mediocre, unnoticed, inadequate, inconsequential, inconsiderable, insufficient, limited, little, meager, minuscule, minute, modest, narrow, paltry, petite, petty, pitiful, poor, puny, short, runt, stunted, toy, trifling, trivial, unpretentious, wee, young. You may identify with some of these words, or even all of them, but it's not as unnatural as you think to feel this … Continue reading Small Steps to being a Giant
Religion and the Healthy Mind
"There can be no happiness if the things we believe in are different from the things we do" Freya Stark I'm not a religious man. I don't believe there is an all knowing power watching me and listening to my whims, moans or demands. I don't have anything against organised religion, in fact I've studied … Continue reading Religion and the Healthy Mind
Be Curious
'You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore', Christopher Columbus The 10th October is Mental Health Awareness Day and as promised for the next five weeks I'm going to be posting about one of the five components of promoting good mental health. This week I'm going … Continue reading Be Curious
Challenge Yourself and Rethink Mental Health
I work in an environment where we deal with the mentally ill all the time. One of the reasons I am studying counselling is because I'm faced with students with mental health issues on an alarmingly regular basis. It is alarming, not because I don't expect or accept that the mentally ill (by the way … Continue reading Challenge Yourself and Rethink Mental Health
Five Ways to Good Mental Health
I don't like the term mental health. We are all so diverse in our thinking how are we to calculate what is good or bad mental health. I like to consider myself as neurodiverse, that I am diverse in the way my brain works as compared to someone else. This doesn't mean that I am … Continue reading Five Ways to Good Mental Health
Wings of Change
Change can be very traumatic. It can be a grieving process, where we mourn the loss of an old way of life, for which we know of no other alternative. Even when we are excited about something changing in our lives, marriage, children or buying a house, that excitment is tinged with apprehension and anxiety. … Continue reading Wings of Change
The Yellow Brick Road
Since I recently wrote about limiting beliefs and the Wizard of Oz, I thought it appropriate to extend the metaphor a tad and talk about why the Yellow Brick Road is so important. Not that I've ever seen or walked on a road that is literally yellow myself, or believe there is a likelihood that you … Continue reading The Yellow Brick Road
The Edge of Being
Many of us wear lead boots. We drag our feet through life and every step is a burden. As we look around, when we can lift our eyes from our heavy steps, we often wonder, ‘How did I get here?’. At these points we may begin to realise that this is an endless, unforgiving road … Continue reading The Edge of Being
Tips for dealing with Meltdowns
One of the most enduring aspects of having a child with autism, especially a child who is non-verbal, is the meltdowns. For those parents of neurotypical children, a meltdown is not a tantrum. A tantrum is an attempt to secure dominance, in the most embarrassing situations. You can almost reason with the brat, er um, … Continue reading Tips for dealing with Meltdowns
3 Simple steps to securing the right SEND support for your child.
Last week the DfE released a document to help young people with SEND complain about their support services. Although I’m not a fan of the pre-school design of the document, I commend the DfE for publishing this. Young people are too reliant on their local authorities, schools, colleges and universities to do the right thing. … Continue reading 3 Simple steps to securing the right SEND support for your child.
Rise of The Quarter…
Stereotypes have their roots in the survival instincts of our ancestors. If you saw a big cat with massive fangs it was a safe bet if it invited you to dinner you'd be its main course. Stereotypes helped our fledgling ancestors stay alive and when we began to make war on each other, they let … Continue reading Rise of The Quarter…
That Sinking Feeling
I feel the signs coming on. My smiles are becoming more fake. I don’t seem to take joy in the things that kept me happy. I am not sleeping. I have lost my appetite. I find human interaction cumbersome and annoying. I find myself staring blankly at nothing at all. Things I could forgive are … Continue reading That Sinking Feeling
The Inside Me 