DAY 1 (REPRISE!!)

What is Low Demand Parenting?

AMANDA DIEKMAN

Low demand parenting is a unique parenting method to drop demands and align expectations to connect with your struggling child. In this talk, your host Amanda Diekman has a conversation with her friend and fellow advocate Shoshana Friedman about all things low demand.

Key Points:

• Low demand parenting involves transitioning from high demand to a more accepting and less expectation-driven approach.
• It emphasizes radical acceptance and the release of rigid expectations for both parents and children.
• The approach sees parenting as a spiritual journey, focusing on healing and self-acceptance.
• Low demand parenting is about creating a safe and supportive environment where children are accepted for who they are, not just for their behaviors.
• It acknowledges that this approach may be easier for those with privilege, but it encourages everyone to find their own path and make small changes toward radical acceptance.

MEET AMANDA

Amanda Diekman is a PDA autistic adult, parent coach, and author. Amanda became a leading voice in the movement for low demand parenting practices, with her book Low Demand Parenting, published July 2023. Amanda runs a successful coaching practice for parents of neurodivergent children including online courses and a vibrant membership community. She is an ordained presbyterian pastor and lives with her husband and three neurodivergent children in an intentional community in Durham, NC.

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MEET SHOSHANA

Rabbi Shoshana Meira Friedman is a late-diagnosed Autistic coach, writer, activist, and passionate creative. After a career Jewish congregations and organizations, she pivoted to caring for her PDA child full time, and has since launched a private coaching practice that serves parents of Autistic children as well as late-diagnosed Autistic adults. A celebrated public speaker, advocate, and writer, Rabbi Shoshana's essays have been published in many venues including The New York Times, Tablet Magazine, and WBUR's Cognoscenti, as well as several anthologies. Her first picture book, The Tide Is Rising, So Are We: A Climate Movement Anthem is forthcoming (Beaming Books, 2025). She was ordained by Hebrew College, and is an alumna of the Wexner Graduate Fellowship, JOIN for Justice.

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Navigating Disability & Parenthood 

ALESHA THOMAS

Alesha Thomas, founder of the Adaptive Parent Project, discusses her journey as a parent with cerebral palsy raising a neurodivergent son. Alesha's nonprofit began as a YouTube channel to share adaptive parenting techniques, addressing the lack of resources for parents with disabilities. Despite facing ableism, Alesha's determination led to winning grants and partnerships to expand her advocacy. 

Key Points:

• Alesha emphasizes the importance of community and connection for parents, especially those with disabilities, to share experiences and support each other.
• She highlights the need for inclusivity and understanding from non-disabled parents, encouraging them to approach disabled parents for friendship and support.
• Alesha's favorite resources include books like "We Got This" by Eliza Hull and "Sitting Pretty" by Rebecca Taussig, which offer insight and support for parents with disabilities.

MEET ALESHA

Alesha Thomas is the founder and CEO of Adaptive Parent Project (APP), a 501 (c)(3) dedicated to empowering parents with disabilities. Alesha has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair is a full-time wheelchair user. She has a five year old son who is neurodivergent. Following the birth of her son in 2019 she could not find many resources as a parent with a disability, so she set out to create the community she was looking for.

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Unpacking Autistic Burnout 

AMELIA NAGOSKI

Join Amanda Diekman in conversation with Amelia Nagoski as they dive into the topic of autistic burnout. Discover how external social pressures impact individuals at a personal level, altering their physical well-being. Amelia shares her journey and insights from co-authoring the book "Burnout," shedding light on the unrealistic expectations imposed by society and the importance of radical acceptance. 

Key Points:

• External social pressures impact individuals at a personal level, altering their physical well-being.
• Radical acceptance is crucial in healing from burnout.
• There are unique challenges of neurodivergent burnout, including alexithymia.
• In your recovery, focus on strategies for on finding your own unique formula of restoration and self-care.

MEET AMELIA

Amelia Nagoski, D.M.A. (it stands for Doctorate of Musical Arts) is the co-author, with her sister Emily, of the New York Times bestselling Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle and the Burnout workbook. Her job is to run around waving her arms and making funny noises and generally doing whatever it takes to help singers get in touch with their internal experience.

She lives in New England with her husband and two rescue dogs.

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From "Fix It" to Acceptance

CAROLINA RAMIREZ

In this enlightening conversation, Carolina Ramirez explores her journey from a mindset of "fixing" her son's challenges to embracing acceptance and trust in her intuition. Carolina shares her experience of shifting away from fear-based approaches and over-functioning as a parent to realizing the power of attunement. She highlights the intersectionality of her identity as a neurodivergent Latina therapist and mom. Carolina's story is a testament to the transformative power of self-healing and acceptance in the parenting journey.

Key Points:

• Shift from fear-based fixing to acceptance and trust in intuition.
• Focus on attunement and trust in a child's needs rather than over-functioning as a parent.
• Childhood experiences and societal pressures deeply impact our intuition and ability to parent as our authentic self.
• Advocating for yourself and your child in a system that may not understand them is so valuable.
• Embrace challenges as opportunities for growth and transformation.

MEET CAROLINA

Carolina Ramirez, LCSW is a neurodivergent Latina licensed therapist and parent coach. She specializes in guiding mothers as they support their neurodivergent kids. On her parenting journey, she discovered that the best way to help her children was to embark on her own healing journey and get the support she needed in order to be there for her family. Her life's work embodies a commitment to facilitate and center the mother’s healing so they can embrace their child's unique gifts. Through her clinical expertise combined with personal insight, she is dedicated to fostering understanding and empowerment for neurodiverse families.

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Speaking the Language of the Nervous System

JACQUI JEBIAN GARCIA 

What's the best way to understand ourselves and the people around us on a deeper level?

Discover the nervous system, in the research of power-houses Deb Dana and Stephen Porges, along with the power of co-regulation in kids and adults in this enlightening 90 minute live interview. The discussion also covers the fascinating world of neuroplasticity and acceptance, offering a compelling narrative on growth, self-acceptance, and the balancing act between striving for neurological growth and embracing one's uniqueness.

MEET JACQUI

Jacqui is a Neurodivergent Mama of 2, Sensory and Somatic Trauma-informed Speech Language Pathologist and Social Emotional Coach. She is passionate about educating adults relative to the Neurodiversity-Affirming Paradigm Shift with Polyvagal Theory lenses, and how our communication style impacts the communication partner's nervous system by either triggering nervous system activation or by promoting regulation, safety, and connection. She gives parents, educators, coaches, and clinicians the tools to confidently create sensational connection with themselves and with their child/student/client in their very own space by becoming aware of their sensory and somatic profiles. 

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Reimagining Parenthood:

Embracing Our Vulnerable Parenting Stories

EMMA SVANBERG

Join Amanda Diekman and Emma Svanberg (the “Mumologist”) in an enriching conversation exploring the intersections of grief and parenting. Emma, a clinical psychologist specializing in attachment, shares insights into the challenges parents face amidst societal pressures and personal expectations. Discover how acknowledging grief can foster authenticity and resilience in parenting, paving the way for transformative growth and communal support.

Key Points:

• Acknowledge and honor the grief inherent in parenting, recognizing the disparity between idealized narratives and lived experiences.
• Seek community and support to navigate the challenges of parenting, fostering resilience and shared understanding.
• Practice self-compassion and authenticity, allowing space for emotional processing and growth amidst societal expectations.
• Explore collective action and advocacy to address systemic failures in parenting support and education, fostering meaningful change.

MEET EMMA

Dr Emma Svanberg is an award winning Clinical Psychologist, author of Parenting For Humans, founder of The Psychology Co-operative and co-founder of Make Birth Better CIC. Emma also facilitates a parenting community on Facebook called The Village – A Parenting Community For Humans.

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Navigating High Demand Cultures

IRIS CHEN

Join Iris Chen, founder of the Untigering movement, in a transformative conversation on unlearning authoritarian, fear-based parenting and staying connected to community and culture. Discover the nuances of detoxing from harmful parenting patterns and embracing a more compassionate approach. Gain insights into the challenges and rewards of this journey.

Key Points:

• Unlearning authoritarian parenting involves detoxing from fear-based, domineering approaches.
• Staying connected to community and culture while unlearning these patterns is crucial.
• The journey involves recognizing the impact of childhood wounds and societal expectations on parenting.
• Immediate obedience and harsh demands are replaced with understanding developmental stages and supporting children.
• Parenting is about creating a safe space for children, not preparing them for a harsh world.
• Setting boundaries with older generations involves respecting their views while staying firm in new parenting approaches.

MEET IRIS

Iris Chen is an author, peaceful parenting advocate, certified parent coach, and founder of the Untigering movement. She started out as an authoritarian tiger mom whose goal was to raise obedient and high-achieving children. When her attempts to control and mold them only led to constant tantrums and explosive conflict, she knew something needed to change… and it wasn’t her children! Through her writing and speaking, Iris now shares her journey of healing and shifting from power-over parenting to power-with parenting. Her mission is to inspire and support others to make the shift, especially among Asian communities. You can read more about her adventures in her book Untigering: Peaceful Parenting for the Deconstructing Tiger Parent and on her blog at untigering.com.

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