SEND Parenting Podcast

Dr. Olivia Kessel
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Welcome to the Send Parenting Podcast. I'm your neurodiverse host, Dr Olivia Kessel, and, more importantly, I am a mother to my wonderfully neurodivergent daughter, Alexandra, who really inspired this podcast. As a veteran in navigating the world of neurodiversity, I have uncovered a wealth of misinformation, alongside many answers and solutions that were never taught to me in medical school or in any of the parenting handbooks.Each week on this podcast, I will be bringing the experts to your ears to empower you on your parenting crusade. 

  1. EP 137: The broken UK SEND system with Rebecca Harrison, founder of SEN Home Ed Circle

    -20 H

    EP 137: The broken UK SEND system with Rebecca Harrison, founder of SEN Home Ed Circle

    The postcode lottery in UK's SEND system isn't just frustrating—it's devastating families. This raw, eye-opening conversation with Rebecca Harrison reveals the shocking truth about educational inequality across neighboring boroughs. Rebecca brings a uniquely powerful perspective as both a former SENCO and mother to two neurodivergent children. Despite her professional background and intimate understanding of the educational system, she's been unable to secure appropriate schooling for her autistic son—all because of where they live. While her local authority offers minimal provision through converted village halls and makeshift attachments to mainstream schools, just a mile away in neighboring boroughs, dedicated autism schools and comprehensive support services exist. The conversation exposes the painful reality many families face: diagnosis delays stretching years, mainstream schools excluding children after mere weeks, and the agonizing choice between relocating or accepting inadequate support. Rebecca shares her discovery of hidden NHS diagnostic quotas that arbitrarily limit autism diagnoses per financial year and reveals how government "Safety Valve Agreements" incentivize local authorities to keep children in-borough at any cost—even when appropriate educational settings don't exist. Yet this isn't just a story of systemic failure. Rebecca has transformed her frustration into action by creating the SEND Home Ed Circle, an online community providing resources, lessons and support for families educating neurodivergent children at home. Her three powerful tips—never give up, recognize that neither you nor your child are broken, and "don't let the bastards get you down"—offer a rallying cry for parents fighting similar battles. Join our WhatsApp community to connect with parents who understand these struggles. Together, we can support each other through the challenges of raising neurodivergent children in a system that wasn't built for them. SEN Home Ed Website Link to Subscription Click to Join our private SEND Parenting WhatsAPP Community  www.sendparenting.com

    49 min
  2. EP 136: Education systems fail neurodivergent children with Julia Silver, founder of Qualified Tutor

    9 SEPT.

    EP 136: Education systems fail neurodivergent children with Julia Silver, founder of Qualified Tutor

    Education systems often fail neurodivergent children, but the right support can transform their learning journey. Julia Silver, founder of Qualified Tutors and mother to five neurodivergent children, shares how tutoring can rebuild confidence and love of learning for children struggling in traditional education. • Understanding that schools can't meet every child's needs – even with the most dedicated teachers • How tutoring offers personalized support that goes to where the student is • The importance of rehabilitation periods when children are excluded from school • Finding tutors who build relationships with both parents and children • Seeing neurodivergent children as teaching us to rethink our assumptions about education • Recognizing that academic success doesn't equal life success • The value of offering children autonomy rather than demanding compliance • Teaching executive functioning skills to help children feel in control • Statistics showing 25% of UK children now use tutors, yet the profession remains unregulated • Research evidence that tutoring creates five months of academic progress • Building a child's ability to connect effort with attainment • How AI might complement human teaching for truly personalised learning • The importance of parents accepting they can't do it all Click here   Julia Silver Qualified Tutor  'Love Tutoring, Be the Tutor Your Student Needs' Click here to download our free 30-Day Better Sleep Starter Guide   Helping you to support your neurodiverse child's sleep challenges. Though designed with ADHD in mind, the strategies benefit all neurodiverse children. Click to Join our private SEND Parenting WhatsApp Community. www.sendparenting.com

    55 min
  3. EP 135: ADHD affecting emotions - a girl's story

    26 AOÛT

    EP 135: ADHD affecting emotions - a girl's story

    Download your free Guide by clicking here: The Zones of Regulation: A Parent's Guide to Understanding Big Emotions Ever felt like your child's emotions are too big for their body? In this tender final episode of our Alexandra ADHD En Masse series, my 13-year-old daughter Alexandra opens her heart about one of the most challenging aspects of living with ADHD – emotional regulation and friendship struggles. With remarkable self-awareness, Alexandra shares how overwhelming emotions can suddenly explode, leaving her feeling misunderstood and sometimes excluded from friendship groups. "They might judge you... and then you're excluded because they think you lose it too often or cry too much," she explains, capturing what so many neurodivergent children experience but struggle to articulate. The breakthrough came through learning the Zones of Regulation – a colour-coded emotional framework that Alexandra describes in detail. This simple but powerful tool transformed her ability to communicate feelings before reaching crisis point. Where once she would hide behind trees at school, unable to express her distress, she can now identify which "zone" she's in and get appropriate support. We explore practical de-escalation strategies that work at home, from creating calming spaces to keeping a family list of regulation techniques. Alexandra also shares her experience with medication adjustments, school friendship groups, and the anxiety-excitement mix of transitioning to a new school environment. Her insights reveal how interconnected emotional regulation, social acceptance, and academic success truly are for children with ADHD. Whether you're a parent seeking understanding, an educator looking for classroom strategies, or someone navigating neurodiversity yourself, Alexandra's voice offers both validation and hope. Download our free Zones of Regulation guide through the link in our show notes and join our community where neurodiversity is embraced, not merely accommodated. Click here to join our private free SEND Parenting WhatsApp community www.sendparenting.com

    14 min
  4. EP 134: ADHD and sleep struggles

    19 AOÛT

    EP 134: ADHD and sleep struggles

    Click here for the ADHD Sleep Guide - 30 days to better sleep Sleep deprivation became our unwelcome companion for eleven long years. My daughter Alexandra would lie awake for hours, plagued by anxious thoughts that seemed to intensify as darkness fell. When sleep finally came, it was fragmented – she'd wake repeatedly, finding her way to my bed most nights seeking reassurance. For families navigating ADHD, this scenario might sound painfully familiar. In this deeply personal conversation, Alexandra courageously shares what those nights felt like from her perspective: "Sleep was like a nightmare." She describes overwhelming anxiety that made sleepovers impossible, prevented me from having evenings out, and left us both perpetually exhausted. We candidly discuss how sleep deprivation amplified our challenges, leading to what Alexandra perfectly describes as "explosion time" – when our emotional regulation skills would crumble under the weight of fatigue. The turning point in our journey came unexpectedly. After trying countless strategies, from elaborate bedtime routines to consultations with sleep specialists, we finally found our answer in prescription melatonin. Alexandra describes the transformation as nothing short of miraculous – from hours of bedtime struggles to falling asleep within minutes. We explore the complementary approaches that support her sleep hygiene now, including technology boundaries, weighted blankets, meditation, and Emotional Freedom Technique for anxiety. Most touchingly, Alexandra shares how quality sleep has expanded her world, enabling her to manage overnight stays and wake feeling "recharged and ready for the day." Whether you're a parent, educator, or healthcare provider supporting a child with ADHD, this conversation offers both practical strategies and genuine hope. Download our free sleep resource sheet at sendparenting.com/sleep to begin implementing these life-changing techniques today. Because when sleep improves, everything else follows. Click here for the ADHD Sleep Guide - 30 days to better sleep www.sendparenting.com

    14 min
  5. ADHD Medication: a teen's experience

    12 AOÛT

    ADHD Medication: a teen's experience

    FREE GUIDE: ADHD Medication Made Simple 💊 Understand how ADHD medication works, the different options available, and how to talk to your child about it with confidence. 👉 Download your free guide here What's it really like to take ADHD medication as a teenager? Forget the clinical explanations—today my daughter Alexandra bravely takes us behind the curtain of her medication journey with refreshing honesty that only a young person living the experience can provide. The journey begins with Alexandra's genuine fear: "I can't take a pill. What if it gets stuck in my throat?" Using Tic Tacs as practice pills, we found our way through that first obstacle together. But the real challenges emerged during those initial ten days—a period of emotional turbulence that nearly led me to discontinue the medication altogether. This rarely-discussed "worse before better" phase is something every parent should know about before starting this journey. Alexandra's description of life before and after medication is striking in its clarity. Homework sessions transformed from battles requiring constant supervision to independent work. Morning routines shifted from chaotic to manageable. Even navigating school medication schedules created unexpected social connections with other students taking similar treatments. When we accidentally missed a dose one morning and attempted homework, the stark contrast reminded us exactly why this intervention mattered so much. As Alexandra enters her teenage years, our medication journey continues to evolve. We recently transitioned from a stimulant to a non-stimulant medication to address emerging anxiety symptoms—a change bringing its own set of challenges and adjustments. Through it all, Alexandra's perspective remains clear: "It wouldn't help me at all," she says when asked about stopping medication, recognizing how treatment enables her to function at her best despite the adjustments required. Download our free comprehensive guide "ADHD Medication: The Top Things to Know When You're Considering It" at sendparenting.com/medication. Next week Alexandra returns to discuss another challenge affecting many with ADHD—sleep difficulties and how we've navigated that aspect of her neurodivergent journey. www.sendparenting.com

    19 min
  6. EP 132: Mother and Daughter Navigate ADHD Together

    6 AOÛT

    EP 132: Mother and Daughter Navigate ADHD Together

    FREE GUIDE for Parents of ADHD Girls 🎁 Discover the often-missed signs of ADHD in girls — so you can spot them early and get the right support. 👉 Download your free guide here Ever wondered what ADHD actually feels like from the inside? In this intimate first episode of our special summer series, I'm joined by my daughter Alexandra who courageously opens up about her experience living with ADHD before and after diagnosis. The morning battlefields we once faced will sound painfully familiar to many parents – shouted instructions, missed cues, and escalating frustration on both sides. Alexandra brilliantly articulates why seemingly simple tasks like "get ready for school" became impossible mountains to climb for her ADHD brain. "I would get distracted by my Alexa, my dog toys, even the slightest thing that made me out of place," she explains, painting a vivid picture of how environmental stimuli hijack attention. Her description of entering the "red zone" – those moments when emotions become uncontrollable storms – provides rare insight into emotional dysregulation that often accompanies ADHD. We explore how strategic supports from understanding teachers and breaking down instructions into manageable steps created turning points in Alexandra's journey. The transformation from our pre-diagnosis struggles to her current independence is nothing short of remarkable. Whether you're a parent suspecting your child might have ADHD, already navigating a diagnosis, or simply want to understand neurodivergent experiences better, this conversation offers both practical strategies and emotional resonance. Join us next week as we delve into Alexandra's experience with medication – the fears, questions and life-changing results that followed. And don't forget to download my free guide "The Five Most Misunderstood Signs of ADHD in Girls" through the link in the show notes! www.sendparenting.com

    19 min
  7. EP 131: Self-regulation for neurodivergent children with Nicola McAllister from The Regulated Child

    28 JUIL.

    EP 131: Self-regulation for neurodivergent children with Nicola McAllister from The Regulated Child

    What if your child's meltdowns or shutdowns aren't actually about behavior, but biology?  Nicola McAllister, education consultant with 30+ years of experience and mother to an autistic son, reveals the science behind self-regulation that transforms how we support our neurodivergent children. Through her compassionate lens, we discover that what looks like "difficult behavior" is actually a stress response—our children's bodies responding to perceived threats with the only tools they currently have available. The conversation unveils Nicola's brilliant "brain house" model, explaining how our children's brains develop from the bottom up, and how stress can trap them in the "basement" of survival responses. When traditional parenting approaches fail, it's because we're trying to reason with a child who physiologically cannot access their reasoning brain in that moment. Instead, Nicola guides us through her self-regulation framework: Goal, Predict, Plan, Do, Review—a collaborative approach that builds executive function skills through practice rather than punishment. Through vivid real-world examples, including her son's struggle with a Mario t-shirt at a social club, she demonstrates how validating our children's concerns and building plans together creates pathways to success. Perhaps most powerfully, she introduces the "Regulate, Relate, Reason" approach—understanding that our children need to feel calm before they can connect, and only then can they reason. This shifts our parenting from reactive to intentional, what Nicola calls "premiership parenting"—requiring us to be several steps ahead, carefully considering our words and approaches. Whether you're struggling with morning routines, hygiene battles, or emotional outbursts, this episode provides both the understanding and practical tools to build meaningful connections with your child. Listen now and transform your approach to supporting your child's developing nervous system. Nicole Mcallister Website:  The Regulated Child Click here to join our Private SEND Parenting WhatsApp Community www.sendparenting.com

    59 min
  8. EP 130: Why are neurodiverse girls being ignored with Sara Donnelly, former headteacher

    21 JUIL.

    EP 130: Why are neurodiverse girls being ignored with Sara Donnelly, former headteacher

    Sara Donnelly, a head teacher of 14 years, shares why she's leaving education leadership after witnessing the system repeatedly fail neurodivergent children, in particular, girls. We also delve into why: • Girls with neurodiversity are often missed because they present differently than the stereotypical profile • Signs to watch for in autistic girls include subtle stimming, hypervigilance, and struggling to maintain (not make) friendships • Many professionals still believe myths like "she can't be autistic because she makes eye contact" or "she has friends" • Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA) should be addressed by fixing the environment, not the child • Creative solutions like normalising ear defenders for everyone can help neurodivergent children without singling them out • The education system needs radical reform: smaller class sizes, less testing, and personalized learning Join our private WhatsApp community to connect with other parents navigating their neurodiverse journey. www.sendparenting.com

    54 min
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À propos

Welcome to the Send Parenting Podcast. I'm your neurodiverse host, Dr Olivia Kessel, and, more importantly, I am a mother to my wonderfully neurodivergent daughter, Alexandra, who really inspired this podcast. As a veteran in navigating the world of neurodiversity, I have uncovered a wealth of misinformation, alongside many answers and solutions that were never taught to me in medical school or in any of the parenting handbooks.Each week on this podcast, I will be bringing the experts to your ears to empower you on your parenting crusade. 

Informations

  • Création
    Dr. Olivia Kessel
  • Années d’activité
    2022 - 2025
  • Épisodes
    138
  • Classification
    Tous publics
  • Copyright
    © 2025 SEND Parenting Podcast
  • Site web de l’émission
    SEND Parenting Podcast

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