In this episode, Donna Brendel shares her thoughts on various topics, including her writing journey, her love for nature and outdoor activities, and the concept of the mycelial network. She also discusses her memoir and the importance of self-care. Donna then explores the book 'The Reason I Jump' by Naoki Higashida and highlights the connection between nature and autistic health. She emphasizes the need for understanding and giving autistic individuals the time and space to explore new things. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/donna-brendel/message ..read more

After a long break since Season 2 I'm ready to launch Season 3 of I Should Say That Out Loud and announce my first memoir Autistic Revelations: Body Edition - What My Head-to-Toe Surgeries Have Taught Me About Life and Autism. I will be sharing excerpts from my book this season as well as inviting guests to share about the fascinating way that autism affects our bodies. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/donna-brendel/message ..read more

Have you ever struggled in the workplace? I had a marvelous time interviewing my first guest this season, Genie Love, who is a Neurodiversity Coach for businesses, organizations and individuals. The topics we discussed, including the three pillars of her program, especially mindfulness, as well as other topics, are beneficial for anyone with autism, ADHD and/or ADD. And I think even neurotypical folks will find her advice helpful as well. I wish I had had Genie along for my recent discussions of my autism diagnosis in my workplace, which as you will hear in this discussion had many speed bumps ..read more

What do I mean when I say, "I Should Say That Out Loud"? what exactly should I say out loud? This is the topic of this month's theme. And this week I talk about things I believe we should say to protect ourselves. It's difficult for me and for many people with autism to say certain things that are needed to be said in order to protect ourselves. I only learned how to stand up for myself as I raised my children. My love for them gave me the courage and boldness to stand up for them. And then as I realized that I'm worthy of loving myself as much as I love my children, I finally found the coura ..read more

Happy April! I'm so pleased to finally be able to join in on the celebration of Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month after some poorly timed technical difficulties. Let's dive right in to this month's theme, and this week's topic. What do I mean when I say, "I Should Say That Out Loud"? what exactly should I say out loud? This is the topic of this month's theme. And to start off, I believe we should say nice things, for many reasons. Yes, I believe that we should all say nice things out loud. This is a beneficial practice not only for others, but for ourselves as well. But what I learned thro ..read more

This week I finish up unpacking all the many ways that autism affects me on a daily basis. I talk about things like not knowing how to dress properly for certain events, fidgeting, adjusting my clothes, adjusting myself in a chair, taking a long time to transition between events, forgetting what I'm shopping for if I don't make a list, and more. I've already thought of additional things to add to the list that I forgot about, and I'm sure I will continue to think of more, because autism has so many effects, and it takes a lot of thought process to even recognize all of them when it's such a se ..read more

When a friend asked me recently how autism affects me on a daily basis I knew it wasn't a simple or quick answer.  I needed time to think about it and pay attention to daily life for a while to really wrap my head around all the many ways I'm affected by autism every day and be able to thoroughly answer that question.   This episode is part 1 of that answer, which was much too long to post in a single episode.  Even to list the ways autism affects me in a simple bullet point list wouldn't do them justice.  They take explanation just to understand what I mean by them.   ..read more

This is the second most difficult episode for me, after episode 4.  I left the emotion in again to be authentic and show how remembering trauma can affect someone.  There's nothing graphic in this episode, but it may possibly trigger others to hear my story. I recall emotionally abusive treatment I received from my band director, which is common for people with autism to experience from any range of people.  I would encourage you to watch Orion Kelly's video on "Mate Crime: Why Autistic People Are Targeted and How to Stop It." I had no concept of emotional abuse until fairly rec ..read more

Reading the book "Population One" by Tyler McNamer has brought back a flood of memories from my high school days. I knew I was awkward, but I had no idea about my autism at that time.  So while it's fresh on my brain, I wanted to talk about those days.  It turns out that most of my high school memories surround my time in band and playing the trombone. Don't worry, I've never been to band camp!    But there are three distinct chunks of my high school band days that I recall, which also demonstrate my autistic struggles: 1) lunchtime and social awkwardness vs. practicing my ..read more

What a coincidence that tomorrow is Valentine's Day, as this episode is all about a high school crush, my super secret high school crush!   High school crushes can be filled with all sorts of emotions and memories.  My HS crush, which started back in middle school band, was certainly not short on emotions and embarrassing moments, for me!   Looking back, now that I've been diagnosed with autism, I can see many of the ways I went wrong in my crush, mainly in schemes that I kept to myself in my head instead of sharing with a trusted adult to gain some much needed wisdom.  &nb ..read more