http://www.neuroinclusion.com.au/

Neuroinclusion, 1 Merino Entrance, Perth (2026)

23/03/2026

Here’s to the ones brave enough to break the cycle. ✨

The ones who looked at the patterns they inherited (the expectations, the masking, the survival strategies) and said this stops with me.

The ones doing the quiet, courageous work of unlearning.
Questioning who they were told to be.
Rewriting stories that were never truly theirs to carry.

Because becoming your authentic self isn’t always loud or celebrated.

Sometimes it looks like setting boundaries for the first time.
Sometimes it looks like resting instead of constantly proving your worth.
Sometimes it looks like finally allowing your needs to matter.

As occupational therapists, this is the work we’re privileged to witness every day.

Not “fixing” people.
Not forcing them to fit into systems that were never built for them.

But supporting people to reconnect with themselves, including
their needs, their strengths, their values, their ways of being in the world.

Because occupational therapy at its best isn’t about compliance or normalising people.
It’s about empowerment.
It’s about participation.
It’s about helping people build lives that actually feel authentic and meaningful to them.

So here’s to those courageous enough to end old patterns, craft new narratives, and step into the version of themselves that is truly theirs.

That kind of work doesn’t just change individuals.
It reshapes families, communities, and the future. 🌿✨

19/03/2026

Putting “Sensory Processing Disorder” in the bin 🗑️

This might be controversial, especially as an occupational therapist who was taught to use this term. But learning, reflecting, and evolving our practice matters. And in my view, this label is not neurodiversity-affirming.

Here are a few reasons why many practitioners are moving away from using it:

• It unnecessarily pathologises sensory differences that are a natural part of many neurotypes.
• It carries harmful stigma and outdated care approaches, often leading to attempts to “fix” or normalise sensory experiences rather than support regulation and autonomy.
• It doesn’t unlock funding or meaningful access to services in most systems.
• It can delay the right supports, because time is spent pursuing a label that doesn’t actually change what help someone receives.
• It can prevent or delay more accurate identification, particularly when sensory differences are part of someone’s autistic profile.
• It isn’t recognised in diagnostic manuals, meaning it sits outside formal diagnostic frameworks.

Sensory differences are real.
Support needs are real.

But labels that pathologise sensory experiences without improving understanding, inclusion, or access to support deserve critical reflection.

✨ As occupational therapists, our role should be supporting participation, regulation, autonomy, and inclusion. We don’t diagnose and we do not reinforcing outdated frameworks.

18/03/2026

Not all “Autism Acceptance” is actually inclusive.

Performative autism acceptance often centres the voices already heard, while multiply marginalised Autistic people continue to be excluded. True inclusion requires more than awareness posts and symbolic gestures. It requires systemic change.

Performative Autism Acceptance can look like:

• Reframing ableism rather than dismantling it
• Savourism instead of solidarity
• Acknowledgement without changing practices or behaviours
• Valuing professional knowledge and research over lived experience
• Failing to make space for the full diversity of Autistic identities, across culture, race, gender and community

Real autism acceptance means centering those most marginalised, redistributing power, and listening to Autistic voices that have historically been excluded.

Because inclusion that only works for some people… isn’t inclusion.

If we truly want a neuroinclusive world, we must ensure multiply marginalised Autistic people are not just visible, but valued, heard and leading the conversation.

✨

15/03/2026

IT’S TIME TO CELEBRATE INCLUSION 🌈🧠

With Neurodiversity Celebration Week and Harmony Week coming together, it feels like the perfect moment to pause and recognise the people who are shifting the world toward true inclusion.

Let’s celebrate those who are:
✨ Finally understanding themselves authentically
✨ Living proudly as people who diverge from the society and culture around them
✨ Embracing their neurodivergence and working with their strengths
✨ Advocating and educating others so all neurotypes are included
✨ Striving to validate, respect and learn from neurodivergent experiences
✨ Navigating intersectionality and the biases that still exist in our systems
✨ Curious, open-minded and willing to keep learning about neurodiversity

Inclusion isn’t created by one moment or one campaign.
It’s built by people choosing (every day) to listen, learn, unlearn, and create spaces where all neurotypes can exist authentically.

This week we celebrate the courage it takes to be yourself, the power of community, and the collective work of building a world where neurodiversity is understood, respected and valued.

Because inclusion benefits everyone 🌈🧠

🌏✨

15/03/2026

What are your go-to sensory tools? 💭

Sensory regulation is about supporting nervous systems. 🧠✨

As neurodivergent occupational therapists, we often recommend simple, accessible sensory tools that help people regulate, focus, and feel more comfortable in their bodies and environments.

Different sensory inputs can meet different needs throughout the day:

🦷 Something to Bite
Straws • Raw vegetables • Whistles • Chewlery • Crackers • Musical instruments • Frozen foods

🎧 Something to Hear
Speakers • Headphones • Music • Audiobooks • Musical instruments • Even rhythmic fidget sounds

✋ Something to Touch
Ice blocks • Fidget tools • Compression clothing • Rubber bands • Blankets • Jewellery • Exercise bands • Keyrings • Putty & play dough

👀 Something to See
Colour-coded organisation • Posters • Photos • Videos, TV shows & movies • Enjoying calming views

🌸 Something to Smell
Cologne • Perfume • Deodorant • Candles • Soap • Skincare • Food aromas

🏃 Something to Move
Ball games • Weights • Aquatic sports • Scooters • Playgrounds

✨ Sensory supports don’t have to be expensive or complicated.
Often the most effective tools are already part of everyday life.

Regulation looks different for every nervous system and that diversity is something to support, not suppress. ♾️

Save this post and share it to spread practical supports for sensory processing 🧠🌈

13/03/2026

How do you practice gratitude? 💭

Gratitude isn’t just the big, picture-perfect moments we’re told to notice.
Sometimes it’s quieter than that. Softer. More intentional.

Gratitude can look like:
• Saying thank you
• Journalling your thoughts
• Celebrating effort (not just outcomes)
• Embracing the small glimmers in your day
• Being present in a moment that would normally rush past
• Writing a gratitude list before bed
• Reflecting on how far you’ve come
• Noticing someone’s kindness
• Writing a letter you may never send
• Investing your time in what truly matters
• Honouring boundaries that protect your energy

Gratitude isn’t toxic positivity.
It’s awareness.
It’s choosing to notice what supports your nervous system instead of only what drains it.

Sometimes the most powerful gratitude practice is simply acknowledging:
“I’m doing my best with what I have today.”

If this resonated, share it with someone who might need a gentle reminder today. 🤍

09/03/2026

OTs need better support to collaboratively work with our schools to provide holistic and evidence-based support for school communities.

Environmental barriers are one of the biggest challenges occupational therapists face when working in Australian schools and yet they’re rarely discussed in our training.

As OTs, we’re taught to analyse the interaction between person, occupation and environment. But when it comes to schools, the environment is far more complex than a classroom layout or sensory input.

It’s the systems, structures and expectations that shape what is actually possible in a school day.

Things like:
• Limited teacher time and capacity
• Large class sizes
• Curriculum demands and reporting requirements
• School policies and leadership priorities
• Funding models and resource allocation
• Competing needs across an entire classroom

These aren’t barriers because educators don’t care.
They’re barriers because schools operate within complex systems that many therapists have never been taught to navigate.

And when OTs don’t fully understand these environmental realities, our recommendations can unintentionally become:
❌ unrealistic
❌ unsustainable
❌ frustrating for teachers to implement

But when we understand the environment, everything changes.

Our recommendations become more practical.
Our relationships with teachers strengthen.
And our advocacy for neurodivergent students becomes far more effective.

This is exactly why I have partnered with and have created Occupational Therapy Training for Working with Schools.

Inside the training we explore:
✨ The hidden environmental barriers in Australian schools
✨ How education systems actually function
✨ Practical ways to collaborate with teachers
✨ How to design strategies that work in real classrooms

Because when OTs understand the environment, we can create change that actually lasts.

If you work with schools and want to feel more confident, collaborative and impactful, comment SCHOOLS and I’ll send you the details.

08/03/2026

Notice and Manage Burnout: 6 Signs & Supports Everyone Should Know

Burnout doesn’t arrive overnight.
It whispers first… then it roars.

If your nervous system has been running in survival mode, these are some early burnout signs to notice and support strategies that actually help.

✨ 1. Changes in energy, appetite & interest in things you once loved
Support: Restorative rest.
Not just sleep but rest that suits your nervous system. This might look like sleeping, creating, nature, movement, or laughing with loved ones. Intentional rest is not lazy. It’s recovery.

✨ 2. Increased people-pleasing, anxiety & overwhelm
Support: Values-based boundaries.
When your boundaries reflect your core values, decisions become clearer and burnout reduces.

✨ 3. Reduced creativity, innovation & curiosity
Support: Progress over perfection.
Growth often feels uncomfortable. Trying something new isn’t failure — it’s nervous system expansion.

✨ 4. Changes in social needs (withdrawing, loneliness or avoiding people)
Support: Seek safe support.
Connection with trusted friends, family or professionals can help rebuild belonging and regulation.

✨ 5. Memory, attention & problem-solving difficulties
Support: Make information visual.
Use notes, photos, videos, and reminders to reduce cognitive load while your brain recovers.

✨ 6. Physical symptoms
Headaches. Tension. Body pain.
Support: Listen to your body.
Movement, sleep, nutrition and supportive relationships are foundational nervous system care.

Burnout isn’t a personal failure.
It’s often a signal your nervous system has been carrying too much for too long.

Healing starts with noticing.

Save this post for when you need a reminder 💛

If this resonated with you, follow for evidence-based neurodiversity-affirming wellbeing strategies 🧠

04/03/2026

Do you relate to this? 💭

Late diagnosed and suddenly realising…

My nervous system was never “too much.”
It was just running on Deluxe Hyperaware Pro Max with Bonus Pattern Detection™ 😅

For years I called it dramatic.
Sensitive.
Overreacting.

Turns out it was:
⚡ Processing more data
⚡ Noticing every micro-shift in tone
⚡ Protecting me from sensory overload
⚡ Feeling joy and injustice at full volume

Fluoro lights weren’t a personality flaw.
Emotional whiplash wasn’t immaturity.
Needing to leave early isn’t rudeness.
All along it’s actually regulation.

Late diagnosis means grieving the years you pushed through…
and finally learning to work with your nervous system instead of against it.

If you’ve ever:
• Left a café because it was “suddenly too loud”
• Replayed a conversation for 3–5 business days
• Felt everything, all at once
• Been told you’re “too sensitive”

You might just be beautifully, brilliantly neurodivergent.

Follow along for real-life, neurodiversity-affirming insights from an OT who is also learning to love her own spicy nervous system 💛

Save this for the days you forget.

02/03/2026

Ever felt SO excited about something…
and then one small thing happens and suddenly you’re spiralling?

That sharp drop?
That emotional crash?

I call it Emotional Whiplash.

It’s when your emotional curve changes suddenly:
excitement → guilt, hope → devastation, calm → panic
Your nervous system doesn’t get time to adjust.

For neurodivergent people, this can hit harder.

Because predictability = safety.
Routine = regulation.
Autonomy = stability.

When emotions shift without warning, it’s not “being dramatic.”
It’s your nervous system being thrown off course.

And here’s the part people miss:

Emotional whiplash
✔️ increases intensity
✔️ lengthens recovery time
✔️ makes regulation harder

Which means you don’t just need willpower.
You need a toolbox.

If this resonates, you’re not alone 💛
And if you’ve never had language for this before, now you do.

Follow for more neuroaffirming insights that actually make sense of your experience.

26/02/2026

Laundry isn’t “just laundry.” 🧺

For many neurodivergent people it’s:
• Multiple transitions
• Sensory overload (noise, damp textures, smells)
• Task switching from the machine beeping
• Low dopamine
• Perfectionism
• A cycle that never ends

That’s executive functioning + sensory processing + emotional regulation in one “simple” task.

Occupational therapy can help by:
• Advocating for support
• Modifying the set-up
• Building skills
• Trialling accommodations
• Using assistive tech
• Developing self-compassion

Struggling with laundry isn’t laziness.
It’s a capacity conversation.

Follow for practical, neurodiversity-affirming OT strategies that actually work. 🧠✨

Neuroinclusion

23/03/2026

19/03/2026

18/03/2026

15/03/2026

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13/03/2026

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26/02/2026

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