Dr Jessica M Newland PsyD

12/04/2024

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1620546432230675

03/01/2024

Co-regulating helps kids learn how to handle their emotions as they grow up and those kids are more likely to be resilient, psychologist says.

02/20/2024

"By moving away from the non-autistic stories about autism that have, over time, dominated public conception of the autistic experience and relationships, as well as the cognitive and psychoanalytic paradigms that have reduced autism and autistic people to a homogeneous group, the book instead reveals the multiplicity of autistic subjectivities and their subsequent
understandings of well-being and vulnerability. It calls on readers to listen to what autistic people have to say about the possibilities of resistance and solidarity against intersecting currents and eddies of power, which endanger all who challenge the neoliberal conception of Life."

Autism is a profoundly contested idea. The focus of this book is not what autism is or what autistic people are, but rather, it grapples with the central

12/22/2023

Please stop invalidating autistic adults. There is no way to “see” it if someone is not comfortable being unmasked and there is no one “look” to autism.

There are more autistic people than was previously thought and we don’t “look” like people think we should

12/05/2023

Whenever I talk about shifting from the pathology paradigm to the neurodiversity paradigm, I always get questions about whether neurodivergent people can still take medication or want to get rid of challenges and the answer is yes.

I hope by sharing the pillars or principles behind the neurodiversity paradigm that it clears up any confusion and shows that the neurodiversity paradigm, above all else, is about giving people agency and autonomy free from compliance or coercive labelling or treatment.

1. There is no such thing as normal mind or brain because normal is a social construct.

2. Neurodivergence is not a disorder or disease but it can be a disability.

3. Differences shouldn’t be automatically viewed as the problem when it comes to someone having challenges, difficulties or struggles.

4. We do not pathologize or blame people for their responses or experiences of distress.

5. We respect the autonomy of individuals in defining their own meanings and experiences.

6. Everyone deserves personal agency in how they choose to work with their brains, differences and experiences.

7. We must recognise intersectionality when it comes to neurodivergence.

You can order my book and read about the principles and pillars - there’s a whole chapter dedicated to understanding the neurodiversity paradigm.

*this principle was developed by Dr Nick Walker

12/04/2023

I finally received my copies of my book! Such a satisfying experience to update this book from a neurodiversity affirming perspective. I want to thank those who contributed interventions to the book and those who gave me early reviews - Tony Lai, Tracy Turner-Bumberry, Lynn Louise Wonders, Tony Vallance, Fiona Hill, Amy Stark Uchtman, Cary Hamilton, Danyale VW, Emma Arnoff, Jessica Stone, Jessamy Whitsitt Lmft, Kim Vander Dussen, Nicky Trussler, Monica Adimari Fyfe, Nata Scha, Robyn Reyna, and Sarah Margaret. Also thank you Clair Evans-Mellenthin for the generous foreword. I'm thankful to be a small part of contributing to spreading neurodiversity knowledge. We need more writings, articles, books, research, and trainings moving the neurodiversity movement forward. So get out there and produce good works! https://www.routledge.com/Play-Interventions-for-Neurodivergent-Children-and-Adolescents-Promoting/Grant/p/book/9781032504834

11/28/2023

Someone recently asked me about if neurodiversity and being neurodivergent included other so-called mental illness and I did the best I could in the moment to explain but Trauma Geek does a much better job in this post.

From the post "Neurodivergent means we’re different from the culturally imagined and medically codified “healthy” or “right” brain. Regardless of the reason for the differences, if we’re wired differently, we are part of the neurodivergent community."

11/26/2023

On many occasions before I could type I listened to people describe me to my parents. Therapists said I manipulated my mom when I cried. I ached for relief from pressure to perform tasks I understood but couldn’t motor plan; tasks which made me frustrated or feel unsafe. My angst boiled to tears and I’m glad my mom comforted me. A Mayo Clinic psychologist told my parents my IQ was yet to be determined but probably about 75. I’m lucky my mom cared to learn accurate information by purchasing books like Ido in Autismland and Fall Down 7 Times Get Up 8, works by my peers. Some psychologist at CADB swore that every time I made my move to create space between myself and others I was doing so because I was self driven, unable to give joint attention, and escaping demands. I was overwhelmed, my ways of relating weren’t recognized, and their demands made me uncomfortable. I’m fortunate my mom has the ‘tism and couldn’t limit her thinking to their construction. My dad took a little longer to come around. Ty, Barry Prizant. Dare to believe in us. Question those without lived experience who decide they are authorities. Trust your nurturing instincts.

11/21/2023

In this blog by clinician and author, Raelene Dundon, find out what you can do to make your practice more neurodiversity affirming.

11/19/2023

I'm going through and updating old infographics. This was one of the first I created. ⁠For links to all the research studies, check out the blog post with this infographic, which links to the studies. ⁠
_______⁠
⁠
When people say you can't be neurodivergent-affirming without being LGBTQIA+ affirming, here is why ⬇️⁠
⁠
💚Autistic people are more likely to identify as LGBTQIA+ than the general population (Sarris, 2020). ⁠
⁠
❤️ While 4.5% of the general population identifies as LGB (Gallup poll), a rate of 15-35% within the Autistic community identify as LGB (Sarris, 2020) (*study didn't specify regarding pansexual). ⁠
⁠
💙Autists are 2-3 times more likely to be LGB than the general population (Dr. Eileen Crehan quoted in Sarris 2020). ⁠
⁠
🩵 Autistic people are more likely to be asexual and/or aromantic (Attanasio et al., 2021; George and Stokes, 2018)⁠
⁠
💛 In a study involving approximately 630 individuals, 69.7% of Autistic individuals reported being "non-heterosexual," while only 30% of the TD group identified as being non-heterosexual (George and Stokes, 2018). ⁠
⁠
💜 One study among Autistic children found they were 7.59 x more likely to be genderqueer, and Trans people are 3-6 times more likely to be Autistic (not this is among diagnosed Autistic people, so this number is likely much higher). (Warrier et al., 2021.)⁠
⁠
For links to research studies, you can find the roundup here: https://neurodivergentinsights.com/autism-infographics/autism-and-sexual-diversity

11/18/2023

Autistic Revolution digital magazine is developed exclusively by autistic folk. Self-identified is valid. Autistic identity and culture, empowering, validating,

11/16/2023