Squirrel Space

05/02/2026

Save the date. 🗣 12 days out from the first speaker session of Mental Health Access Month — and it's the one we've wanted to host all year.

Thursday, May 14 — ND-affirming clinician Mirna walks our community through the mental health services landscape. Practically.

What services exist. What insurance covers — and what it doesn't. How to find someone who won't pathologize your neurotype. What to ask in a first session. What to do when the first one doesn't fit.

Free. Captions on. Cameras optional. Replay sent to all registrants.

Register: https://forms.gle/8odW4higR1jGRk6k7

05/02/2026

May is Mental Health Awareness - Access - Month. Awareness isn't the gap, access is.

What does safe access to mental health care look like for ND'ers? In 2020, Connecticut launched the first Blue Envelope program to keep people safe (as drivers and passengers) - a single piece of paper to communicate "I am Autistic. I may communicate differently". Since then, 29 states have passed the Blue Envelope (w/ mandatory training for police about Autism).

Effective Jan of this year, New Hampshire became the first state to expand Blue Envelope beyond autism — to include people with trauma and stressor-related disorders, like PTSD. Sponsor Rep. Jodi Newell named it plainly: this is about neurodivergent communication. ✨

Blue envelope program is the foundation we're building on...but it's in 29 States, yet the tragic accidents, deaths, and trauma continue.

So what are we doing about it? We're designing ND safety cards to go along with our pins & sticks to go further into the community to provide safe access to public spaces, education, mental healthcare, and connection to the community. 🐿️

The Squirrel Space Neurodivergent Safety Cards go further:

✅ for more ND identifiers (including PTSD)
✅ in all public spaces — ER, school, transit, grocery
✅ for all of us — community, not just police ❤️

05/01/2026

Mental health access — what it actually looks like.

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. But awareness isn't the gap. Access is.

This month at Squirrel Space we're focused on access — through corporate programs (ELI, CRG, ND-affirming workplace audits), through community speakers, through our new Squirrel Steps Self-Identification program, and through the support our Acorn Fund makes possible.

Every post this month is written to close a gap, not just name one.

Follow along. 💚

04/30/2026

This Autism Acceptance Month, we had the joy of sitting down with Tran for a conversation that felt truly special.

We watched the opening scene of his film Crosswalk together — a 2026 Easterseals Disability Film Challenge entry — and Dennis shared his diagnosis journey, what it means to be Autistic, and the intersectional story he was trying to tell, rooted in family, culture, and identity.

Watch Crosswalk here: https://youtu.be/jw3sC6vAITk?si=O0vXJ7p-VKFQmyOr

Dennis has made it to the other side of his own Crosswalk, and Squirrel Space is proud to support neurodivergent creatives as innovators and pioneers. We're honored to have him be part of this community and this conversation — with a special thank you to Kapszukiewicz for hosting and holding such a beautiful space.
Full video link will be posted soon!

If you'd like to support Dennis and the Squirrel Space team:
Buy Dennis & the film team a coffee: https://buymeacoffee.com/crosswalkfilm
Tax-deductible donation through our Give page: https://www.squirrel-space.com/support
(Please note that your Donating for Dennis Tran)

Thank you for showing up for stories like this. 💛

04/30/2026

Community care in action 💙

Huge thank you to Dr Suzanne Thai and DFW Sleep Solutions for sponsoring gift basket for the A*O 2026.

These small moments add up to something bigger: people feeling seen, included, and supported.

Thank you for showing up with us.
We see you and appreciate you.

04/30/2026

April ends today.
The need doesn't.

Every dollar raised this month goes directly to the Acorn Fund — supporting Discovery Journeys, Adaptive Dance, coaching, and care navigation for people who can't afford it at full price.

Here's what your support makes possible:
→ $50 covers one coaching session for someone who can't afford it
→ $250 puts Squirrel Space at the Oregon Walk table
→ $1,000 sponsors a full month of Jasmine's Beats Adaptive Dance classes
→ $2,500+ funds a Discovery Journey for a family who needs it most

If this month meant something to you —
If something you read made you think of someone —
This is how you make it real.

Thank you for being part of this community.
We're not done yet.

→ Donate / sponsor. squirrel-space.com

Squirrel Space is a warm, inclusive digital hub where neurodivergent minds can connect, learn, and thrive through personalized resources.

04/28/2026

"What if... am I ADHD... Autistic... Neurodivergent? What does it mean to be an empath?"

If you've been sitting with these questions, reading threads, blogs, videos, and recognizing yourself in someone else's discovery & story - you're not alone. And you don't have to figure it out alone either.

The Squirrel Steps™ Discovery Journey was built for the in-between. After you've started to suspect something, but before you have the language and all the tools... When you're ready to explore but not ready to be told who you are:

Try our Squirrel Steps, four simple steps, guided through coaching with us:

1. Question — you arrive with what you've noticed, your experiences, you questions. We listen.
2. Discover — learn more about your brain and about neurodiversity; find language to describe your brain and experiences that you didn't have before
3. Understand — name your strengths and shift from "why can't I be normal" to "I'm not bad - just different". This is where the shame breaks down and space for new identity emerges.
4. Define — you choose what comes next. Formal diagnosis. Self-ID and thriving. Or somewhere in between.

No outcome is required. No label is mandatory. This step — and everything that follows — belongs to you.

We create the space. You explore at your pace, your way.

→ Learn more about Squirrel Steps. Link in comments. 🐿️

Book time with Emily to learn more: https://calendly.com/emilykapszukiewicz/squirrel-space
or Register NOW: 3 more spots are free! https://docs.google.com/forms/u/0/d/1y4ezs4HwVdjQ6AhnerpjIWIFGlZ46llDGZiESPVoNr8/viewform?edit_requested=true

04/27/2026

Some partnerships just feel right.

First Tech Federal Credit Union, thank you for being our Table & Raffle Sponsor for the 2025 Autism Walk. We are so grateful you chose to stand with us. 💛

First Tech Federal Credit Union has long been committed to uplifting the communities they serve. Their support brought meaningful experiences and exciting moments to every participant who walked through our doors.
Sunday would not have been the same without you. Thank you for showing up for our community. 💛

04/27/2026

A heart as big as this deserves to be recognized.
Thank you, Kindness for Capital, for being our Event Sponsor for the 2025 Autism Walk.

We are incredibly grateful for your partnership. 💛
Kindness for Capital is dedicated to building stronger, more inclusive communities through meaningful acts of generosity. Their support helped make this walk a space where every family could feel truly welcomed and celebrated.

This walk would not have been what it was without you.
Thank you for believing in us. 💛

04/27/2026

Good community and good coffee go hand in hand.

Tiny's Coffee, thank you for being our Walk Sponsor for the 2025 Autism Walk. Your support meant more than words can say. 💛

Tiny's Coffee believes in the power of community, one cup at a time. Their support through stickers and flyers helped us spread the word and welcome even more families into this space.
The warmth you brought to this walk was felt by everyone. Thank you. 💛

04/27/2026

We want to extend a huge Thank You to Swap n Play for being a Raffle Prize Donor and event materials supporter for the 2025 Autism Walk. We are incredibly grateful for their partnership. 💛

St. Johns Swap n Play is all about community, connection, and making resources accessible for families. Their generous raffle prize and event materials added so much warmth and energy to our walk.

You showed up for this community in every way and it showed.
Thank you. 💛

04/27/2026

What a day. 🧡

Yesterday at the Autism Society of Oregon Walk, we got to be in a space with thousands of people who showed up for their community — and we are so grateful to everyone who made our table possible.

If you've been thinking about supporting Squirrel Space's mission, now is a meaningful time to do it.

Your donation funds:
→ Discovery Journeys for people who can't afford them at full price
→ Adaptive Dance classes through Jasmine's Beat
→ Community programming, care navigation, and more

The walk is over. The work continues.

→ squirrel-space.com | info@squirrel-space.com