YOUR CHILD IS NOT BROKEN: Parent Your Neurodivergent Child Without Losing Your Marbles

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As a parent of a ND child, I could relate to a lot of this book. I liked Mavir's writing style - I could almost hear her voice right next to me, like chatting to a friend. To be honest, I don't generally read many books on the subject of neurodiversity because, well, I'm living it everyday anyway, I don't really feel the need to, and sometimes we all need some escapism instead. However I made an exception for this book and I'm glad I did. It's well worth reading and reminded me that I'm not alone in this ND parenting journey. Heidi has spoken openly about the impact the process had on her, sharing her experiences as a parent whose own mental health spiraled as a result of the overwhelming stress and pressure felt by parents of children unable to attend school. I can almost feel heidi giving me the tightest squeeze and reminding me that i’m a bad bitch & can get through whatever this crazy ride throws at me - for me and for my kiddo. This would have been so beneficial at the start of the journey likewise where we are now with diagnosis and out of school waiting for specialist school place to become available this has been helpful.

Your Child Is Not Broken: Parent Your Neurodivergent Child Your Child Is Not Broken: Parent Your Neurodivergent Child

Your Child Is Not Broken" is THE book for parents who need permission to do things differently. Heidi Mavir almost died working out why that was necessary. It's okay to say actually that's not good enough and what should be at the heart of decisions made is the child. The best interests of the child and actually what the child wants. Consent. The child has a right to consent. We as parents have a right to be heard. The part about consent really highlighted to me that me saying no to suggestions is good and shows my child they have the choice they can consent to what they do and don't want to do. Heidi Mavir writes with a heartwarming combination of joy, humour, rawness, vulnerability and endless empathy. I thoroughly enjoyed reading her perspective as a ND parent of a ND child.Heidi Mavir is a late-identified, Neurodiverent adult. She is a public speaker, advocate, author, podcaster, and parent to an Autistic/ADHD teenager. She is a also chronic oversharer and a bit of a badass. We had a lot to catch up on. And that is what I thought was going to happen — that catching up would fix the problem. this book found me at the perfect time. i don’t think i’ll ever stop thinking about it, nor will i stop recommending it. As a parent of a neurodivergent child this has been a really good read it tells you that you aren't alone.

Your Child Is Not Broken — Discovering Dyscalculia Your Child Is Not Broken — Discovering Dyscalculia

Despite trying to get her the best treatments, preschool education, and nourished her talents — it all doesn’t matter because she can’t fit into their box.And then there are kids like mine, on the autism spectrum, and I feel like I am trying to make my daughter sit in a broken chair. It tells you that whilst you feel like you are battling and at war with local authorities and professionals you are right to be that parent. I also have to say you come across some amazing professionals too who only have your child's best interests at heart. If we view our children as broken and messed up, chances are high that they too will believe this lie about themselves. And it will crush them. It will crush their souls, and the world will miss out on knowing this individual who has so much potential and so many unique gifts.

YOUR CHILD IS NOT BROKEN: Parent Your Neurodivergent Child Without YOUR CHILD IS NOT BROKEN: Parent Your Neurodivergent Child

While she knows all of her letters and can sloppily write them and identify sight words, she can’t sit still, is constantly moving, she wants to play, wants to color, she wants to engage with everything and every one the point that she is disruptive because that isn’t what is expected of her. Parents of Autistic and neurodivergent kids will relate so hard to her experiences and will feel less alone after reading this. You may cry, you will laugh, and you will learn. In 2018 Heidi's son, Theo, experienced a mental health crisis, brought on by the struggles he faced in mainstream education as an undiagnosed Autistic student. Suddenly Heidi found herself up the proverbial creek without any paddles. With Theo too unwell to attend school - or even leave the house, Heidi committed herself to finding out everything she could about neurodivergence; education, health and social care plans; and what it means to advocate for your disabled child in crisis.

As people we often make judgements about who is acceptable, and who is not. Who is intelligent, socially-acceptable, deserving, or beautiful…and who is not. We decide people’s worth depending on their skin color, or how much money we perceive them having, what their body shape is like, what sorts of accomplishments they’ve gained. We make judgements about a student’s intelligence based on how well they move through the school systems we’ve set up. Two years into Speech, Occupational Therapy, behavior therapy, and public preschool she made remarkable progress. Neutral point - there was a lot here that I personally have already read and thought about. Perhaps if you are newer to reading/learning/thinking about autism then you will get more from it than I did - clearly a lot of people love it. When we first realized that something was wrong with our child, I immediately became hyper-focused on getting her the best treatment. If you are at the start of your journey with a SEND child, trying to navigate the system to find out what support is available, not wanting to chase people too many times as you don’t want to be seen as pushy, then this is the book for you. If you are further along, have already grown weary with the endless meetings with professionals, are fed up of being fobbed off by people minimising your child’s needs, then this is also the book for you! Heidi’s retelling of her and her autistic son Theo’s story gives an introduction to the challenges that parents of SEND children are likely to face, along with practical suggestions of what to say to professionals who just don’t seem to ‘get it’. I’ve been ‘that’ parent for nearly ten years now and while I’ve made my peace with how I’m sure I’m perceived by professionals, it never stops being exhausting. You never stop questioning whether you are doing the right thing and when you are tired and frustrated after yet another meeting it’s easy to wonder if maybe the professionals are right, maybe your concerns aren’t valid and you should just give their way a try. In those moments this book is a well needed reminder that it’s not you, it’s not your child, it’s the system that’s broken.

Your Child is Not Broken - Pan Macmillan AU Your Child is Not Broken - Pan Macmillan AU

This book interested me from the moment I saw it. Working in early years childhood education and being a parent to two wonderful teenagers I have experienced and read quite a bit about the neurodivergent child. However this is very different to what I have come across before. Heidi is open and frank about her struggles with parenting a child with autism and ADHD, while discovering that she is also neurodiverse.Sometimes, it can feel like these things are true because your child doesn’t read or calculate or function like most children you know. It can feel like that when others are pointing out the ways your child is not fitting in or the ways your child is failing at school. We have to shift our mindset about these things. We need to see, really see, our children and appreciate who they are. They are wonderful and amazing in so many ways, ways that we forget to stop and take notice. They have much to offer us and the world, if we will just encourage, support, and believe in them.