Adaptable Social Work

23/06/2026

“I don't know." 🤷‍♂️

As a neurodiversity-affirming Behavior Support Practitioner, I find myself discussing with parents this phrase. When disabled people meltdown, shutdown, or act out, our first instinct is to ask why. But when they answer with "I don't know," it is not defiance. It is the absolute truth.

This can be due Alexithymia
Many neurodivergent individuals find it incredibly difficult to identify, name, or describe their own emotions.

When a nervous system is overwhelmed, the person’s brain switches to survival mode and they are unable to analyse or understand their triggers in that moment. They genuinely do not know what just happened.

As an affirming practitioner, my goal is to help carers to understand, accommodate and support the nervous system.

If the person you are caring for says "I don't know," you can lean into these affirming responses:
💡 Validate the disconnect: "It’s okay if it’s hard to find the words right now. You don't have to explain it."
💡 Check the environment: "The room got really loud. Let's go somewhere quiet and let your body rest."
💡 Drop the demands: "We don't need answers. I'm just here to keep you safe while you ride this wave."

Behaviour is a window into a disabled person’s sensory and emotional world. When we stop demanding explanations, we create the safety they need to co-regulate.

It may affect around 5 to 10 percent of the population. But what does alexithymia actually feel like?
https://www.sciencealert.com/what-is-alexithymia-the-hidden-experience-of-millions-explained

23/06/2026

💡 Navigating the NDIS: Why "One Size Fits All" Doesn't Work for Our Clients

As a social worker, I know that disability never exists in a vacuum. Community organizer Sandy Ho noted that disability cuts across political, social, and cultural narratives. In our current Australian landscape—with major NDIS structural shifts underway—this is a vital reminder for participants, families, and carers.

An "intersectional" approach simply means recognizing all the parts of a participant’s identity: culture, gender, language, location and their disability change their ability to navigate the world, access NDIS, and receive care.

For NDIS participants and carers, these overlapping barriers are a daily reality, leading to isolation and impacting quality of life.

True advocacy means fighting for a system where clients don't have to compromise one part of their identity to get support for another.

My role is to help amplify these diverse lived experiences and ensure no one is left in the margins of policy changes.

22/06/2026

Everyone needs that person who believes in them

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1HJ51tSgyg/?mibextid=wwXIfr

22/06/2026

We talk a lot about how social media algorithms manipulate our attention span and mental health.
But have we considered how this impacts the neurodivergent community?

🧠✨For individuals with autism or intellectual disabilities, the design of modern feeds introduces unique challenges:

No Cues for Completion: Autistic individuals often thrive on a need for completion. Because algorithmic platforms feature an infinite scroll with no clear endpoint, it can lead to intense compulsive usage and difficulty disconnecting.

Amplified Rigid Thinking:
Tech algorithms are programmed to boost emotionally charged content and create extreme echo chambers. This can severely reinforce cognitive distortions like black-and-white thinking or catastrophizing.

Misinformation Hazards:
Algorithmic feeds regularly amplify sensationalised, unverified medical claims. This creates high exposure to confusing misinformation about neurodivergence and health.

Online Safety Vulnerabilities:
Algorithms sometimes push harmful content or expose users to predatory behavior. Many adults with intellectual disabilities report not recognising this manipulation or abuse while it's happening.

Social media is a lifeline for community building and interest-based immersion for many disabled individuals.

However, the tech giants need to build ethical, transparent algorithms that don't exploit cognitive vulnerabilities.

Digital accessibility must mean more than just adding video captions—it means designing safe algorithmic spaces.

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GHbqdzC7Y/?mibextid=wwXIfr

19/06/2026

💛 It’s "Can't," Not "Won't" for people with PDA

They get stuck in PDA paralysis. PDAers and their families need to know that this paralysis is not the same as being lazy. Laziness is a choice. PDA paralysis is an exhausted brain 🧠 expending massive energy just to manage an involuntary wave of anxiety.

You aren't failing. You are surviving a nervous system lock.

In this post PDA Stress Responses are explained through the lived experience and professional lens. Amanda McGuinness provides insight and perspective on how we see and understand PDA stress responses as a PDA Autistic adult but also as a parent to two Autistic PDA children.

18/06/2026

A beautiful explanation of the models of disability.
The medical model is ableist and perpetrates harm.
https://www.facebook.com/share/r/1UqCtEvEyi/?mibextid=wwXIfr

18/06/2026

Cat Burns explains what it feels like for her to have autism.

Does it feel different for you?

Let’s build awareness of the autism experience.

“I felt like I was doing life wrong” 🥺 Cat Burns opens up about h...

16/06/2026

16/06/2026

Reading the attached article got me thinking about why we treat authenticity as an easy choice, when for neurodivergent individuals, hiding who they are (masking) is a vital safety mechanism.

Is it appropriate to expect authenticity at the expense of safety?

I would like to hear from neurodivergent people - what has your journey with unmasking looked like?
Neurodivergent allies - how are you actively building safe spaces where autistic people can safely drop their masks?



https://www.facebook.com/share/195wf1fdpZ/?mibextid=wwXIfr

On autism and “masking”: “Without society being a safer place for autistic people, the onus on autistic people to unmask is cruel at best and incredibly dangerous at worst.” Amy Pearson, at TPGA.

tinyurl.com/AutisticMaskingTPGA

[image: Screenshot of a TPGA article header.

At the top is a photo of a steampunk-style mask.

Underneath, text reads, “Beyond Masking and Towards Supporting Autistic Authenticity”]