A wave of intense shame pours over me as a familiar thought enters my head: What in the name of God am I doing with my life? And how did I end up here? Let me set the scene for you: I’m sitting at home, wearing a headset, taking calls for a psychic helpline. Yes, […]
The Palace of Illusions: A Story That Stayed With Me There are some books you pick up casually. Then there are books that quietly step into your heart. They rearrange something inside you.The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni did exactly that for me. As someone who juggles motherhood, work, and the beautiful chaos […]
“Nothing activates the brain so extensively as music,” said famed neurologist and musicphile Oliver Sacks, M.D. As an avid music fan with ADHD, I have lived this truth from a young age. I grew up in a music-obsessed family. I was named after Roberto Carlos, the renowned Brazilian singer. (Another option was “Fernando,” after the […]
The Day Meera Chose Herself: A Real Story About Mental Health in India Mental health. Two words we rarely hear in everyday conversations, especially when it comes to Indian women. We’re raised to be strong, to handle responsibilities without complaint, to “adjust.” But sometimes, the strongest thing we can do is admit when we need […]
I have some neurotypical mom friends and, frankly, I don’t get them. They have dedicated junk drawers filled with a couple of errant paper clips and their coupon folios; I have junk closets, stuffed with unfinished craft projects, Happy Meal toys, and detritus from the early 2000s. Those mythological moms seemed to float through life […]
Good Hope’s Hunter Burns and Destiny Jones. (Courtesy of Destiny Jones) GOOD HOPE, Ala. — There are a lot of inspirational stories you can find in high school sports, from special needs kids playing in sporting events, to people helping out others who are dealing with a lot in their lives right now. Imagine, though, […]
My identical twin sister was diagnosed with ADHD about a year ago in the United States. I was living in the UK at the time. My first thought was, “Come on, they’re distributing diagnoses left, right, and in the US.” I didn’t believe it. It certainly never crossed my mind that I could have it […]
For Christina Spielbauer, the most important lesson she can take from her time serving as the director of the Carlisle Area School District is the value of building relationships that serve students. The woman from North Middleton Township will step down as superintendent effective December 31st. Three days later, she will take up her new […]
Chris Nikic, ESPY winner, Boston marathon finisher and the first person with Down syndrome to ever complete an Ironman triathlon, energizes North Scott Junior High School students before speaking about it, including in to move forward in difficult times. During his inspirational and actionable keynote, Nikic shared his 1% better strategy for achieving goals. North […]
A new beginning with challengesOliver returned to Roanoke County public school on the Monday after the spring break. His mother said the first three days went well, but by Thursday Oliver was overwhelmed. At Hidden Valley Middle School, students with autism de-escalate and take a break from the classroom in a padded wrestling room. But […]
Compass Academy in Conway, Arkansas is a private, not-for-profit school for children with developmental disabilities or those who have difficulty adjusting to a public school. It offers year-round full-time education for students ages 5+ and participates in the state’s Succeed scholarship program. Like many parents of special needs children, Erica Boucher was frustrated by the […]
