Dr. Jody Carrington

What about kids on the spectrum or people on the spectrum and on the autism spectrum?

Still, we use this.

And what's fascinating to me is we've never had so many exit ramps.

We've never had so many opportunities to look away.

And it is estimated that our great grandparents looked at their children 72% more of the time than we look at our babies today.

And why that becomes critically important to know is that, as you said, connection for me is one of the pillars because we're neurobiologically wired for it.

And the only way you learn empathy, kindness,

uh, how to speak, how to, how to emotionally regulate is somebody has to show you.

Nobody can tell you, nobody can text an infant and be like, Hey, calm down.

Right.

Right.

The physical presence of another human being is what we need when we are in our most dire straits and we don't need somebody to tell us what to do.

Like, it's okay.

It's okay.

Let's plant a tree.

Um, you're going to be, you know, what we need is the physical presence of another human being to do this.

And for me, to your question, the epitome for me, I mean, the thing that comes to mind the most is this story and feeling scene that I talk about that you mentioned about.

I wondered, you know, why connection and human connection was like such a big thing for me.

Why did it become the thing I write about and talk about and, you know, went to school for?

So I grew up in this little town, Viking, Alberta, Canada, with a mom and a dad and a brother, a younger brother.