TPP 208: Decoding Trauma & Social Isolation in Differently Wired Kids in the Time of COVID-19
episode
Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
35 min
2 speakers
8 chapters
transcribed 1 day ago
Transcript
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Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
What is the overall focus of the episode on trauma and social isolation for differently wired kids?
And we know that, for example, when the brain is in sort of a trauma circuitry that your higher order thinking is offline. So being able to shift that narrative is just shut down. So allowing your child and kind of redirecting their mind into safety and being able to identify with their experience, that's the key point where this can transition into a place of challenge and but a place of information and redirection rather than a place of challenge and pain.
Welcome to Tilt Parenting, a podcast featuring interviews and conversations aimed at inspiring, informing, and supporting parents raising differently wired kids. Today I'm bringing you an important conversation about social isolation and differently wired kids during the COVID-19 pandemic. My guest is Dr. Nicole Tetreault, a neuroscientist and author with a special interest in neurodiversity, neurodevelopment, creativity, mental health, and wellness. I wanted to bring Nicole onto the podcast because I am hearing the concerns of so many parents about what this unprecedented and sudden onset of social distancing means for our kids. And I knew Nicole would have a lot of food for thought on how we can support our kids through this.
A little bit about Nicole. Through her blog, Awesome Neuroscience, she translates the best insights from neuroscience and positive psychology to help people live their best life. Nicole is dedicated to enhancing lives through a holistic approach that integrates developing positive thought processes, the cultivation of self-compassion, and awareness of bodily sensations with our environment. Her forthcoming book, Insight into a Bright Mind, explores groundbreaking research examining the experiences of unique, creative, and intense brains. So the focus of our conversation today is to really get into what happens to the brain as a result of prolonged stress and trauma, why trauma might manifest itself in different behaviors, and how parents can help their children experience calm and connection during this time.
I am just so excited to share this conversation with you. I hope you get a lot out of it. And now here is my conversation with Nicole. Hey, Nicole, welcome to the podcast. Hi, Debbie. This is gonna be fun. This is a I feel like this is a long time coming because we met. Was it a year ago when we met at Bridges Academy? It seems like forever ago.
Close to it. Close to it. Although it seems like we've known
each other all our lives. But yes. Yes, I would agree with that 100%. But you're doing so much fascinating work. And you've been super busy writing a book.
How does Dr. Nicole Tetreault describe her background and why she works with neurodiverse children?
So thank you for making time for us for this conversation today. And for those listeners who aren't familiar with your work, I've already read your top-line professional bio, but I always like to have guests introduce themselves and tell us a little bit about the why for the work that they do.
Yeah. So my background is training in neuroscience. And in particular, I studied in grad school neurodevelopment and neurodegenerative disorders, specifically studying autism. And after I left grad school, I really kind of found this place where I wanted to translate science and make neuroscience really useful for people in their everyday life. And in that process, what I found out was my son was in about third grade and he was identified gifted. And all of a sudden, the world of gifted and twice exceptionality really came into focus. in my life. And I recentered my work really to understand what it is to be neurodiverse, what it is to be twice exceptional and kind of understand it from a brain and body perspective to give us kind of more accurate and positive language around really being able to advocate for it.
And so tell me about the kind of things that you're working on right now. Because again, I feel you and I went back and forth on even topics. And there are, again, so many directions that we could have gone in. But where is your sweet spot in terms of the professional work you're doing at this moment?
Well, my professional work really, I feel, centers on trying to really understand...
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the overall focus of the episode on trauma and social isolation for differently wired kids?
0:00–3:05
2
How does Dr. Nicole Tetreault describe her background and why she works with neurodiverse children?
3:05–8:19
3
What does the podcast explain about how prolonged stress and trauma affect the brain?
8:19–14:11
4
How do fight, flight, freeze, and flop responses show up in neurodiverse children during COVID‑19?
14:11–17:46
5
Why does social isolation feel like physical pain for kids, and what are the neurological reasons?
17:46–23:46
6
What practical tools (online play, video calls, community windows) help isolated children reconnect?
23:46–27:26
7
Which calming resources and meditation techniques does Dr. Tetreault recommend for families right now?
27:26–32:13
8
What is the upcoming book *Insight into a Bright Mind* about and where can listeners find more of Dr. Tetreault’s work?
32:13–35:31
Speakers
2 identifiedMore from Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
TPP 266a: A Conversation with Poet and Advocate LeDerick Horne
TPP 522: A Whole Child Approach to ADHD with Phil Boucher, M.D.
TPP 091a: A Conversation With Steve Silberman About His Book “Neurotribes”
TPP 521: A Conversation with Dr. Peter Gray About Restoring Childhood
TPP 253a: Advocate and Author Jonathan Mooney on Why Normal Sucks
TPP 520: Dr. Özgür Bolat on Why Rewards Backfire and the Real Science of Motivating Kids