TPP 336: Dr. Megan Anna Neff on Diagnoses and Misdiagnoses (It’s Complicated!)

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Unknown 0:00
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Dr. Megan Anna Neff 0:26
For a kid with sensory sensitivities, if they are dreading going to school or they're dreading going to the dentist, it's 'cause they know what's gonna happen. They know they're gonna go and there's gonna be a sensory overloading experience. That's not anxiety. They might be calling it anxiety because that's the only word they know, but that's actually dread. And and anxiety is based on a fear of what might happen. Від анкеті. avoidance just fuels the fire and so you really target avoidance behaviors. Now you wouldn't do the same thing with a sensory dread.
Debbie Reber 1:04
Welcome to Tilt Parenting, a podcast featuring interviews and conversations aimed at inspiring, informing, and supporting parents raising differently wired kids. I'm your host, Debbie Rieber. I think we can probably all relate to the challenge of getting a diagnosis that feels like it really fits our child perfectly. And that's in large part because, well, our kids tend to be incredibly complex. Many of us see misdiagnosis among our kids or completely missed diagnoses. So I invited Dr. Megan Ann F, a clinical psychologist specializing in the support and empowering. of neurodivergent adults through her expertise in neurodivergent affirming care and assessments onto the show to talk about the complexity of diagnosis and the whys behind misdiagnoses.
Debbie Reber 1:53
During this conversation, Megan, Anna, and I talk about so many different things, including diving deeper into the assessment process and why so many people slip through the cracks when seeking a diagnosis, why it's so important to get clarity around a child's wiring in order to provide them with the support that will be most meaningful and affirming. Why identifying one's neurodivergence, whether that's through self-identification or a medical diagnosis really matters and the kind of trauma a person can experience when they go through life without that diagnosis. We also discussed how to identify and vet neuropsych evaluators who take a neurodivergent affirming approach to the whole assessment process.
Debbie Reber 2:34
As you can hear, we covered a lot of ground. And I should share that I first learned about Megan Anna through her wonderful Neurodivergent Insights Instagram page and her popular Miss Diagnosis Mondays series of visuals. Megan Anna herself is a late-in-life diagnosed autistic ADHDer, and she brings a unique perspective and a deep, deep passion for enlightening the mental health field about the diverse manifestations of Autism and ADHD, beyond the stereotypes. She translates research into visualizations, which she shares on her website, Instagram, and through monthly workbooks. And she's co-authored two books and has published in several peer-reviewed psychological journals. Her forthcoming book, Self-Care for Autistic People, will be published in early 2024.
Debbie Reber 3:23
Thanks so much, and now here is my conversation with Doctor Megan Ananeff. Hey Megan, welcome to the show! Thanks so much for having me. It's good to be here. Yeah, I'm looking forward to getting into your work. But I would love if you could, as a way to get started, tell us a little bit about your own story and how you got to be doing the work that you're doing in the world right now.
Dr. Megan Anna Neff 3:50
Yeah, absolutely. Like a lot of autistic women and parents, my story starts with the identification of one of my children. And I've seen that so much. There's this term I really really like, the lost generation of autistic women. And we could also talk about the lost generation of ADHD women. And also genderqueer and trans people and bipok people. But the term that really resonates with me is this lost generation of autistic women. And my journey was interesting because I was getting a doctorate in psychology.

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