[Quick Tip] How I Became the Most Effective SLP for Autistic Kids (& a Special Invitation for You!)
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Why do therapists feel exhausted and ineffective after sessions with autistic kids?
There is nothing worse than walking out of a session feeling exhausted, overwhelmed, and like you got approximately nothing done. I will tell you, I spent way too many years lacking confidence, lacking the tools, lacking the knowledge that I really needed to be the most effective SLP for autistic kids. And today I'm going to share with you exactly what you need to know in order to be the most effective therapist too.
What's up, everyone? And welcome to Making the Shift for Autistic Kids. We're an SLP couple from California with four boys. And we're here every week to bring you neuro-affirming tips, tricks, and tools. Are you ready to make the shift? Let's do this.
There were so many times I remember in the middle of sessions just feeling complete lack of confidence. There's a parent in the therapy room. There's a child who's dysregulated. I can't get the child to engage with me, not reaching any of our communication goals.
How did the host break free from confidence‑crushing moments and start thinking outside the textbook?
And seriously, that is just the worst feeling in the world. We went into this profession to make a difference and to help kids and to be an amazing therapist. But there's just too many times where we get into those sessions, we feel completely incompetent and we're like questioning, what are we even doing here? Am I doing anything? I feel bad that this parent brought this kid in today. They probably wonder what is going on. And I will tell you that is just such a terrible feeling. And not only that, you know, it's the lack of confidence and it's the lack of just making progress. We obviously want our kids to do amazing. We want them to do so well. So how can we help them to do that? And it was in it was before I even went to grad school.
I was an SLP assistant assistant.
What three core pillars (regulation, engagement, intrinsic motivation) transformed the host’s therapy practice?
And I just decided, you know what, I'm just going to think out of the box. I'm going to make a fool out of myself. I will do whatever I have to do to connect with these kids. And I just decided from there, I am not going to go, you know, quote by the book. I'm not going to do what people taught me to do. I'm just going to try to figure out what works. And the thing is that I think a lot of therapists go through that and they're like, but why aren't they teaching us this in grad school? They're not teaching us about how we can actually help autistic kids. And the thing is like, I will never blame grad school for not teaching us this because there is so much that we have to learn as SLPs. It is insane how much is in our scope and we just can't rely on two years of graduate school to learn every single thing that we need to know.
So I think that, you know, it's time we take this into our own hands. It really doesn't take a ton of time and energy and effort, but learning a few key things will make such a big difference in your therapy.
How can a two‑day intensive training replace years of costly continuing‑education for sensory‑based SLP work?
And I will tell you, after I started putting regulation first, engagement first, intrinsic motivation first, my therapy transformed, my clients transformed, my confidence transformed. And this is something that took me years, lots of collaborating, took me tens of thousands of dollars. I'm not exaggerating about that because... You've probably never met someone who has paid more in the past for continuing education. I mean, I was doing as much as I possibly could. And when I first started my practice, I was seeing kids from 7 to 7, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and on the weekends. And I would go home and I would be up till like 11 o'clock doing administrative work or doing continuing education trainings. This was before I had children, so I had more time on my hands.
But there was just so much time and energy and effort and money that went into me being able to sit here and tell you all of the stuff that really made such a big difference for me. So what if I could give you all of the information that you need to make this huge leap in your therapy in just two days? Not years, not tens of thousands of dollars and hours and energy and collaborations, but you could get everything that you need in two days.
What will participants learn about assessing and implementing sensory strategies in speech sessions?
What if I could teach you how to assess a child's sensory needs so that you don't have to refer out every single time and wait for months to have a phone call to give you some pointers?
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
Why do therapists feel exhausted and ineffective after sessions with autistic kids?
0:00–1:16
2
How did the host break free from confidence‑crushing moments and start thinking outside the textbook?
1:16–2:00
3
What three core pillars (regulation, engagement, intrinsic motivation) transformed the host’s therapy practice?
2:00–3:02
4
How can a two‑day intensive training replace years of costly continuing‑education for sensory‑based SLP work?
3:02–4:28
5
What will participants learn about assessing and implementing sensory strategies in speech sessions?
4:28–6:12
6
Why is the Inside Out Live virtual event the ideal way to earn a sensory certificate quickly?
6:12–7:18
7
How can listeners support neurodiversity‑affirming approaches after the episode ends?
7:18–8:34
Speakers
1 identifiedMore from The NeuroAffirm Podcast
Ep. 125 How to Run Successful Social Groups
Ep. 124 Building Rapport Isn’t Enough...How Therapists Become Part of the Intervention
Ep. 123 Not Seeing Progress in Speech Therapy? Start Here.
Ep. 122 Screen Time Considerations for Autistic Kids
Ep. 121 The Biggest Sensory Mistakes SLPs Make
Ep. 120 Why Anxiety is So Common in Autism (And What Actually Helps)