TPP 393: Dr. Mel Houser on Navigating the Healthcare System as a Neurodivergent Person

TILT Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children

Debbie Reber

Education, Parenting, Kids & Family

4.8 • 983 Ratings

🗓️ 23 July 2024

⏱️ 48 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

For some people, going to the doctor isn’t as simple as going to the doctor. In fact, for many parents of neurodivergent kids, and for many neurodivergent people themselves, interacting with healthcare systems requires researching, planning, and strategizing ahead of time in the hopes of a smooth appointment. Unfortunately, all too often, medical appointments are uncomfortable, stressful, and in some cases traumatic, because they environments and approaches to healthcare aren’t neurodivergent affirming. As a result, traditional healthcare models often fail their neurodivergent patients, which is why today’s conversation is so important, as my guest is a doctor who is passionate about changing medical practices to be more neuroinclusive and community-based on this episode. Dr. Mel Houser is a family physician and Founder and Executive Director of All Brains Belong VT, a nonprofit organization in Montpelier, Vermont with a mission to support the health and belonging of people with all types of brains. All Brains Belong has pioneered an innovative model that integrates medical care with social connection, employment support, and community education. In this conversation, Mel introduced me to the All Brains Belong Vermont, a revolutionary community-driven healthcare model that goes beyond medical care. We also talked about why the traditional healthcare system often fails neurodivergent patients and the serious consequences when they opt out of the medical system, the critical need for healthcare to address not just physical, but also social and emotional needs, and practical strategies on advocating for better healthcare, from understanding access needs and requesting accommodations to challenging the defaults of the current system. About Dr. Mel Houser Dr. Mel Houser is a family physician and Founder and Executive Director of All Brains Belong VT, a nonprofit organization in Montpelier, Vermont with a mission to support the health and belonging of people with all types of brains. All Brains Belong has pioneered an innovative model that integrates medical care with social connection, employment support, and community education. Things you'll learn How all Brains Belong Vermont has developed a community-driven healthcare model that integrates medical care with social connection and employment support Why the traditional healthcare system often fails neurodivergent patients What the consequences are when neurodivergent people opt out of the medical system Why it’s critical that healthcare address patients' social and emotional needs What universal design for healthcare is and how it can improve experiences for neurodivergent people How we can all advocate for better healthcare by learning about access needs, requesting accommodations, and challenging system defaults Resources mentioned All Brains Belong (Dr. Mel Houser’s website) All Brains Belong on Instagram All Brains Belong on Facebook Dr. Mel Houser on LinkedIn All Brains Belong Resource, ALL THE THINGS (Free resource for navigating neurodivergent healthcare) All Brains Belong Kid Connections (Free customized friend-making program for kids age 4-17 based on shared interests) Everything is Connected to Everything: Improving the Healthcare of Autistic & ADHD Patients Brain Club: (Weekly virtual community education program for older teens & adults) Practical Strategies for Neuroinclusive Healthcare (webinar) Milton’s ‘double Empathy Problem’: A Summary for Non-academics Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Summer can be such a tricky time for parents of differently wired kids.
0:04.0	Finding ways to keep kids active and learning over the break,
0:07.0	whether at home or on vacation, it can be hard.
0:10.0	Fat Brain Toys is a family-run business that has been curating and creating quality toys, games, and gifts that both entertain and educate for more than 20 years.
0:19.0	Almost all of Fat Brains toys and games are screen free, and what I love about them is they encourage kids to get creative and explore the world around them through open-ended play.
0:29.0	I'm especially drawn to this really cool product called Mr. Bendy. It's a sturdy yet bendable
0:33.9	figure with poseable arms, legs and eyes. It comes with wax bendy sticks that you can
0:39.0	use to turn Mr. Bendy into really anything an astronaut, a guitarist, a pirate pirate and you can play it as a game
0:45.2	with the sand timer and game tokens or you can set those aside and just engage in
0:50.2	open-ended play to explore things like spatial reasoning, creativity, and observation skills.
0:55.6	I think what I love most about Mr. Bendy is it offers an easy and fun way for parents to connect
1:00.3	with and support their neuro-diversein kids in exploring social and
1:03.9	emotional learning. Also, you know that I love a mission-driven company. Well,
1:08.2	Fat Brain Toys is made up of families who want to make life better for
1:11.5	other families.
1:12.6	It was founded out of the desire of two parents
1:15.0	to provide better play experiences for their kids,
1:17.5	so their aim is to support you in doing the same.
1:20.2	Fatreen is a new sponsor of Tilt Parenting and they've put together a collection of toys for our families.
1:25.3	Go to W.W. dot Fat Brain Toys.com slash tilt to get 10% off all the items in the tilt collection
1:33.2	when you use the code tilt at checkout
1:35.3	and find out for yourself why fat brain toys
	...

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