Believing Mothers: The Realities of Profound Autism & Disability Care with Liv Rojo

Profound Autism Mom Sarah Kernion sits down with Olivia Rojo (@praying_though_autism), an fellow autism mom and advocate, to discuss the unfiltered truth of caregiving and the lived experiences of families navigating profound autism.

Olivia shares what it means to be both mother and caregiver—to fight for inclusion, navigate systemic challenges, and still find beauty in small moments of connection. Together, she and Sarah explore how believing mothers is a crucial act of respect within the neurodiversity movement and the broader disability conversation.

The discussion highlights the importance of community, the necessity of self-care, and the quiet strength found in honesty. This episode is both a love letter to caregivers and a rallying cry for visibility—because every story of autism deserves to be heard and believed.

Key Takeaways:

• Believing mothers and caregivers is inclusion in action.
• The truth about profound autism must be told, not softened.
• Community and autism support networks ease the weight of caregiving.
• Self-care sustains caregivers and strengthens family bonds.
• Every act of honesty deepens understanding of autism parenting.
• Hope and beauty coexist with challenge in daily caregiving life.
• Advocacy rooted in truth leads to justice in disability care

Chapters

• (00:00:00) - Praying Through Autism
• (00:05:47) - Beyond Autism: The Terms We Use
• (00:11:28) - Beyond Autism: The neurodiversity movement
• (00:17:21) - Autism mom on her own journey
• (00:23:55) - Kat on Autism and Self-Care
• (00:28:54) - Why I Fight For My Daughter's Autism