Cognitive Conversations #4: Out of the Box: Navigating Neurodivergence with Madonna King

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Out of the Box: Navigating Neurodivergence is a one-stop guide covering pre-school to early adulthood, from classroom to workplace; it is both compact and compelling for its concise, accessible language and inclusive storytelling. In this exclusive interview with SWN, co-author and renowned journalist Madonna King introduces us to Out of the Box, and how it came together through harnessing the power of community and own voices. This is a timely call-to-action and much-needed insight into navigating neurodivergence from a range of perspectives: parents, carers, teachers and expert researchers and educators, and most importantly, voices from the neurodivergent community.

Topics covered in this interview include:

• viewing neurodivergence as a “colour wheel” rather than a linear spectrum
• adjacent explanations, such as anxiety and depression, OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder) and PDA (pathological demand avoidance). 
• various traits and behaviours associated with autism and ADHD, such as masking or camouflaging, meltdowns, and stimming. 
• why there is no “one size fits all” strategy when it comes to our neurodiverse population, and why neurodiversity should be recognised, supported and embraced as a difference, not as a disorder to “fix”or change. 

Co-authored by teen educator and host of ABC’s Parental As Anything, Rebecca Sparrow, Out of the Box is “the only Australian book that brings together expert advice, lived experience, interviews and up-to-date resources to help neurodivergent children thrive.”

Join us, as we embark on this fascinating, mind-opening and neuro affirming conversation. 

Meet our guest: Madonna King

Madonna’s work as a journalist, author and speaker spans politics, business and social policy. She has chaired panels around Australia, written twelve books and advises corporations and governments on understanding teenage girls, the subject of her most recent books, Being 14 (2017), Fathers and Daughters (2018) and Ten-Ager (2021). Connect with Madonna: Instagram | Website.  

Purchase your copy of Out of The Box online, or from your local independent bookshop, and explore more online resources via rebeccasparrow.com

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We acknowledge the Jaegara and Turrbal People, Traditional Owners of the land on which this podcast is created, and the unceded cultural lands on which our guests live and continue to make and tell stories.