No dyslexia tutors, so this mom became one

No dyslexia tutors, so this mom became one

Melena Blanton is a clinical psychologist and mom of two neurodivergent kids in Eastern Kentucky. She’s had to fight through lack of resources and small town prejudice to get her kids the help they need. That’s meant driving hours for evaluations, training as a tutor herself, and building a scrappy sisterhood of moms doing the impossible. This is what advocacy looks like when the system is broken. For more on this topic:  * Watch: First-generation parents, neurodivergent kids, and redefining excellence [https://youtu.be/l3YdrcvWJKk?si=gnNHvYggQgM56lMa] * Read: Barton System: What you need to know [https://www.understood.org/en/articles/barton-reading-program-what-you-need-to-know] For a transcript and more resources, visit Everyone Gets a Juice Box on Understood.org [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/everyone-gets-a-juice-box/adhd-dyslexia-kentucky]. You can also email us at podcast@understood.org [podcast@understood.org]. Understood.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give [https://www.understood.org/en/donate?sc=EGAJB0126AUD&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_source=podcast&utm_campaign=fundraising-agn-aud-egajb&utm_content=episode] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hyperfocus: PMDD: Why women with ADHD are 4x more likely to struggle

In this episode of our sister show Hyperfocus, listener Jenna Plonsky opens a raw conversation about ADHD, late diagnosis, and the mental health struggles many women face in silence.  From postpartum depression to PMDD, this episode explores how hormonal shifts intersect with neurodivergence — and why so many go undiagnosed for decades. It’s an honest look at shame, self-perception, and the turning point that comes with finally understanding your brain. For more on this topic * Watch: Did my ADHD make me more likely to have postpartum depression? [https://youtu.be/sXnM1qSDtoE?si=ci38-fw2Aks2NEZB] * Listen: ADHD and: Hormones [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/missunderstood/adhd-and-hormones] For a transcript and more resources, visit Hyperfocus on Understood.org [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/hyperfocus/adhd-and-pmdd]. You can also email us at hyperfocus@understood.org [hyperfocus@understood.org] . Understood.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give [https://www.understood.org/en/donate?sc=EGAJB0126AUD&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_source=podcast&utm_campaign=fundraising-agn-aud-egajb&utm_content=episode] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How neurodivergent kids helped build a better children’s museum

Rainy Saturdays just got a whole lot better. Leslie Bushara, chief program officer of the Children’s Museum of Manhattan, reveals how she’s taking notes from neurodivergent kids and their parents to build a space that’s welcoming to every kind of learner, including yours. From muted paint colors to reimagined animations, Leslie shares what happens when you actually listen to kids.  For more on this topic  * Watch: First-generation parents, neurodivergent kids, and redefining excellence [https://youtu.be/l3YdrcvWJKk?si=SzsO1NXR74l4Pb7y] * Listen: The hidden grief of parenting a neurodivergent kid [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/everyone-gets-a-juice-box/adhd-grief-parenting] For a transcript and more resources, visit Everyone Gets a Juice Box on Understood.org [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/everyone-gets-a-juice-box/neurodivergent-childrens-museum]. You can also email us at podcast@understood.org [podcast@understood.org]. Understood.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give [https://www.understood.org/en/donate?sc=EGAJB0126AUD&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_source=podcast&utm_campaign=fundraising-agn-aud-egajb&utm_content=episode] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

First-gen parents, neurodivergent kids, and redefining excellence

Alison Cho grew up in a tight-knit Korean American family where Harvard and medical school weren’t just dreams, they were expectations. Alison had undiagnosed ADHD and autism, and she often felt like she was letting her parents down. Now she’s raising two neurodivergent kids of her own. And she’s navigating the same cultural expectations she grew up with, this time as the parent. In this funny and tender interview, Alison explores what she wants to keep from her upbringing — and what she wants to leave behind. For more on this topic * Listen: Meltdowns, mysteries, and multiple diagnoses [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/everyone-gets-a-juice-box/managing-multiple-diagnoses] * Watch: We didn’t know we had ADHD. Then motherhood hit. [https://youtu.be/7ggyZQlENbE?si=2oxpTfvkXk5av9c0] For a transcript and more resources, visit Everyone Gets a Juice Box on Understood.org [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/everyone-gets-a-juice-box/first-generation-neurodivergent-parenting]. You can also email us at podcast@understood.org. Understood.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give [https://www.understood.org/en/donate?sc=EGAJB0126AUD&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_source=podcast&utm_campaign=fundraising-agn-aud-egajb&utm_content=episode] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We didn’t know we had ADHD. Then motherhood hit.

Two experts in ADHD went decades without realizing they had it themselves. Katie Severson, a speech pathologist, and Lori Long, a child psychologist, co-run The Childhood Collective and host the Shining With ADHD podcast. But both received their own ADHD diagnoses only after becoming mothers. They talk about late diagnosis, the shame that came before it, and how it shapes their parenting.   For more on this topic * Listen: Shining With ADHD [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/shining-with-adhd-by-the-childhood-collective/id1669863601] * Watch: I’m an ADHD expert. My kid still can’t get help. [https://youtu.be/6v6_xDUazDE?si=tf0WeXM70GbKoVcy] For a transcript and more resources, visit Everyone Gets a Juice Box on Understood.org [https://www.understood.org/en/podcasts/everyone-gets-a-juice-box/adhd-late-diagnosis-parenting]. You can also email us at podcast@understood.org [podcast@understood.org]. Understood.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering people with learning and thinking differences, like ADHD and dyslexia. If you want to help us continue this work, donate at understood.org/give [https://www.understood.org/en/donate?sc=EGAJB0126AUD&utm_medium=shownotes&utm_source=podcast&utm_campaign=fundraising-agn-aud-egajb&utm_content=episode] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com [https://pcm.adswizz.com] for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.