Jide Macaulay’s Post

Living as a neurodivergent person in a world designed for neurotypicals is an ongoing struggle—where simple, everyday interactions can feel like insurmountable challenges. The pressure to conform, mask our true selves, and perform for acceptance leaves many of us exhausted and unseen. What we need isn’t ‘fixing’ but understanding. Empathy, accommodations, and genuine support can go a long way in creating a society that embraces differences and fosters inclusion. Let’s work toward a world where everyone is valued for who they truly are. #Neurodivergence #Inclusion #SocialChange #Empathy "Empathy is not contingent on being closely familiar with someone’s struggles... it is in accepting and understanding them, that is where we start with true kindness."

Our trustee, John Baker, has penned an insightful piece for the Male Psychology Magazine: "Families Need Fathers, Because Both Parents Matter". 💡 In this thought-provoking article, John explores the vital role both parents play in a child’s development and why supporting family relationships is essential for building a healthier, more balanced society. 💙👨👩👧👦 🌐 Dive into the full article here: https://lnkd.in/e2dse5Kc 📢 Join the conversation! What are your thoughts on the importance of both parents in a child’s life? Let us know in the comments below. 👇 #MalePsychology #FamilyMatters #Parenting #JohnBaker #FamiliesNeedFathers

In "Raising a Strong Daughter in a Toxic Culture," Dr. Meg Meeker offers guidance for parents navigating the challenges of raising daughters in the modern world and provides strategies to promote their happiness, health, and safety. here are 7 lessons from the book: 1. Building a Strong Parent-Daughter Bond: The book emphasizes the importance of a trusting and supportive relationship between parent and daughter. It offers strategies for fostering open communication and creating a safe space for your daughter to share her thoughts and feelings. 2. Cultivating Confidence and Self-Esteem: Meeker emphasizes the importance of fostering a strong sense of self-worth in your daughter. This involves helping her develop a healthy body image, positive self-esteem, and a clear understanding of her values. 3. The Power of Positive Relationships: The book highlights the importance of positive female role models in a girl's life. This could include mothers, grandmothers, aunts, or mentors who can provide guidance, support, and encouragement. 4. Understanding Boys and Men: Meeker offers insights into the world of boys and men, helping girls develop healthy relationships built on respect and communication. 5. Understanding Media Influences: The book explores the dangers of social media for young girls, including cyberbullying, unrealistic portrayals of life, and the pressure to conform. It provides strategies for parents to help their daughters navigate social media safely and responsibly. 6. The Importance of Open Communication: Meeker emphasizes the importance of open communication between parents and daughters. Creating a safe space for your daughter to talk about anything, from friendships to body image concerns, is crucial for building trust and fostering a healthy relationship. 7. Sex and Relationships: Early and Open Communication: The book encourages parents to have open and honest conversations with their daughters about sex and relationships, starting at a young age. This can help them make informed decisions and avoid risky behaviors.

In "Raising a Strong Daughter in a Toxic Culture," Dr. Meg Meeker offers guidance for parents navigating the challenges of raising daughters in the modern world and provides strategies to promote their happiness, health, and safety. here are 7 lessons from the book: 1. Building a Strong Parent-Daughter Bond: The book emphasizes the importance of a trusting and supportive relationship between parent and daughter. It offers strategies for fostering open communication and creating a safe space for your daughter to share her thoughts and feelings. 2. Cultivating Confidence and Self-Esteem: Meeker emphasizes the importance of fostering a strong sense of self-worth in your daughter. This involves helping her develop a healthy body image, positive self-esteem, and a clear understanding of her values. 3. The Power of Positive Relationships: The book highlights the importance of positive female role models in a girl's life. This could include mothers, grandmothers, aunts, or mentors who can provide guidance, support, and encouragement. 4. Understanding Boys and Men: Meeker offers insights into the world of boys and men, helping girls develop healthy relationships built on respect and communication. 5. Understanding Media Influences: The book explores the dangers of social media for young girls, including cyberbullying, unrealistic portrayals of life, and the pressure to conform. It provides strategies for parents to help their daughters navigate social media safely and responsibly. 6. The Importance of Open Communication: Meeker emphasizes the importance of open communication between parents and daughters. Creating a safe space for your daughter to talk about anything, from friendships to body image concerns, is crucial for building trust and fostering a healthy relationship. 7. Sex and Relationships: Early and Open Communication: The book encourages parents to have open and honest conversations with their daughters about sex and relationships, starting at a young age. This can help them make informed decisions and avoid risky behaviors.

TW: Self-harm, death, suicidal thoughts The story of Charlie Millers, a 17-year-old trans boy whose life was a testament to both incredible resilience and a heartbreaking reflection of the systemic failures we still face today, has me again reflecting on the urgent need for change. Charlie's story is a reminder of how feeling "worthless" and struggling with "feelings of shame" are not just personal battles but are exacerbated by how society, including healthcare systems, often treats transgender people. Despite being in a place that should have been his safe haven, Charlie was misgendered by healthcare staff, a form of disrespect that adds unnecessary trauma to an already difficult journey. His struggle with mental health from a young age, compounded by horrific experiences including acid attacks and bullying, speaks volumes about the societal acceptance and safety net we must all work towards. The fact that Charlie and two other young people lost their lives within nine months at the same hospital raises alarming questions about the mental health support provided, especially to vulnerable groups like ours. It's devastating to hear that despite the clear need for help, there were conflicts and a lack of action that ultimately meant Charlie didn't receive the support he needed to feel better. Hearing how Charlie's mother described him as an "amazing human" who had an impact on so many, despite his own struggles, is a reminder of the incredible potential lost due to systemic failures. His story is not just a call to action for better mental health support but a demand for respect, understanding, and inclusivity for transgender people. Let's use Charlie's story as a catalyst for change. It's time to push for more inclusive, respectful, and understanding healthcare and societal support systems that truly recognize and address the unique challenges faced by the trans community. No one should ever feel worthless, especially in spaces that are supposed to offer care and support. Let's honor Charlie's memory by advocating for a world where being transgender is no longer a battle for acceptance and survival. A world where stories like Charlie's become a thing of the past. Say his name - CHARLIE MILLERS #TransRightsAreHumanRights #MentalHealthAwareness #Inclusion #BeTheChange #DoBetter #CharlieMillers

I'm going to show you some pitfalls of over-defending yourself, as this is something people tend to do. The more you try to over-defend, the more you can appear reactive, emotional, or even guilty. Focus instead on proving your strengths as a parent or person - if you don't, you might end up reinforcing their false narrative. Over-defending wastes valuable time and energy. It can give credibility to allegations by focusing too much on them. Instead, highlight the lack of evidence in their claims and rely on patterns, not isolated events. Speaking of patterns, let's look at identifying behavior patterns. Watch for timing - are allegations made following particular patterns like birthdays, Christmas, Father's Day, Mother's Day, or hearings? These are typical trigger points. Use chronologies to plot these. Consider context - are claims escalating in severity or following a similar narrative? Let me share the evidence tracker, which I call the ABC (like when working with kids - what happened before, the behavior, and consequence). This helps identify patterns. Look at: What happened before the allegation? What was their behavior/retaliation? What category does it fit? What's been the impact? For example, a preceding incident might be notice of a hearing (legal behavior category). They might respond by making an allegation or involving the school. The consequence might be an investigation. Use this to prove patterns of alienating behavior, controlling behavior, or emotional abuse of adults or children. This is the system I use with my clients to track and document these patterns effectively. Win Your Case Against a Narcissist with Proven Strategies to Stop The Lies, Fight False Allegations and Protect Your Parental Rights - https://lnkd.in/eBQXEbPf

Parental alienation is non-gendered, but many can’t believe it happens to mothers as well as fathers. Societal norms have long portrayed the mother/child bond as lifelong and unbreakable. It is the mother who births and breastfeeds. Things have changed, but traditionally, it was the mother who reared and nurtured the child. So, in many ways, while the grief is terrible for all parents, the shame of ‘losing’ a child is worse for a mother if societal judgements are cast on the mother whose child rejects her. The other issue for mothers is that, through a feminist lens, only men are abusive. They say parental alienation is a ruse, a useful decoy by men to manipulate and continue their abuse of mothers. This leaves mothers who are alienated even more unsupported and unheard. For any parent, the lack of understanding about alienating behaviours is appalling. The experience/trauma of alienation is similar for all parents, except that alienating fathers often have another woman on board to assist their campaign of denigration against their ex. It might be a new wife, a mother, or sister. He may have thought her a wonderful mother for years, and then she’s morphed into someone who can’t be around the children for their own safety. Often there will have been other signs of domestic abuse or coercive control in a relationship long before the alienation took hold. This applies to both fathers and mothers. In all cases, the children will be encouraged and supported by one parent to criticise and judge the other parent. There will be lies, bribes, rewards, hot/cold controlling behaviour, and the child will take on the thoughts, beliefs and behaviours of the alienating parent. They will find their loved, loving parent deficient and wrong in many ways. Whatever was good will be found lacking. The alienating father or mother will be highly manipulative and convincing, but in fact, they’re often narcissistic and unable to love anyone but themselves (and they don’t really love themselves either, they have wounded egos). All this sounds bleak, and I want to give hope too. I’ve been through this, and I help many clients now. There is progress being made. More understanding, and research. It is painfully slow and it’s a mental health issue, not a legal issue (though it becomes one as we have no other option currently). Children want both parents who love them. Despite the alienating behaviours, the love is still there. They need you. Don’t give up hope. They’ve been psychologically abused and coerced into this terrible rejection. It wouldn’t have been their choice. They behave as they do out of survival and fear. Stay strong, focus on being resilient, happy, and there for the child who just needs to see the truth and break free. #charliemccready #parentalalienationcoach #parentalalienation #parentalalienationawareness #coparentingwithanarcissist #childcustody #childabuse #familycourt #fathersmatter #mothersmatter

Some reasons why we contemplate suicide as queer people (and why non-carceral support is so important) We might want to die because of: > Navigating violence and abuse perpetuated by homophobia and transphobia > Feeling intense distress from dysphoria and barriers to accessing gender affirming care > The internal conflict, shame, and guilt of internalized homophobia and transphobia > Being ostracized and rejected from family and others who were “supposed to” love us > Struggling to survive, materially and emotionally, in a world that oftentimes actively seeks to keep us out > Facing barriers to accessing basic needs such as healthcare, housing, employment, food, etc When the carceral mental health system also often perpetuates homophobia and transphobia, and isn’t knowledgeable around how our queer identities intersect with our trauma and other mental health needs and identities, then it makes sense that many of us face harm and trauma when we seek help, too. Having support that is rooted in consent, autonomy, and humanity, that affirms and understands our identities and their impact on our experiences in the world, allows us to care for and heal ourselves in the ways we need to. Join us next Thursday to Ask a Queer Peer Supporter! Drop-in Question Session with THRIVE + Stronger U teams. We expertly support queer folks in our communities through acute crises, identity-based needs, and chronic marginalization Details: Register at tinyurl.com/ask-queer-peer $10 cost 1 hour long June 27, 11:30p GMT / 7:30p ET / 4:30p PT Stronger U partners with THRIVE and uses a revenue sharing model, donating funds, peer support, and free training to THRIVE, which provides free anonymous mental heath and identity affirming lifeline conversations, including non-carceral suicide and self harm support. #MentalHealthSupport #PrideMonth #LGBTQ #Trans #Queer #TraumaInformed #CommunitySupport #PeerSupport #LivedExperience

Gender and Genius: How Parental Comments Could Ruin a Child’s Future! "What a shame you're just a girl!” and “What a shame your brother's not the clever one!" were two constant themes I heard repeatedly as a child. These are deeply hurtful examples of parental comments that can cause significant emotional and psychological trauma. The statements not only undermine a child's achievements by implying that their gender limits their value but also pit siblings against each other, fostering an environment of competition and resentment rather than support and pride. This type of language can contribute to a distorted self-image and diminished self-esteem. For a girl excelling academically, to be told her accomplishments are overshadowed merely by her gender, sends a damaging message about her worth and potential. Simultaneously, it unfairly burdens her brother with expectations he may not meet, affecting his self-confidence. Labeling these comments as parental abuse is appropriate because they manipulate and belittle, potentially leading to long-term psychological issues such as anxiety, depression, and identity struggles. Children look to their parents for validation and support; when they receive conditional acceptance instead, it can leave lasting scars. To counteract such negative impacts, it's crucial for parents to celebrate their children's successes without qualifiers related to gender or comparison to others. Encouragement should foster individual strengths and personal growth, contributing to a nurturing and affirmative family environment. #ChildhoodTrauma #ParentalAbuse #GenderBias #SiblingRivalry #EmotionalAbuse #MentalHealthAwareness #PsychologicalImpact #SupportingGirls #HealthyParenting #EndGenderStereotypes

Many of my followers know that I am impassioned when it comes to inclusivity for the #neurodivergent. This stems from my own experiences as the mom to a son on the spectrum. The other day, while he was driving home from the supermarket, a vehicle sped around my son who was stopped at a stop sign, nearly causing an accident with a vehicle crossing the intersection. My son proceeded to the next intersection and was sitting at the same traffic light as the aggressive driver and the man rolled down his window and threatened my son. My son came home shaking and not understanding what he "did" wrong. While I assured my son that he did nothing wrong and some people are just loose cannons, it did cause me pause about how I let my son into the world to drive alone. He inherently believes everyone is good, everything is clearcut, every reaction stems from an appropriate action, etc. The idea that the world isn't as cut and dry can be challenging to explain. I began doing research on "driving with autism". There is not a tremendous amount out there about the "do's and don't's" other than what we would share with any driver. (And, trust me! I have shared everything I could think of with my son.) It had me thinking, though, about how my son would react had the matter escalated and inevitably involved the police. What would he say? How would he act? Would he be deemed suspicious by an officer for his behavior? Then I began researching ways an officer could identify someone who is neurodivergent. I could not find ANYTHING that provides an officer with the knowledge he would need to interact with someone on the spectrum. This, in my opinion, is dangerous and requires more thought. I may seek to converse with Nish Parikh and Hetal Parikh for insight, or try to connect with Hidden Disabilities Sunflower 🌻🇺🇸🇨🇦 - North America or the Pennsylvania State Police to see if we can't create a simple but effective way to help police and the neurodiverse community establish a quiet indicator that special circumstances may be warranted in police-involved traffic incidents. Thoughts? What do you suggest? #neurodiversity #inclusion #autism #protection