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  • ADHD

    Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD) – Understanding Intense Emotions

    Imagine feeling an intense wave of emotion wash over you at the slightest hint of criticism or rejection. For many, this experience is all too familiar and can be overwhelming. Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD) is a condition that goes beyond typical feelings of disappointment; it can lead to profound emotional turmoil. Understanding RSD is crucial for those who navigate life with heightened sensitivity to rejection, especially within the context of ADHD. As we delve deeper into this topic, we’ll explore what RSD truly entails, its signs and symptoms, examine its causes, and discover how it intertwines with emotional dysregulation. Whether you’re experiencing these feelings yourself or seeking to support someone who does, gaining insight into Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria will help illuminate a path towards understanding [...]
  • Arts

    The Artist

    Poem by Elizabeth Ruben   Over the sparkling city I shall build A bridge Of prism glass   And the rainbows Of this overpass Will enchant The passers by   For the arch Over the heavens Has now been Rendered   By human hand The rainbow’s seven And now with Pride I stand   My inner beauty Once expressed Outside, that The river’s gentle tide   Shall play the Music of my heart when The harshness of this world Tears me apart.   Elizabeth Ruben is a neurodivergent writer who has always had an affinity with the written word. Her predilection for poetry can be attributed to her upbringing, with parents who introduced her to both literature and music. For her, poetry is a convergence [...]
  • General

    Living My Life More Authentically Autistic by Dr Trish Leonard-Curtin

    Over the last year I’ve been on a path of understanding myself and my place in the world in an entirely different way than before. Last year I received my autism diagnosis, and earlier this year, it was confirmed that I also have ADHD. Finally, in my early forties, I now have a language and understanding of experiences which have confused me my whole life. Somewhere at last to sensibly organise that bundle of personal oddities and self-enquiries I’d buried deep inside and tried to cover up. For the most part, when I was young, I got by okay enough. In childhood, it was socially acceptable for me to daydream, say random stuff and escape to a make-believe world in my mind. Mostly, I could [...]
  • Featured

    What is Wellness?

    by Barb Cook M.Aut.(Edu), Dip.HSc.(Nut), Developmental Educator, Integrative Neurodivergent Nutritionist & Adult ADHD Coach We all need energy. How we obtain it however can come from a variety of sources. We can get energy from food which gives us calories to burn, sleep which restores our mental and physical wellbeing so we have energy to do things throughout the day, and from doing things we enjoy. Looking at all the different ways to obtain energy has me thinking about the necessity of food. Food provides our bodies with fuel as well as sustaining life. Over the past few decades, we have seen an enormous increase in food choices, but a decline in health as obesity, diabetes, coronary heart disease and cancer rise in increasing numbers. [...]
  • Arts

    ‘What I (Don’t) Know About Autism’ – Interview with Jody O’Neill

      Interview by Maura Campbell, Spectrum Women Features Writer. When writer and actor Jody O’Neill reached out to Spectrum Women about ‘What I (Don’t) Know About Autism’, I couldn’t resist getting in touch with her to find out more about the woman behind this groundbreaking Irish theatre production (soon to be available on demand). Performed by a cast of autistic and non-autistic actors and inspired by Jody’s own experiences, the play takes the audience on a journey that celebrates autistic identity and offers deeper insights to those less familiar with autism, smashing some tired old myths along the way.   What led to you being professionally identified as autistic? I received my diagnosis in June of 2019, but I had already realised I was autistic [...]
Featured

What Is Self-Care (Really)? A Neuroaffirming Perspective by Barb Cook

by Spectrum Women in Featured

From the Spectrum Women community Self-care is often presented as universal, but for autistic, ADHD, and AuDHD people, it rarely reflects real bodies, real energy, or real nervous systems. In this piece, Barb Cook offers a neuroaffirming perspective on self-care that moves beyond productivity, pressure, and “doing more,” and instead centres lived experience, regulation, and sustainability. Read the article on Barb Cook’s website HERE.

Autistic & ADHD Women: Midlife, Menopause & Burnout 3 Course Bundle Only $160

8 hours of course presentations, 3 professional development certificates, presentation slides and links to resources. 90 days access. Learn at your own pace.

Three powerful courses for autistic/ADHD women: midlife diagnosis, hormonal changes and burnout recovery. Learn what’s happening, why it feels so intense and how to support your wellbeing with practical tools and strategies.

BOOKS

Pity? Ugh! by Lisa Morgan M.Ed. CAS

**Content warning: suicide I had a service provider working with one of my sons say they were ‘sorry’ to me the other day.  This person hadn’t done anything wrong – until their apology.  They were ‘sorry’ for the state of my life.  Sorry… for my life being the way it is as far as they understood it! Yes, parenting as an autistic adult is difficult.  (I imagine parenting as a non autistic adult is difficult [...]

‘What I (Don’t) Know About Autism’ – Interview with Jody O’Neill

  Interview by Maura Campbell, Spectrum Women Features Writer. When writer and actor Jody O’Neill reached out to Spectrum Women about ‘What I (Don’t) Know About Autism’, I couldn’t resist getting in touch with her to find out more about the woman behind this groundbreaking Irish theatre production (soon to be available on demand). Performed by a cast of autistic and non-autistic actors and inspired by Jody’s own experiences, the play takes the audience on a journey that celebrates autistic identity and offers deeper insights to those less familiar with autism, smashing some tired old myths along the way.   [...]

Reducing Workplace Stress: Working Together on Self-Care by Barb Cook, M.Aut., Dip.HSc.

How often do we hear ourselves saying “I just need to finish this job and then I can take a break”, or “If I can get this project finished, I can then take a couple of days off”? When we tell ourselves this over and over again, without taking action to ‘look after ourselves’, the cracks inevitably will begin to appear. The internal motivation of “I’ll get this job done, then I can…”, becomes the ultimate words of dread, with the “then I can…” [...]
Featured

THE TOP TEN THINGS PARENTS SHOULD KNOW ABOUT GIRLS ON THE SPECTRUM

March 8, 2018

Feature photo: Becca Lory with her mom ©Becca Lory 2018 A Spectrum Women collaboration, edited by Maura Campbell In honour of International Women’s Day, the Spectrum Women writers have compiled a list of things we think it’s particularly important for parents or carers of girls on the autism spectrum to know. 1. Recognise how autism presents differently in girls In adult studies, the 4:1 male/female ratio in autism diagnosis disappears. This means autistic girls are not rare. Persist when they say so. Look for intensity and insistence on sameness. Many of our behaviours are quite typical but we won’t choose to […]

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Becca Lory, CAS, BCCS

Autism consultant, speaker, author, advocate, life coach. For more information please visit: www.beccalory.com.

Featured

What Is Self-Care (Really)? A Neuroaffirming Perspective by Barb Cook

January 14, 2026

From the Spectrum Women community Self-care is often presented as universal, but for autistic, ADHD, and AuDHD people, it rarely reflects real bodies, real energy, or real nervous systems. In this piece, Barb Cook offers a neuroaffirming perspective on self-care that moves beyond productivity, pressure, and “doing more,” and instead centres lived experience, regulation, and sustainability. Read the article on Barb Cook’s website HERE.

Featured

It’s Not A Personality Problem by Mary P. Donahue, Ph.D.

January 8, 2021

Recently I was asked to sit in on a meeting between an autistic parent and the managers of her child’s home mental health support team. The parent was having trouble communicating her concerns to the in-home supports. It had become frustrating for both mom and team, and services had ceased. Mom wanted to continue finding ways to help her son and also had to have information from the managers to help her process what had happened. Though considered a neurotypical person, I am fortunate to have some ability to translate between the neuro-typical and autism worlds. So I went. Holy […]

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