Autism Archives

When Rest Isn’t About Stopping: Low-Energy Movement, Sensory Input, and Working Sustainably as a Neurodivergent Adult

There are weeks where the body and brain feel flat — not unmotivated, not burned out, just tired. The kind of tired that doesn’t respond to a coffee, a snack, or a short break away from the screen. As a self-employed neurodivergent professional, these weeks can feel particularly uncomfortable. There’s work to do. Clients to support. …

Self-care has become one of those phrases that’s everywhere — often reduced to bubble baths, gym routines, or advice that assumes everyone has the same energy, body, and nervous system. For many autistic, ADHD, and AuDHD people, that version of self-care simply doesn’t fit. For me, self-care isn’t about doing more, fixing myself, or forcing …

By Barb Cook, M.Aut (Ed.).,Dip.HSc (Nut.). Registered Developmental Educator | Integrative Nutritionist | Accredited Athletics Coach As our understanding of autism, ADHD and dyslexia continues to grow, so does the need for professional development that reflects it. Neuroaffirming professional learning goes beyond awareness. It challenges old frameworks, celebrates neurological diversity, and provides practical ways to …

Many autistic people learn early to hide parts of themselves. Not because there is something wrong with who they are, but because the world often responds poorly to difference. Masking and camouflaging are survival strategies. They develop in environments where misunderstanding, judgment, or exclusion are common, and where being visibly different can feel unsafe. Over …

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 (often shortened to RSD) describes intense emotional pain triggered by perceived or actual rejection, criticism, or disapproval. It is a condition that …

Join Barb Cook, Nicole Rogerson and Dr James Best with Hireup for a two part series on Autism and the NDIS. This session is on first time autism diagnosis and where to find the right information. Length 58:07:00 Date 10 November 2021 About this recording: Have you/your child recently received an autism diagnosis and you’re …

WATCH BELOW In conversation with Barb Cook. Austism – Autism Awareness Australia, Brisbane State Library, Qld, Australia. 23rd March 2021 Duration: 29 minutes 48 seconds

Barb Cook on the Autism Journey’s Podcast

Barb Cook is an autistic female, formally identified on the autism spectrum along with ADHD and phonological dyslexia in 2009 at the age of 40. Barb is founder and editor in chief of Spectrum Women Magazine and editor and co-author of Spectrum Women: Walking to the Beat of Autism, published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers. In …

You can read the transcript HERE. In this episode we meet Barb Cook, a regional Queensland-based writer, academic, developmental educator and autism advocate. Barb has autism, ADHD and dyslexia, but like many of her generation wasn’t diagnosed until well into adulthood. She says the diagnosis was a relief, and a chance for a whole new …