Complicated Kids

Hard conversations do not have to fry your child's nervous system or yours.
In this episode, I sit down with psychologist and clinical director Dr. Jaclyn Halpern from Playful Therapy Connections to talk about how to support sensitive and neurodivergent kids when hard things are happening at home or in the world. We walk through what to do when your child brings you a big, scary question, why you do not have to answer right away, and how to be honest without dumping adult sized fear onto kid sized nervous systems. Jaclyn shares concrete ways to ground yourself, listen first, and give just enough information in bite sized pieces.
We also explore why many neurodivergent kids feel the world's pain so intensely, how justice sensitivity and black and white thinking show up, and what to do when everyone's nervous system is already on edge. You will hear us talk about yellow light moments, all or nothing thinking as a clue that you are flipped, how to limit news in a way that protects everyone, and why joy is not denial but fuel. This is a practical, compassionate conversation for grown ups who want to tell the truth, protect their kids, and stay "okay enough" to make a difference.
Key Takeaways
You can slow down before you answer. When your child drops a hard question in your lap, your first job is not to get the words perfect. Your first job is to check in with your own body, ground yourself, and listen. You are allowed to say, "Thank you for telling me. I need a little time to think about this and then we can talk again."
Listening comes before explaining. Starting with "What have you heard?" or "What do you know about this?" helps you hear their version of the story before you jump in. This shows respect, reduces the urge to lecture, and lets you gently correct misinformation instead of flooding them with extra details.
Neurodivergent kids often feel things more intensely. Many complicated kids have nervous systems that are already turned up and a strong sense of justice. Hard news can hit them harder. Knowing this helps you understand why they may seem "extra" worried, angry, or activated and reminds you to keep your language clear, concrete, and contained.
You do not have to fake being fine. Kids are very good at knowing when we are pretending. It is more regulating for them if you can say some version of "I am having a hard time, and I am getting support. This is not about you and it is not your job to fix it" than to paste on a smile and pretend nothing is wrong.
Honesty should be bite sized and age appropriate. Share the basics of what is happening in simple language, then pause and see what they ask. You can put the situation in a bigger frame by talking about history, science, illness, migration, or government without turning it into a scary deep dive.
All or nothing thinking is a nervous system clue. When you or your child are stuck in "there are only two options" or "nothing we do matters," that is a sign of a flipped nervous system. That is your reminder to slow down, regulate, and widen the lens before you try to problem solve or offer solutions.
Action helps with helplessness, even if it is small. You and your child cannot fix the world, but you can do something. That might look like learning more, writing a letter, donating, attending a peaceful event, or being extra kind in your own community. Small, values based actions help sensitive kids feel less stuck.
Limit news exposure for you and your child. Constant breaking news and scrolling keep nervous systems on high alert. Be intentional about when and how you take in information, turn off background news, use parental controls, and decide what sources feel trustworthy and manageable.
Joy is not denial, it is fuel. Finding small moments of joy is not disrespectful to suffering. It is how we remember what we are protecting. For you and your child, joy might be a favorite snack, a silly song, time with a pet, movement, or a moment outside. Those tiny joys refill the spoons you need to keep going.
Repair is always on the table. You will not get every hard conversation "right." When you look back and wish you had done it differently, you can go back and say so. Naming your own fumbles and showing your child how you course correct is part of the support, not a failure of it.
About Dr. Jaclyn Halpern
Dr. Jaclyn Halpern is a licensed psychologist and former elementary education teacher who has worked in private practice since 2010. She has extensive experience as a clinical director, evaluator, therapist, parent coach, and supervisor. As Partner and Clinical Director of Psychology at Playful Therapy Connections, she supports clinical staff to provide empathic, strengths based, neurodiversity affirming care that is culturally competent, trauma informed, and grounded in current neuroscience and psychological research. Her primary focus is helping clients and supervisees navigate neurodiversity in affirming, practical ways across the lifespan.
About Your Host, Gabriele Nicolet
I'm Gabriele Nicolet, toddler whisperer, speech therapist, parenting life coach, and host of Complicated Kids. Each week, I share practical, relationship-based strategies for raising kids with big feelings, big needs, and beautifully different brains. My goal is to help families move from surviving to thriving by building connection, confidence, and clarity at home.
Complicated Kids Resources and Links
🌎 www.gabrielenicolet.com
📅 Schedule a free intro call
📺 Subscribe on YouTube
👾 Tell the Story (anti-anxiety tool)
➡️ Instagram
➡️ Facebook
➡️ LinkedIn
🌺 Free "Orchid Kid" Checklist
Enjoying the show?
If Complicated Kids has been helpful, the best way to support the podcast is to follow, rate, and leave a quick review. It helps other parents find the show—and it means a lot.
If there's a topic you'd love to hear covered on a future episode, reach out at [email protected]. I love hearing what's on your mind and what would support your family.
Thank you for being here. 💛

A nervous-system-level reframe on raising neurodivergent teens without burning yourself out.
When you're parenting a neurodivergent teen, it can feel like everyone is looking at your child and nobody is looking at what is happening to you. Your nervous system is on high alert, school feels confusing, and the stakes feel sky high. In this conversation, I'm talking with former special education teacher and teen coach Emily Griswold about why the path forward starts with taking care of yourself and widening the circle of support around your teen.
Emily shares what she learned from years in DC public schools, a nervous-system crash of her own, and now working directly with neurodivergent teens and the adults who love them. We talk about how teenage brains are wired for both risk and retreat, why behavior is often more about fear of failure than defiance, and how community care, clear boundaries, and shared problem-solving can shift the whole dynamic at home and at school.
Key Takeaways
Teenage brains are remodeling, not misbehaving. Teens are wired to push away, experiment, and figure out who they are separate from caregivers, which can look like risk seeking or total shutdown depending on the kid.
Neurodivergent teens carry extra "failure history." Many have already bumped into more criticism, misunderstanding, and systems that don't fit them, so the cost of trying something new feels higher and the fear of failing again is real.
Your nervous system is part of the environment. If you're always in crisis mode, your teen feels that too. Looking at your own regulation, support, and capacity is not selfish; it is part of their support plan.
Community care is not optional. As Emily puts it, shouting "self-care" at people who really need community care misses the point. Parents and educators need other adults, not just better bubble baths.
Teens learn more from what you model than what you say. When you show them your calendar, your goals, your limits, and how you get help, you are quietly teaching them how to build a life that works for their brain too.
Letting teens be the expert builds connection. Inviting their ideas, letting them teach you a strategy, or asking for their help with something you're working on gives them agency and softens power struggles.
"Black beans in brownies" is a useful metaphor. Real growth often happens inside everyday life: screen-time experiments you do together, shared boundary-setting, and small shifts that feel doable instead of dramatic.
Most behavior is not about you. When you can remember that 90% of behavior is about what is happening in your child's body and brain, it gets a little easier to pause, take things less personally, and choose a different response.
Boundaries keep everyone safer. Saying "Nope, I have book group tonight" with clarity and warmth teaches your teen that you're a whole person, not an on-demand service. That's good for them and for you.
If your brain insists there are only two options, something's up. All-or-nothing thinking is a sign your own nervous system is flipped. That is your cue to pause, breathe, move, or reach out so you can get back to flexible problem-solving.
About Emily Griswold
Emily Griswold is a former special education teacher who spent a decade in DC public schools before founding two businesses: Left of Center Coaching, where she supports neurodivergent teens and their families through success coaching and confidence-building, and 1111 Wellness, which focuses on teacher well-being and retention. Her work sits at the intersection of nervous-system support, practical strategy, and community care so that teens and the adults around them can thrive.
About Your Host, Gabriele Nicolet
I'm Gabriele Nicolet, toddler whisperer, speech therapist, parenting life coach, and host of Complicated Kids. Each week, I share practical, relationship-based strategies for raising kids with big feelings, big needs, and beautifully different brains. My goal is to help families move from surviving to thriving by building connection, confidence, and clarity at home.
Resources & Links
🌎 www.gabrielenicolet.com
📅 Schedule a free intro call
📺 YouTube Channel
👾 Tell the Story (anti-anxiety tool)
➡️ Instagram
➡️ Facebook
➡️ LinkedIn
🌺 Orchid Kid Checklist
Enjoying the show?
If Complicated Kids has been helpful, the best way to support the podcast is to follow, rate, and leave a quick review. It helps other parents find the show—and it means a lot.
If there's a topic you'd love to hear covered on a future episode, reach out at [email protected]. I love hearing what's on your mind and what would support your family.
Thank you for being here. 💛

Regulation starts with you, not your child.
In this conversation, I talk with Lisa Candera, single mom of a now-adult son with autism, profound OCD, and anxiety, about what it actually means to "regulate yourself first." Lisa shares how a long stretch of crisis during the pandemic pushed her to the edge and forced her to find ways to stay grounded in the middle of 911 calls, hospitalizations, and daily meltdowns.
We unpack what regulation looks like in real life—pausing instead of rushing in, counting a three-out-of-ten success rate as a huge win, and getting honest about the stories that drive our reactions, especially the "I am failing my child" soundtrack. Lisa talks about turning her parked car into a "car office" for safety and space, setting clear boundaries around aggression, and shifting from lecturing in the moment to making a plan when everyone is calmer.
We also talk about raising teens with big emotions and neurodivergent brains. Lisa names the pressure parents feel to foster independence, the fear of "enabling," and the reality that a fifteen-year-old with autism may not be developmentally fifteen. Together we explore scaffolding, praising effort and emerging skills, and holding a both-and: your child is struggling, and you deserve support and compassion too.
Key Takeaways
Regulation starts with you, not your child.
Lisa describes regulation as moving from constantly losing your temper to feeling more grounded and able to respond. You don't have to be calm all the time—small shifts in your reactions can dramatically change the dynamic.
A three-out-of-ten success rate is already a big deal.
Instead of expecting yourself to get it right every time, Lisa suggests aiming for three regulated responses out of ten. Those moments might happen within minutes, and they still count.
Pausing interrupts the automatic pattern.
The urge to fix or lecture right away is strong. Even a brief pause can interrupt the usual pattern between you and your child and give you space to choose something different.
Your triggers are about you, not just your child's behavior.
Lisa discovered that many of her reactions were driven by fear and the belief that she was failing her son. Naming those stories helped her respond with more flexibility and compassion.
You can change the dance by changing your part.
Parents and kids often fall into predictable interaction patterns. When Lisa shifted how she responded—sometimes leaving the apartment instead of engaging—the pattern changed.
Boundaries can include creative safety plans.
During COVID, Lisa's plan sometimes involved leaving the apartment and sitting in her car when her son became aggressive. She reframed it as a temporary strategy rather than a failure.
Thoughts like "this is an emergency" can escalate things.
Parents' nervous systems often interpret big emotions as danger. Expanding your tolerance for discomfort can help you respond to what's actually happening.
Scaffolding is not the same as enabling.
Developmental level and anxiety matter. Sometimes making a task easier is what allows progress in other areas.
Notice and name what your child does well.
Highlighting everyday successes helps children internalize the belief that they can do hard things.
You are not the baseline for how everyone else should be.
Letting go of "I am the standard" creates more room for difference and helps you relate to your child as the person they are.
About Lisa Candera
Lisa Candera is a single mom of a teen with severe autism and OCD, an attorney, ADHD-er, and the autism mom coach behind The Autism Mom Coach. She helps parents of autistic children learn to regulate themselves first so they can show up for their kids with more calm, compassion, and confidence. Lisa hosts The Autism Mom Podcast, contributes to Autism Parenting Magazine, and presents on parental self-care, emotional regulation, and meltdown de-escalation strategies.
About Your Host, Gabriele Nicolet
I'm Gabriele Nicolet, toddler whisperer, speech therapist, parenting life coach, and host of Complicated Kids. Each week, I share practical, relationship-based strategies for raising kids with big feelings, big needs, and beautifully different brains. My goal is to help families move from surviving to thriving by building connection, confidence, and clarity at home.
Complicated Kids Resources and Links
🌎 gabrielenicolet.com
📅 Schedule a free intro call: Book here
📺 Subscribe on YouTube: YouTube Channel
👾 Tell the Story (anti-anxiety tool for kids): Learn more
➡️ Instagram: instagram.com/gabriele_nicolet
➡️ Facebook: facebook.com/gabriele.nicolet
➡️ LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/gabrielenicolet
🌺 Free "Orchid Kid" Checklist: Download here
Enjoying the show?
If Complicated Kids has been helpful, the best way to support the podcast is to follow, rate, and leave a quick review. It helps other parents find the show—and it means a lot.
If there's a topic you'd love to hear covered on a future episode, reach out at [email protected]. I love hearing what's on your mind and what would support your family.
Thank you for being here. 💛

When professionals disagree, school minimizes, and your gut is screaming that something is off, your perspective on your child matters more than any report.
If you're raising a high-masking, high-achieving neurodivergent kid, you may be living a split-screen life: "She's doing great here" from school, and daily meltdowns, shutdowns, or refusals at home. It's disorienting and it can make you doubt what you're seeing.
In this episode, I talk with Amanda Levin, founder of NeuroSpice Girls, about kids who are both gifted and disabled, socially chatty and autistic, "fine" at school and utterly spent by the time they walk through the front door. We unpack masking, pervasive drive for autonomy, and how school days can be the unseen setup for after-school explosions.
We also get honest about advocacy: the missing roadmap for 504s and IEPs, the "hidden menu" of supports no one tells you about, and why so many parents feel like they have to build a case just to get basic help. Amanda shares how she stopped waiting for someone else to fix it, asked her son what he needed, and helped create more accessible religious school programming that works better for all kids.
You might walk out of a meeting thinking, "They don't really see my kid." This conversation is meant to steady you and remind you that what you notice at home is real and important.
Key Takeaways
High masking hides real struggle. Some neurodivergent kids work incredibly hard to "hold it together" at school, then completely unravel at home. That split does not make their struggles less real.
Gifted and disabled often coexist. A child can be academically advanced and have significant executive function, sensory, or emotional regulation challenges. Those things live side by side, not in opposition.
Invisible disabilities are still disabilities. When there is no wheelchair, no obvious device, or no behavioral disruption at school, systems often downplay needs. Parents are left doing the heaviest lifting behind closed doors.
Masking is about survival, not performance. Many autistic and neurodivergent kids suppress their own signals to fit in or avoid negative attention. The cost of doing that all day shows up later as meltdown, shutdown, or "refusal."
There is no universal roadmap for services. Amanda's experience highlights how subjective and inconsistent 504 and IEP processes can be. Families often have to hunt for information that should be offered up front.
You are allowed to question the system. When school or professionals say, "He's fine here," but home tells a different story, it is reasonable to push back, connect the dots, and insist that what you see matters.
Collaboration with your child is a game-changer. Asking, "What would make this more doable for you?" can reveal simple but powerful shifts—shorter commitments, movement breaks, different environments—that reduce demand and increase buy-in.
Supports for neurodivergent kids help everyone. The changes Amanda helped create at Hebrew school (shorter time, movement, sensory-aware teaching) are good pedagogy, period. Neuro-affirming design improves access for all kids.
Community reduces isolation. NeuroSpice Girls grew out of Amanda's need to talk with people who truly "got it." Peer support and real-time spaces to vent, brainstorm, and share resources make a huge difference for caregivers.
Your observations are data. What you see at home, after school, and in everyday routines is not "just your opinion." It is critical information about how your child is actually functioning and what they need to thrive.
About Amanda Levin
Amanda Levin is the founder of NeuroSpice Girls, a peer support group and social events club for moms of neurodivergent kids in the greater Washington, DC area. She is the mom of a neurospicy fourth grader and a kindergartner, and she brings her background in event planning, government relations, and post–Hurricane Katrina and Rita relief work to building community and practical support for caregivers who are navigating complex systems and big feelings at home.
About Your Host, Gabriele Nicolet
I'm Gabriele Nicolet—toddler whisperer, speech therapist, parenting life coach, and host of Complicated Kids. Each week, I share practical, relationship-based strategies for raising kids with big feelings, big needs, and beautifully different brains. My goal is to help families move from surviving to thriving by building connection, confidence, and clarity at home.
Complicated Kids Resources and Links
🌎 www.gabrielenicolet.com
📅 Schedule a free intro call
📺 Subscribe on YouTube
👾 Tell the Story (anti-anxiety tool for kids)
➡️ Instagram
➡️ Facebook
➡️ LinkedIn
🌺 Free "Orchid Kid" Checklist
Enjoying the show?
If Complicated Kids has been helpful, the best way to support the podcast is to follow, rate, and leave a quick review. It helps other parents find the show—and it means a lot.
If there's a topic you'd love to hear covered on a future episode, reach out at [email protected]. I love hearing what's on your mind and what would support your family.
Thank you for being here. 💛

ADHD is not a motivation problem. It is a skills and systems problem.
Parenting a child with ADHD and executive function challenges can feel like living inside a never-ending loop of forgotten water bottles, missing homework, and mornings that go off the rails. It is easy to assume kids are not listening, not trying, or do not care.
In this conversation, Gabriele and ADHD expert and parent coach Cindy Goldrich zoom out from "he is just lazy" and "she should know better by now" and look at what is really going on in the brain. Cindy explains executive function as "how you do what you intend to do," and why challenges in this area are about skills, not character. Together, they explore what it means to believe that kids do well when they can—and how that belief changes the questions we ask, the systems we build, and the way we respond when things go sideways.
Key Takeaways
Executive function is about doing, not knowing. Executive function includes working memory, processing speed, task initiation, planning, organization, emotional regulation, flexibility, and self-talk. It is the "how you do what you intend to do," not how smart you are.
You cannot be diagnosed with "executive dysfunction," but it still matters. Executive function is not a DSM diagnosis. It is a description of how the brain manages tasks and emotions—and it can be assessed and supported even without a formal label.
ADHD and executive function are deeply connected. If a child has ADHD, they will have executive function challenges by definition. The reverse is not always true, but it explains why "just try harder" never works for ADHD brains.
There is no relationship between speed and intelligence. A child can have a very high IQ and very slow processing speed. When adults equate fast responses with intelligence, slower thinkers are often stressed, misunderstood, and underestimated.
Stress shrinks the brain's thinking space. Cindy uses the image of a balloon to describe cognitive space. Stress, pressure, and time limits push the air out, making it harder for kids to access the skills they already have.
"Kids do well if they can" changes everything. When a child is not following through, curiosity opens the door to problem solving. Blame slams it shut.
Patterns are gold for problem solving. "He always" and "she never" are clues that a pattern exists. That is your cue to step back when things are calm and build better systems.
Consequences without tools are not helpful. Punishment without skill-building is like asking a chain smoker to quit instantly without support. Boundaries matter, but tools and systems must come first.
Inconsistency is part of ADHD. Kids with ADHD may succeed one day and struggle the next. That does not mean they are choosing to fail—their brain, energy, or environment has changed.
Parents need compassion too. Many parents of ADHD kids also have ADHD themselves or years of internalized shame. Seeing ADHD as a brain difference creates room for healing on both sides.
Free Resource from Cindy
Cindy has put together a generous free resource for Complicated Kids listeners:
https://ptscoaching.com/free-gifts/?utm_source=complicatedkids&utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=freegiftspdf
On that page, you will find:
The introduction to 8 Keys to Parenting Kids & Teens with ADHD: Supporting Your Child's Executive Function
A curated set of practical PDFs and tools to help you parent with more confidence, clarity, and connection
Direct links to support and training for both parents and professionals
About Cindy Goldrich
Cindy Goldrich, Ed.M., ADHD-CCSP, is a mental health counselor and internationally recognized expert in ADHD and executive function support. She is the founder of PTS Coaching and the author of 8 Keys to Parenting Kids & Teens with ADHD and ADHD, Executive Function, & Behavioral Challenges in the Classroom. Through her Calm and Connected parent workshops, ADHD Parent Coach Academy, professional trainings, and coaching programs, Cindy has helped thousands of families and educators build calmer, more connected relationships with children who learn and think differently.
About Your Host, Gabriele Nicolet
I'm Gabriele Nicolet—toddler whisperer, speech therapist, parenting life coach, and host of Complicated Kids. Each week, I share practical, relationship-based strategies for raising kids with big feelings, big needs, and beautifully different brains. My goal is to help families move from surviving to thriving by building connection, confidence, and clarity at home.
Complicated Kids Resources and Links
🌎 www.gabrielenicolet.com
📅 Schedule a free intro call
📺 Subscribe on YouTube
👾 Tell the Story (anti-anxiety tool for kids)
➡️ Instagram
➡️ Facebook
➡️ LinkedIn
🌺 Free "Orchid Kid" Checklist
Enjoying the show?
If Complicated Kids has been helpful, the best way to support the podcast is to follow, rate, and leave a quick review. It helps other parents find the show—and it means a lot.
If there's a topic you'd love to hear covered on a future episode, reach out at [email protected]. I love hearing what's on your mind and what would support your family.
Thank you for being here. 💛