Voices of Value
Neurodiversity-Affirming Approach: What it is and Why it Matters
CHAT is a different kind of organization. When we say we are a resource to children with few – if any – other options, we mean that in several ways. This includes reaching children who do not have access to speech and language therapy services due to barriers of cost or location, as well as being an oasis of resources for families who are not finding the right fit for services.
To really understand the difference in our approach, let’s start with some definitions:
- Neurodiversity: natural variation in the human brain.
- Neurodivergence: brains that develop or work differently or are not considered “typical” (e.g., due to Autism, ADHD, etc.).
- Neurodiversity-affirming: the practice of acknowledging that individuals have differences in their abilities and how they interact with the world around them – differences are not considered to be deficits that need to be “fixed.”
Neurodiversity started gaining traction in the 1990s, but it is still not widely considered in therapeutic approaches. Many service providers still rely on conforming behaviors and “fixing” individuals. They seek to mold every individual into how society thinks they should act. This can be harmful to the individual as it masks their true identity and can impact their mental health.
CHAT is ahead of the curve in adopting a neurodiversity-affirming approach and endeavors to be a leader in the space. Our approach to therapy emphasizes meeting individuals where they are, being person-centered, focusing on strengths, and helping them to live authentically.
In practice, this means working on self-advocacy and with each individual to communicate in their preferred method, to their families, teachers, future employers, and the world around them.
“Neurodivergent individuals are not broken. We don’t need to ‘fix’ them. They are as they are and every child is unique,” says Brigid Cavanagh, CHAT’s Assistant Director of Neurodiversity-Affirmative Services. “We do not decide what is best for each individual. We, as service providers, need to find out what works for them and support them in their goals.”
CHAT aims to be an escape from harmful alternatives and a haven for families who have been searching for answers. CHAT serves the whole individual, is a resource for families, and advocates on behalf of every one of our clients. When a family signs up for CHAT services, we are in their corner and support them in every possible way. If you are interested in a neurodiversity-affirming consultation, please visit www.chatwithus.org/consults to learn more or reach out to Brigid Cavanagh, CHAT’s Assistant Director, Neurodiversity-Affirmative Services, at [email protected] with any questions.
MAKE IT MONTHLY.
Community Corner
CHAT Welcomes New Board Members
CHAT is governed by a Board of volunteers to help lead our organization. CHAT welcomed three new members in 2023. We caught up with them to learn more about what drives them to lend their time and talents to CHAT:
What drew you to CHAT?
My daughter, Torie, has received speech services throughout her life starting at 18 months. Then, when Torie entered school, she had an IEP starting in kindergarten and through high school. I know how important speech services can be to a child. It can be life changing. I also know how difficult it can be to access those services either inside or outside of public schools. I was drawn to CHAT because I wanted to help give children who have less advantages than Torie access to these types of services.
Why do you serve/give your time to CHAT?
Torie was able to thrive in school and is now attending college because she had advocates. Through those advocates, she was able to access services and accommodations that helped her to thrive. Those advocates were not only her parents but also her teachers and her therapists. Not all children have access to these types of advocates. But CHAT acts as an advocate for those children. That is why I want to give my time to CHAT.
What are you excited to accomplish now that you’re on the Board?
When Torie was in high school, it became painfully obvious that the school did not share Torie’s IEP with all of the professionals that worked with Torie – in particular, her extracurricular activity teachers. Since the school was not sharing her IEP, these teachers were not aware of the modifications that the school had granted Torie to make her as successful as possible, even though they were legally required to extend to Torie’s extracurricular activities. Our family worked with the school to ensure that the IEPs would be distributed to extracurricular teachers. Now, we are working with CHAT to advocate for legislation requiring the distribution of IEPs to all professionals who supervise, support or teach a student.
What drew you to CHAT?
CHAT’s mission to make speech therapy more widely accessible drew me to this opportunity. CHAT allows me to give back to an industry that gave me so much when I was growing up. To me, clear communication with yourself and others is vital to a happy, healthy life.
Why do you serve/give your time to CHAT?
As a kid, I frequently visited SLPs to work through my speech impediment. Later in life, I used speech to jumpstart my broadcast journalism career. The ability to communicate clearly with others is something I never take for granted, and I appreciate the opportunity every day.
What are you excited to accomplish now that you’re on the Board?
I am excited to spread CHAT’s mission to a broader audience. I look forward to helping CHAT grow, reaching those who may not know about the organization, and inspiring those who do know about it. By bringing more attention to CHAT’s mission, we can provide SLPs and their students with supportive environments to learn and grow.
What drew you to CHAT?
CHAT’s speech therapy work with underprivileged communities and my interactions with people who are in dire need of CHAT’s services. I reached out to see if I can be of assistance in furthering CHAT’s purpose and mission in our communities. I was thoroughly impressed with the leadership and team and the fantastic work they are doing.
Why do you serve/give your time to CHAT?
I personally identify with CHAT’s cause – giving children the gift of communication. As a child myself, I struggled with communication, and it took support from everyone around me to help me become what I am today. I see working with CHAT as a purposeful way to give back.
What are you excited to accomplish now that you’re on the Board?
I look forward to assisting the CHAT team with expanding their reach. Given my work in the corporate sector as a consultant, I am excited to take CHAT’s mission and work to colleagues and clients that I work with. So far, the support my contacts have provided has been encouraging, and I only expect it to grow over time.
CHAT Child
James: Repeat Customer
This year, CHAT had the privilege of earning a repeat customer.
Meet James, whose mother describes him as a 28-year-old young man with Autism Spectrum Disorder who has been navigating adult life and all its challenges. After a few road bumps in his social communication and remembering how helpful CHAT had been to him as a child, James and his mother once again returned to CHAT as a resource.
James started coming to CHAT (then called CSLD) twenty years ago. Back then, there weren’t many resources outside of the school system. In his mother’s view, families were expected to take what they could get—and the services offered were just enough to comply with special education laws. She felt more was needed to ignite James’ academic and personal potential.
Thankfully, James had his mother as his advocate. She pushed for a lot more from the school district. James was able to transfer to a therapeutic school to complete his elementary school and high school education, participating in a blended curriculum for high school. He thrived in this setting, supplemented by regular speech therapy at CHAT to work on social communication and inferencing skills.
After James graduated high school, his mother opted for the four additional years of transition/post-secondary school training available per special education laws, in the hope it would give James the best shot at a great future job. While the program had some positives, it did not provide adequate job opportunities for James to develop, practice and solidify job skills. James was fortunate that his mom was able to help him get an externship at the hospital where she worked, in order to gain on-the-job experience. She says it was her job to provide opportunities for James, who did the heavy lifting of rising to the occasion. Today, James drives, manages his own money, lives independently, and is employed.
Nonetheless, James returned to CHAT after twenty years for help in better managing social relationships with co-workers and customers at his job, as well as general social interactions with people in his family and community. Although young adults often continue to have difficulty after graduating from high school (and struggle with a transition to employment), there is a dearth of resources specifically for them. That’s what led James and his mother back to CHAT. Today, after once again working with a CHAT SLP on social communication skills, James has a brand-new job as a Letter Carrier with the US Postal Service!
When asked if she has one piece of advice for families, James’ mother says it is important to “know your rights.” She says, “speak Special Ed Talk and be able to give your input in the IEP process. It is a lot of work on parents, but at the end of the day, that is the only way you can make the system work for your child until the system changes.”
Our special education and healthcare systems are confusing and complex. If you need help understanding special education or advocating for your child, please contact us at [email protected]
Therapy Tales
A Natural Partnership with The Center for Independence through Conductive Education
Thanks to a grant through Community Memorial Foundation, CHAT launched a partnership with The Center for Independence through Conductive Education (CFI) by bringing our Everyday Communication and Executive Functioning (EF) programs on-site to their Countryside, IL location in summer 2023.
CFI is a values-aligned organization that serves many clients on Medicaid and shares our belief that no client should be turned away due to inability to pay. CFI and CHAT staff have been acquainted for years and have long hoped to collaborate to create access to a broader continuum of care for a high-needs population.
CFI works predominantly with children who have Cerebral Palsy (CP), which is a group of disorders that affect a person’s ability to move and maintain balance and posture. Many individuals with mobility limitations require assistance with speech and language, particularly because of the physical demands like breath support, trunk control, and core strength.
While CFI clients often receive speech therapy at school, many would benefit from more access to services than the approximately 30-60 minutes their schools provide weekly. And for some families, bringing their child to an additional clinic appointment in a different location is just not feasible due to time or transportation constraints.
Additionally, many individuals with mobility limitations also utilize Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices to communicate. While OTs and PTs are trained to enable physical access to these devices, SLPs are experts on their substantive use. CHAT’s collaboration with CFI is a wonderful match, as it brings complementary skill sets together in furtherance of more autonomous communication for the individuals CFI serves.
Each summer, CFI hosts a summer program for their clients, which presented the perfect opportunity to pilot our partnership. CHAT delivered our EF and Everyday Communication programs, where CFI clients worked on coping skills, planning, organization and self-advocacy. Having CHAT SLPs deliver these programs made it possible to adapt them to the needs of CFI clients and offer speech support for them in their communication needs throughout the day.
CHAT approached this partnership with three goals in mind: 1) to help fill a gap in services for clients and increase their confidence and self-advocacy skills so that they are more prepared to succeed in school, future occupations, and life; 2) to use our language-based approach to teach our programs and better prepare CFI clients for the upcoming school year; and 3) to figure out how we can co-treat these clients on an on-going basis in order to maximize therapy time and improve treatment outcomes between disciplines.
By all accounts, the pilot of the CFI and CHAT partnership was a resounding success.
“The CHAT and CFI partnership has fostered continuing growth for all! Not only has the CHAT team assisted participants with learning more about their devices and communication strategies, but they have helped the CFI team to incorporate and encourage more independent communication throughout the intensive motor programming as well! This collaboration has allowed our participants to express their creativity, emotions, needs, and thoughts more effectively, improving self-efficacy, self-confidence, and overall independence! We all have all loved communicating and learning together!”
CFI team
CHAT staff have been able to continue supporting clients into the school year and we plan to return next summer to continue and ideally expand our programming and support for CFI clients.