'T and A' with Travis and Anna: Recent Episodes
Travis and Anna
’T and A’ with Travis and Anna is a podcast that connects people through the often-challenging, always-rewarding experience of raising Teens with ADHD, Autism, and/or Anxiety. As co-workers, they often use techniques learned in raising their kids to be more open, sensitive, and understanding of those in the workplace. This blend of interactions in the professional and home environments provides a fresh perspective on the lives of raising exceptional children while putting food on the table. As hinted by the title, they mix serious issues with humor that is sure to keep you coming back.
As a parent of a child with special needs, milestones and achievements are much more meaningful. Whether it's the first day of kindergarten, or making that first friend, we cherish every moment. One of the harder milestones is when your teenager starts dating, or expresses an interest in dating. Would you let them get into a car with a new driver? If they ask you for advice on conversation topics, what advice would you give them? What if they date someone who is neurotypical (and not neurodivergent)? We'll explore this, and more, in this episode!
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
While college may not be for everyone, your child can certainly thrive in college while being neurodivergent. The key is knowing the right questions to ask to ensure that it’s the right environment for your child. NOTE: Throughout the podcast, I mistakenly refer to the department as the ‘Office Of Diversity.’ What I meant to say was ‘Office of Disability.’ (Too many hours at work made me think of Office of Diversity!)
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
Many teens get summer jobs, including those that are not neurotypical. While some teens can get jobs anywhere, those who are neurodiverse need to find an environment that will help them thrive and gain valuable skills that will take them into a career later in life. What jobs are good for teens, and what careers lend themselves well to neurodiverse individuals? Listen to our podcast, and hear what Anna and Travis have to say about this important milestone for teens.
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
Many parents complain about how their kids turn into teenagers and stop talking to them. Most neurotypical teens start pulling away from their parents as they learn to to assert their independence. Having a healthy, trusting, parent-child relationship during the teen years is crucial to healthy development, regardless of whether or not your child is neurotypical. One way to build that relationship is to have open, honest, candid, and FUN conversations with your teen. In this podcast, we explore some serious, and yet entertaining questions, that will keep your kids engaged and help them get to know what a wonderful parent you are!
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
Happy New Year, everyone! We're excited to FINALLY publish this podcast where we interviewed Brandon Lawrence and Foster Deck from Asheville, NC. We spoke with Ashley Deck, owner of Madam Clutterbuckets Neurodiverse Universe back in November, about her store that employs differently-abled employees. Today we had the pleasure of speaking with two of those employees about their work experiences. If you're the parent of a teen or young adult with special needs who might be seeking their first job, listen to this podcast! Brandon and Foster share their experiences and provide you with some advice on how to be successful in the workplace.
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
Communicating with teens - any teen - can be difficult, painful, and a hair-pulling process. Despite this, there are times when you have deep conversations with your kids, where you get to know each other better, that make it all worth it! We had searched for some questions that your teens could ask you (or you could just share your answers), to help them get to know you better. Join us to hear how we'd answer these questions if our kids asked them of us. Listener beware - at times, it can be very funny and NSFW!
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
Travis and Anna had the pleasure of speaking with Ashley Deck, owner of the gift shop 'Madam Clutterbuckets Neurodiverse Universe' in Asheville, Va. The store is filled with the most eclectic, fun, odd items you could ever hope to find, including an extensive selection of disability advocacy stickers, designed by her team. Just one of the many great parts of this store are its employees, which includes adults that are differently abled and neurodiverse. Grab a coffee or tea, give this podcast a listen, and put it on repeat. Ashley is heartwarming, relatable, confident, and someone you immediately want to be your best friend. Even better would be for you to visit her store on Battery Park Drive in Asheville and say hello to Foster, Brandon, Sophie, and the rest of the team.
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
We are by no means experts or doctors or psychiatrists but we are parents raising teenagers (where is our scout badge??)! From our experience, we will share our top 5 skills that we feel your teen should know as they enter adulthood. They are practical skills that don't require much more than your time and support. For more information and additional resources, visit our Instagram page (@tandapodcast) .
https://www.instagram.com/tandapodcast/
As working parents, there's a lot that we can take from our day to day interactions as leaders, and working with other leaders, to apply to parenting. In this podcast, we will discuss what we've learned from bad leaders, and mistakes we've made along the way, and how we applied those lessons learned to parenting our teens with special needs.
What are the signs that your teen might have ADD, ADHD, Autism, or Anxiety? Do you think your child shows traits of one of these conditions, or could it be hormone-related, or behaviors picked up from school? While we're not medical experts, we are the next best thing - we are parents who have lived through the experience of diagnosing our teens. Listen to our journeys towards a diagnosis - what we learned, what we wished we did, and what we did right.
It’s back to school week in most areas! For some parents, it’s a huge relief, and for others, it’s adding on to an already full plate.
In this podcast, we talk about finding the school that is the right fit for your child. Our kids are unique learners, and require different environments to be successful. Thirty years ago, we didn't have the opportunities that kids have today, such as virtual school, or private schools that tailor to the specific needs of your child.
Sometimes, after discussing some serious topics, you just need to have some fun! Listen in as we answer a few ‘This or That’ questions. You’ll learn something, too - such as why candy corn is gross, and if it’s better to use sandpaper as toilet paper, or hot sauce as eye drops.
You’ve got a friend in me! As the parent of a child with ADD/ADHD, Autism, or Anxiety, it is really hard to maintain friendships/relationships. As our lives and priorities change, our friendships evolve. At the same time, we’re trying to teach our children about how to engage with others, how to have friends, and how to be a good friend.
As parents, we all have visions of our kids playing sports and scoring the winning point, while we sat on the sidelines with our PSL, err, bottled water, in our hand. But are sports for everyone? It’s especially challenging for our teens with ADD/ADHD, autism, and/or anxiety. While we want them to learn the value of teamwork and leadership, we have to balance that with what brings them a joyous learning experience. What sports have worked for our kids? What sports were a complete disaster? When do you quit - and is quitting even an option? What about the pressure on parents, to get your kids involved in extracurricular activities (the ‘busy’ culture)? Who loves spending their time in their car every evening, after work, driving to practice, meets, etc? Join us as we dive into sports, and what is the right fit for your family.
For kids that are very routine-oriented, travel can be difficult (but still fun)! In our Travel podcast, we’ll talk about Anna’s Disney vacation, and her family’s experience taking a Disney cruise. Travis will talk about the importance of keeping routines while in a new place.
Come pitch a tent with us and hear what we have to say about camps! Finding a camp for summer is difficult enough for a neuro-typical child; it's much harder for those with ADD/ADHD, Autism, or Anxiety. We'll discuss our experiences with various camps and provide you with resources to get you started, whether it's for the remainder of the summer, or you're planning for next year.
Join us as we meander down a path of ADD/ADHD/Autism/Anxiety teen dating, bullying, and our experiences as the parents of those teens. We discuss the challenges of how teens meet and 'date', and we reminisce about dating norms 20+ years ago. We also touch briefly on bullying, and how it has impacted kids that are starting to date.
Having children with ADHD/ADD, Autism, and Anxiety has helped us recognize some of these traits in our co-workers. In this episode, we discuss the application of parenting lessons learned, and how we applied them (in a professional manner) in the workplace.
’T and A’ with Travis and Anna is a podcast that connects people through the often-challenging, always-rewarding experience of raising Teens with ADHD, Autism, and/or Anxiety. As co-workers, they often use techniques learned in raising their kids to be more open, sensitive, and understanding of those in the workplace. This blend of interactions in the professional and home environments provides a fresh perspective on the lives of raising exceptional children while putting food on the table. As hinted by the title, they mix serious issues with humor that is sure to keep you coming back.
In this first episode, you'll get to know Travis and Anna - their backgrounds, why they're doing this podcast, and why you should subscribe!