#9 Sophie Beeley: autism, parenting, Raising Daisy, and the waggle dance.

The more reductive amongst us have bucketed autism as a disability and drag on resources. The reality is that it is much more. In one of the most challenging but fulfilling conversations I’ve had since starting the podcast I sat down with Sophie Beeley, author of Raising Daisy, a Substack that draws on her experience as mother to a wonderful girl that was diagnosed with “autism spectrum disorder” at the age of five.We discussed the numerous battles that the family faced with their local government and educational establishment as well as the broader stigma and perceptions around autism. A one-size-fit all approach to learning at one end and an overdiagnosis of trendy neurodivergence at the other leaves many children and adults unable to access the conditions necessary for them to learn and thrive. Perhaps autism is a necessary state of being from an evolutionary standpoint, as demonstrated by the explore-exploit trade-off that bee populations employ. Time will tell but I hope this conversation helps to demystify a topic that affects all of us from at least one degree of separation.You can find Sophie’s substack, Raising Daisy here: https://raisingdaisy.substack.com/ and watch the full episode on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3eWvDuhxvc.