It's 7:42 a.m. on the first day back to school. You've already asked your son to get dressed three times. He's still in his pajamas, building an "essential" Lego structure on the living room floor. "We need to leave in eight minutes," you say, trying to keep your voice steady. He doesn't look up. "I CAN'T find my good socks!" You know for a fact his good socks are in his drawer. You washed them yesterday. But now he's crying, and you're mentally calculating if you can call in late to work,...

You’re sitting at a holiday gathering, and you notice it. Your sister’s kids are laughing, participating, smiling for the camera. Yours just stormed off. Or is hiding in the other room. Or is hanging by a thread. Maybe it was a meltdown on the way there. Perhaps it’s the tension in your body because you’re bracing for the next moment someone comments on your parenting. Or maybe it’s the deep sadness that no one else seems to notice how hard your child is trying. I’ve been in that moment —...

(ADHD, Anxiety, Autism, Sensory Sensitivity, Emotional Intensity) You can feel it the way parents of little kids feel a fever coming on — before the season officially starts, before the tree goes up, before anyone mentions hot cocoa. Holiday Season. And with it:T he noise. The relatives. The pressure. The changes.The expectations that your teen “be on,” participate, smile, socialize, act grateful, act mature, and act regulated. It's a whole SOS: Sensory Overload Season  situation. And I need...