My guest today is Dennis Procopio. Dennis is a life coach for men and an autism Dad. He's been on the show a few times and he's here today to talk about Dad stuff and share some autism parenting stories. This is a great conversation and ends up going to a place I hadn't seen coming. Dennis opens up about his personal journey raising his son and learning more about himself. ☺ Find Dennis: MAN-UP! Life Coaching About Rob Gorski: All my information and relevant links are here Support this podcast: ...
Mar 28, 2022•30 min•Season 5Ep. 7
I'm excited to bring you another episode about empowering parents to better help their autistic children. My guest today is Mitch Leppicello. Mitch is a social worker who's spent decades working with autistic kids and their families. Mitch has used his experience to create a program called The Calm Compass. The Calm Compass is an online resource for parents of autistic children, helping them to better navigate difficult situations, as well as gain insight, and outside-of-the-box solutions for ev...
Mar 21, 2022•32 min•Season 5Ep. 6
My guest today is Dolly Lowery. Dolly is the CEO and Founder of a company called Kinuu. She's here to talk about their program called BrainyAct and how it's literally changing the lives of autistic kiddos and adults. This is a perfect example of technology being used to improve quality of life. This is so cool and I can't wait for you to hear this. I love bringing information to you that can help or at least inform you as to things that are currently available to help your family. ☺ ♥ About Doll...
Mar 09, 2022•27 min•Season 5Ep. 5
I'm so excited about this week's episode. I was recently able to screen the upcoming film Tyson's Run. It's an inspirational family film about an autistic boy named Tyson, who decided he wants to run a marathon in order to repair his family. It's such a good, family film and it releases in theaters nationwide on March 11th. My guests today are Major Dodson, who plays Tyson, and Kim Bass. who wrote and directed the film. They stopped by the pod to talk about the inspiration behind Tyson's Run, wh...
Feb 28, 2022•33 min•Season 5Ep. 4
My guests today are Herman Lintvelt and Michael (Fox) van der Linde of Augmental Technologies (Pty) Ltd. They created a FREE app called Tracto that is empowering parents to better support their autistic kids. I love bringing you resources that can help improve your families the quality of life. It's even more satisfying for me when something is as affordable as free. Check out this episode and let me know if you have any questions.. You can find more information about Tracto at tracto.app Guest ...
Feb 22, 2022•32 min•Season 5Ep. 3
My guest this week is Amy Jacobs Schroeder, mom of five, and Founder of Happy Ladders. Happy Ladders is a play-based skills curriculum, community, and coaching platform created to empower parents of children with developmental needs, including autism. Amy spent the last two decades providing in-home autism services to families, the latter half focused solely on a parent-led model through her own agency before creating Happy Ladders. Amy and I have a conversation about the benefits of the parent-...
Feb 14, 2022•33 min•Season 5Ep. 2
I recently discovered my autistic kids are having to do active shooter and lockdown drills at school. I was caught off guard because my kids are in a school for autistic kids and kids with other learning disabilities. I had no idea this was happening and I wanted to learn more. I found so many stories about how traumatizing these drills are for kids in general. Concerned, I wanted to speak to someone who has experienced these first hand. As parents we need to be aware of what our kids are experi...
Feb 07, 2022•29 min•Season 5Ep. 1
IEP or individualized education plan are oftentimes considered a four-letter word in the autism and special needs community. In this episode, I briefly explain what an IEP is and why they're important, before hearing from my guest today. Dennis Procopio is back and this time he's sharing stories from the recent IEP meeting for his son. Sometimes it's helpful to listen to people's real-life experiences because there's much that can be learned. Dennis talks about how he used his experience as a li...
Dec 04, 2021•39 min•Season 4Ep. 20
How many special needs parents worry about their child having interactions with first responders (police/EMS) and being misunderstood, or worse, seriously injured. The answer is far too many. Far too many parents worry about their autistic kids having encounters with police, EMS, or other first responders, that don't go well. My guest this week is Janeé Harteau, President and CEO of Vital Aware Services. She has over 30 years of law enforcement experience and is very aware of the potential safet...
Nov 20, 2021•41 min•Season 4Ep. 19
My guest today is Emily Bruce. Mother, as well as, Board Certified and Licensed Behavior Analyst (BCBA, LBA) in the State of Tennessee with an M.S., in Psychology. She’s also the CEO and Founder of Determinism, LLC, and the creator of PeerKnect. Emily has seen firsthand the struggles special needs families face when trying to find playdates and other social activities for our kids. I cannot stress how important this is for our kids. I speak with Emily about the PeerKnect app. She shares how it w...
Nov 12, 2021•40 min•Season 4Ep. 18
Slight format change beginning today because I’m moving to a different server. My good friend Dennis Procopio is here today. Dennis is the founder of Man-UP! Life Coaching (MULC) and has been on the show a few times to talk about various topics. Dennis is also a special needs Dad and he’s here today to share a situation he recently had to deal with in regards to his son being seriously injured while at school. This could happen to anyone but it can be more complicated when it comes to our specia...
Oct 30, 2021•45 min•Season 4Ep. 17
My guest today is Heather Brandt, Ph.D. Heather is the Director, HPV Cancer Prevention Program, Co-associate Director for Outreach, St. Jude Comprehensive Cancer Center, Member, Department of Epidemiology and Cancer Control - St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Vaccines are a hot topic once again because of COVID. There is so much misinformation floating around about vaccines and Heather is the perfect guest to answer the tough questions surrounding the safety and efficacy of vaccines. We also...
Sep 30, 2021•1 hr 11 min•Season 4Ep. 16
My good friend and male life coach, Dennis Procopio is back. Dennis is the man behind MAN-UP! Life Coaching and over the last decade, he's helped hundreds and hundreds of guys get unstuck and become better versions of themselves. He's here today to discuss how men and women communicate, experience emotions, and approach relationships in different ways. This will not only help the guys out there but also their partners who are trying to better understand them. As someone who's recently re-entered...
Sep 25, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 15
My guest today is Corrie Duryee. Corrie is an autism mom, an amazing human being, and a filmmaker. Corrie is here to talk about her latest film, Language Arts, as well as women and representation in film. The topic of equality is really important and we're going to talk about some of the many obstacles that women face in the film industry. Corrie is an absolute pleasure to speak with and you can't help but smile when listening to her. About Corrie: "Corrie has had a long and prosperous career in...
Sep 19, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 14
This was a really challenging episode for me to edit for a couple of reasons and I’ll explain in a minute. My guest is Dennis Procopio, founder of Man-Up! Life Coaching , and fellow autism Dad. He’s here as a resource for men and helps them to become the best version of themselves. This episode didn’t go as planned but that’s okay. The whole point was to highlight what Dennis is doing because whether or not we like to admit it, men need help sometimes. What ended up happening is that Dennis turn...
Sep 10, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 4Ep. 13
All my information and relevant links are here Support this podcast: venmo.com/theautismdad My guest today is Whit ney Casares, MD, MPH, FAAP , pediatrician, special needs Mom, and author of The Working Mom Blueprint: Winning at Parenting without Losing Yourself (American Academy of Pediatrics; May 11, 2021). We’re having a very important discussion about finding a balance between work, kids, relationships, home, and yourself. We’re also going to talk about burnout and the importance of self-car...
Sep 02, 2021•53 min•Season 4Ep. 12
I get so many questions about Mightier and today I’m talking to Angela Gotz, a Mom to 2 autistic kiddos, who’s been using Mightier for a couple of years. I talk about her life and experience as an autism parent and how Mightier has impacted their lives. Then I speak with Jessie Ragnio, the Associate Clinical Director at MIghiter. We talk about the science behind Mightier and why it works so well. This is a great resource for anyone interested in trying Mightier out in their home. About Mightier:...
Jun 25, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Season 4Ep. 11
This was a really challenging episode for me to edit for a couple of reasons and I’ll explain in a minute. My guest is Dennis Procopio, founder of Man-Up! Life Coaching , and fellow autism Dad. He’s here as a resource for men and helps them to become the best version of themselves. This episode didn’t go as planned but that’s okay. The whole point was to highlight what Dennis is doing because whether or not we like to admit it, men need help sometimes. What ended up happening is that Dennis turn...
Jun 06, 2021•1 hr 4 min•Season 4Ep. 10
My guest today is Alan Winnikoff. Alan is not only an autism Dad but also the author of the new book called “Not Sleeping”. Learn about Alan’s journey while parenting 2 autistic kids, as well as the inspiration behind his book. “Not Sleeping” is a fictional story about a married couple raising an autistic daughter. About the book: It is said that over 70% of special needs marriages fail. This is the story of one. Not Sleeping depicts a suburban New York couple, Josh and Claudia Sherman, separate...
May 21, 2021•43 min•Season 4Ep. 9
In this week’s episode, I speak with Caleb Frankel, COO, and co-founder of the financial technology and gifting platform called EarlyBird. EarlyBird has made saving for your child’s financial future, accessible to everyone. Special needs families are often forgotten when it comes to things like financial planning because we can have unique needs that go unaddressed or the cost of admission is unattainable. EarlyBird has fixed that and now anyone can build a nest egg for their child with only a f...
May 07, 2021•38 min•Season 4Ep. 8
I’ve been wanting to do this episode FOREVER and it finally happened. My guest today is Dr. Emilee Valler. She’s a pediatric psychologist with the Cleveland Clinic’s Children’s Center for Autism. Dr. Valler is here to talk about what autism is and what it’s not. We talk about what parents should look for when to be concerned, where to go for help, the diagnostic process, what to expect, early intervention, as well as beneficial therapies, services, and supports that can help you and your child, ...
Apr 23, 2021•1 hr•Season 4Ep. 7
I’ve been wanting to do this episode for a while. Dr. Richard Webby is on the show today to discuss all things COVID and vaccine-related. Dr. Webby is a Member of the Department of Infectious diseases at St Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Center for Studies on the Ecology of Influenza in Animals. This is an incredibly important conversation about the current state of the US in regards to COVID, the new variants, and the vaccine rollou...
Apr 03, 2021•51 min•Season 4Ep. 6
My guest today is Harma Hartouni. Harma just happens to be an absolutely amazing human being with one of the most inspiring stories, I’ve ever heard. He just released his new book called Getting Back Up: A Story of Resilience, Self-Acceptance and Success. He’s here to talk about his amazing life from growing up in Iran during the war, learning to walk again after surviving a devastating car accident, finally moving back to the States, learning to accept himself, coming out, meeting his partner, ...
Mar 12, 2021•56 min•Season 4Ep. 5
My guest today is Dr. Jeff Selman. He’s VP of Clinical Services over at First Children Services. He’s here to talk about how COVID is creating additional delays in kids getting evaluated for autism. This is a huge problem because we know that early intervention is absolutely vital for kids with autism and delays interfere with that. We talk about what is happening and the impact it’s having on kids. We also discuss remote learning and some challenges that we’re not talking about as we prepare to...
Feb 26, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 4Ep. 4
My guest today is Eric Rittenhouse. He’s the father of 2 amazing autistic kids and he’s here to talk about his journey as a special needs parent. Eric has a fantastic outlook on life and an inspiring approach to parenting. I hope you find this conversation about the ups, downs, challenges, and victories of being an autism parent meaningful. It’s so important to share our stories because we’re all connected and we can learn a great deal from each other. Maybe Eric will inspire others Dads to shar...
Feb 19, 2021•1 hr•Season 4Ep. 3
My guest today is Meegan Winters. She has a background in special education and is the founder of Able Eyes. Able Eyes is a state of the art platform that provides virtual tours for children and adults with disabilities for the purposes of accessibility. Meegan is here to talk about Able Eyes and how it’s helping the community. This is so cool and it’s completely free to use. Support this podcast: venmo.com/theautismdad About Meegan Winters: Meegan Winters is the CEO/Co-Founder of Able Eyes. Her...
Feb 12, 2021•28 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Welcome back!!!! My guest today is Sacha Muller and he’s an autism Dad. Sacha is here to talk to me about his parenting journey and what being a special needs Dad has been like for him thus far. While I didn’t know Sacha prior to this interview, I’ve learned that he’s an awesome Dad and I’m so grateful that he was willing to talk so openly about how he feels. I hope this inspires other Moms and Dads to open up and share their stories. Sponsors NoNetz is a Mother and son clothing company, with a ...
Feb 05, 2021•1 hr 14 min•Season 4Ep. 1
This was an unplanned bonus episode that I did in one take. That’s always impressive. I wanted to share an end-of-the-year roundup and talk about some of the things my family has been dealing with in 2020. I also open up about my divorce and share how I’m choosing to handle that. I think it’s a really important message and I hope you all can learn something from my experience. All my information and relevant links are here Support this podcast: venmo.com/theautismdad Sponsors This episode is spo...
Dec 30, 2020•38 min•Season 3Ep. 41
In this final episode of season 3, I meet Nikki Saunders. I go into these episodes not knowing anything about these parents. I know that Nikki is an autism Mom and lives in the UK. I encourage you to join me once more on this amazing journey to learn about her life and her family. I’ve included her bio below as by the time you listen to this, I’ve already met her and you may want to reach out and connect with her. About Nikki Saunders Nikki was born in Suffolk; she has two children and has worke...
Dec 13, 2020•1 hr 6 min•Season 3Ep. 40
I'm super stoked about this 2nd to the last episode of the season because I snagged an autism dad. I talk to tons of autism moms and that's awesome because I learn so much from them. I don't hear from or speak with many autism dads, and that's always bothered me. Dads seem to talk about their experiences less for some reason and I wish I knew why. I'm super excited to have an autism dad on the show today. His name is Ray Bracht and I met him for the first time a few weeks ago when this interview...
Dec 05, 2020•1 hr 6 min•Season 3Ep. 39
