Even though he loves nature, outings kept ending in chaos

Parenting a neurodivergent child can feel chaotic and we find ourselves getting caught up in the expectations of the neurotypical world.

Getting out the door is enough to overwhelm us, let alone planning where to go that won’t leave us as parents feeling like the one family who can’t even go to the park.

As a parent, I've had so many experiences of knowing that I should get my kid outside more, but the anxiety of:

What if they run off?

What if they hate it and it's not worth the work of getting out the door?

What if we get there and it's too crowded and we have to leave right away?

Those questions, connected with innumerable experiences of my kid eloping and not being able to find him across the field or on a crowded play structure, or showing up with a picnic packed and a backpack ready only to see right away that it's wayyy to crowded for his nervous system, but not wanting to leave because we put so much effort into getting here! 

In occupational therapy, we talk about person–environment–occupation fit. Regulation is not just an internal skill. It is shaped by where we are.

Some outdoor spaces support nervous systems beautifully. Others do not. And, if your child is neurodivergent, chances are their window of tolerance for environments that have stressors  or triggers is much narrower. 

So, we wanted to create a tool for parents based on work from Child-Centered Play Therapy, Nature-Based Therapy, and Occupational Therapy, that would help you identify best fits for outdoor outings, and that would also help give you a visual framework to look back at when you are deciding whether to go out or stay in. 

We are selling this one to help support our team and the effort that went into this collaboration. It's 5.99 and we hope it helps. Thank YOU for helping support us and being part of our community.