Kristy Forbes - Autism & ND Support

18/06/2026

It was at this point in August last year that I realised I really needed to stop using Airtasker.

I had become quite sardonic and I didn't like it.

😆👀

17/06/2026

17/06/2026

My special interest right now is genealogy, and it has completely taken over for the past two years.

When I recorded this with my pal Kieran, it was three days on the couch, 7am to 11pm, showering and eating maybe once a day. But boy did it expand into 247 and days without the shower..!

When my children are with their Dad I really notice how autistic I am, because for me to disappear into my interest like that and feel completely at home in it, well...monotropism anyone?

People hear genealogy and think it sounds dry.

It isn't for me because I'm not just collecting names.

I'm looking through my family lines for the institutionalisation, autism, for the LGBTQIA+ kin, all other forms of neurodivergence including multiplicity as a result of intergenerational trauma..but in all the old terminology that was used in place of what we know now, on the people who came before me.

And there is a lot of it.

So many people in my family were institutionalised. All genders.

Widowed and living in poverty. Grieving. In burnout. Not wanting more children in big Catholic families. Not enjoying housework.

They were sent away for things that were never theirs to carry.

Untold stories, hidden shades of history and never recorded births, deaths and marriages.

I used to say there were so many lies and secrets, but I know it was protection.

When I'm looking at my DNA, and tracing those lines, what I'm actually doing is looking for me, for us - those of us living and carrying those untold stories we don't yet have language for, but feel in our bones.

Do you have an interest that on the surface seems dull to others but fills your life with richness?

KF

16/06/2026

Anyone, particularly PDA adults relate to the end of the day internal inferno the closer one gets to the destination of retreat after taking care of everyone and everything all day?

Tonight I was cooking dinner for my youngest - put a tray of food in the oven and asked Alexa (as in the smart device Alexa) to set a timer for 25 minutes.

I then realised I actually needed 30 minutes. Fine. Easy fix, surely.

I was also, at that exact moment, holding my pyjamas in my hand.

I was THIS 🤏 close to my bed. I could smell my fresh sheets and sense a psychic connection with my noise cancelling headphones calling me in..

I'm sure any parent will know the very specific desperation of being almost at the couch, or the bed, or out for a walk alone, or the bathroom or the shower, (for many of us, after years of never being alone!) where every additional delay raises the internal temperature by about ten degrees.

I asked, "Alexa, please change the timer from 25 minutes to 30 minutes."

She then took what felt like a full geological era to explain that she cannot remove minutes from a timer, because the timer only has 25 minutes, and she cannot subtract 30 from 25.

A maths lesson. I did not ask for a maths lesson.

I felt it rising. I stayed calm.

"Okay. No. Cancel the 25 minute timer."

She replied: "You have a 25 minute timer with 20 minutes and 49 seconds remaining. Would you like to cancel this timer?"

YES. Obviously. That is the entire sentence I just said.

I then asked for a 30 minute timer. And she announced, brightly, that I then had TWO timers - one for 25 minutes and one for 30 minutes..and however many minutes and seconds were remaining on each.

"Alexa, cancel all the timers."

She proceeded, of course, to recite the full dossier on both timers again and asked which one I'd like to cancel.

By now I am fully enraged. 😤😡😆

Pyjamas still in hand. And as I stormed off toward my room, I called her a name.
.a name that, in an Australian accent, you can all probably guess when I tell you what she proceeded to educate me on.

As I opened up my bedroom door, seething, she piped up cheerfully: "I think this information will help…" and began to educate me on buckwheat.

Where it's from, what it's for and how to grow it.

Buckwheat.
She heard buckwheat.

A bit of co-regulation with Alexa to round out the evening.

I'm still laughing. 🌾

16/06/2026

Hello hello!

It's the end of the financial year, and we've opened up 50% off everything in the library.

The lot..

Every core program, including inTune with PDA, Critical Care & Recovery and inTune Families.

Every one of our on-demand masterclasses. Every ebook guide. And all of the bundles.

Anything you can add to the cart, you can take 50% off.

To access the discount, you enter the code EOFY in the coupon field at checkout, and the price drops by half.

Everything you choose is self-paced and yours to keep, so you can come back to it when your nervous system is ready, not because a date told you to.

If something has been sitting in your cart, or quietly on your mind, this is a gentler doorway in.

You can access our Core programs and on demand masterclasses at the menu on top of the site, and our eBooks and guides can be found on the home page.

The code EOFY is live until 30 June.

Visit www.kristyforbes.com.au

14/06/2026

Every child is different.

Temperament, development, neurodiversity, family circumstances, culture, geographical location, values, resources, and support systems all matter.

What works beautifully for one family may be completely unhelpful for another.

Social media often rewards certainty, simple answers, black and white framing, and one-size-fits-all advice. Parenting is rarely that simple. Raising children is complex.

When you are scrolling on social media, experiment with what resonates, leave what doesn’t, and trust that you know your family better than a person, a post, or a page on the internet.

Rachel Samson

13/06/2026

For me, home isn’t a place..it’s an alignment.

It’s a life that’s sustainable and true to who I am at my core.

It’s built around my passions, the people I’m close to and trust, and love. It’s internal safety.

It’s my relationship with myself and my environment, and learning to know and trust what my body is telling me.

It’s my animals. It’s nature. It’s music, singing, dancing, baking, creating, belly laughter.

That’s home. 🤍

KF

13/06/2026

I know this will be hard for some to hear (read), but honestly.. gluten free bread is a bit superior when it comes to toasting and butter actually spreading well.

And of course the added benefit of being less autistic on gluten free. 💀👀😆

12/06/2026

11/06/2026

When our PDAers want to go back to school after burnout, I know how real and frightening that is.

I always try to answer honestly, and not give an idealised response. When raising our children, reality can be hard, and to know we’re not alone is crucial.

‘Dignity of risk’ changes everything, and it can complicate everything.

When our PDAers set their mind on trying something, it's a lose-lose for us in some ways. We can say yes - full-bodied or begrudgingly - and it can go really badly, or it can go really well.

The lose-lose is: they try and it costs them, or they become resentful and life becomes challenging anyway because we didn't support them to honour what they wanted for themselves.

School is one of those things.

I had long and honest conversations with my child before they tried again. I've learned that when I'm parenting from a place of damage control - moving between emergency and recovery, having my own autonomy quietly hollowed out in the process - the possibility of going back through all of that again is terrifying and exhausting.

Dignity of risk means making sure I'm as supported as I can possibly be. That my child has supports around them.

Therapeutic support if possible, adequate rest and downtime, and that I also have access to support and not just being being focused solely on my child's.

We're the ones facing mandatory reporting when our families are misunderstood. Accusations of fabricated and induced illness. Behavioural incident reports. Truancy calls.

Many of us know this.

And still, our children have a right to try. To learn. To grow.

That's their human right.

Many of our PDAers are self led, autonomous in their learning and this includes significant experiential life experiences - often painful ones.

There is always the possibility of things going really well. I don’t want my child to miss out on those opportunities because of my fear.

I know it’s a challenging situation.

Radical acceptance means the best thing I can do is immerse myself in support and community, prepare for the hardest version of what might happen, and trust that anything less than that is manageable.

KF