Most parents expect parenting to get easier with time.

You imagine growing confidence. Finding your rhythm. Trusting that love, patience, and consistency will lead to steady progress.

But when you’re raising a neurodivergent child, that path often looks different than you expected.

In this episode, Dr. Mark Bowers talks about a form of grief that many parents carry silently: grieving the parent you thought you’d be.

Not because you don’t love your child.
Not because you wish they were different.
But because the reality of parenting doesn’t match the picture you once held.

You’ll learn:

• Why this grief makes sense from a nervous system and brain-based perspective
• How unacknowledged grief turns into stress, reactivity, and self-blame
• The difference between resignation and healthy adjustment
• Why “trying harder” often backfires
• Practical scripts you can use in hard moments tonight
• How to repair after you snap
• What real progress actually looks like

This episode is about steadiness, not perfection.

It’s about understanding what’s happening beneath behavior.
It’s about responding instead of reacting.
And it’s about learning how to hold grief without letting it run the show.

If you’ve ever thought, “Why is this so much harder than I expected?” — this conversation will put words to what you’ve been carrying.

You’re not failing.
You’re learning

Let Us Know What You Think!

Support the show

Beneath the Behavior is an educational podcast for parents and caregivers of neurodivergent kids.

The information shared is not therapy or a substitute for working with your own provider. Episodes are intended to offer understanding, context, and language—not individual advice.

If you’re looking for ongoing support grounded in the same science-not-shame approach, check out the Neurodivergent Parenting Collective.

Low demand parenting can feel like oxygen when your child is overwhelmed. The house gets quieter. Meltdowns ease. Everyone can finally breathe.

But what happens when that relief starts turning into avoidance, shrinking routines, or fear of asking for anything at all?

In this episode, pediatric psychologist Dr. Mark Bowers breaks down what low demand parenting actually does in the nervous system, why it often works so well in the short term, and how it can quietly backfire when it becomes the long-term plan.

You’ll learn:

• Why reducing demands can calm an overwhelmed nervous system
• How avoidance gets reinforced without anyone intending it
• How low demand affects PDA, ADHD, and autistic kids differently
• The difference between stabilization and growth
• A clear 3-phase framework to move from low demand to scaffolding without explosions
• Practical scripts you can use right away to preserve trust while rebuilding expectations

This episode isn’t about doing more or pushing harder. It’s about understanding what your child’s behavior is protecting, and how to support their nervous system without getting stuck in survival mode.

If low demand parenting helped your family survive, this conversation will help you figure out what comes next.

Let Us Know What You Think!

Support the show

Beneath the Behavior is an educational podcast for parents and caregivers of neurodivergent kids.

The information shared is not therapy or a substitute for working with your own provider. Episodes are intended to offer understanding, context, and language—not individual advice.

If you’re looking for ongoing support grounded in the same science-not-shame approach, check out the Neurodivergent Parenting Collective.

Some kids don’t look anxious.
They look defiant.

They argue, refuse, avoid, shut down, or explode — and parents are often told the problem is oppositional behavior, weak boundaries, or a need for stronger consequences.

In this episode, pediatric psychologist Dr. Mark Bowers explains what’s actually happening when anxiety shows up as control, resistance, and power struggles — especially in neurodivergent kids.

You’ll learn:

• Why anxiety often activates fight, not fear
• How avoidance and refusal can be protective, not manipulative
• Why pressure and consequences make anxiety-driven behavior worse
• How to tell the difference between true defiance and nervous system overload
• What to say and do in the moment to reduce escalation
• When teaching works — and when it doesn’t

This episode helps you stop mislabeling fear as defiance and start responding in ways that increase safety, connection, and long-term regulation.

If firmer strategies have only made things worse, this conversation will help you understand why — and what to do instead.

Let Us Know What You Think!

Support the show

Beneath the Behavior is an educational podcast for parents and caregivers of neurodivergent kids.

The information shared is not therapy or a substitute for working with your own provider. Episodes are intended to offer understanding, context, and language—not individual advice.

If you’re looking for ongoing support grounded in the same science-not-shame approach, check out the Neurodivergent Parenting Collective.