Life at Sensory Planet

Going through the diagnosis process is long.It’s heavy. It’s confusing.It’s a full-time job on top of parenting, surviving, and remembering to eat something that isn’t just your child’s leftovers.

It’s almost here. The shoes are polished, the uniforms are folded with military precision (well… close enough), and the lunchboxes are ready to be filled with things they’ll totally not eat. That’s right — school goes back on Monday, and I’ve got a mix of emotions swirling around like a fidget spinner on a sugar rush.

When you’ve got two children just 13 months apart — one with ASD and the other with very suspiciously undiagnosed ADHD — the phrase “school holidays” doesn’t bring to mind beachy serenity or Pinterest-worthy craft tables. It brings flashbacks. Noise. Chaos. Strategy meetings. And occasionally... bourbon and Coke.

If you’re a parent navigating the world of autism, you already know that it’s not just a diagnosis — it’s a journey. And for many of us, it starts long before any official paperwork lands in our hands. That’s where Occupational Therapists (OTs) and Speech Pathologists come in. They don’t just help kids — they guide families, calm storms, and become the village we all desperately need.

Being a mum in business isn’t for the faint-hearted. It’s late nights, early mornings, chasing toddlers with one hand and replying to customer messages with the other. It’s showing up, building something from scratch, and hoping it makes a difference — not just for your family, but for someone else's too. Today, I met a mum who reminded me exactly why we do this.

Raising an autistic child often means your calendar looks like a game of appointment bingo—OT here, speech there, psychologist next week. Now toss in a baby or two, two preppies who need support with their early learning, another child mid-diagnosis, a house that never stops, and a partner who’s gone from 3am to 6pm. Sound familiar? You’re not alone—and you’re doing an amazing job, even when it doesn’t feel like it.