Rhonda Moore is a medical anthropologist in her early 50s. After self diagnosing as autistic in 2019, she was formally diagnosed in 2020. She lives in Bethesda, Maryland, and is Program Director in Global Mental Health at NIH. She talks about intergenerational autism, the impact of growing up autistic in an abusive home, autism, trauma and resilience, the intersectionality of autism, gender, age and race, and being neurodivergent at work.
Squarepeg podcast episodes
Season 5
[66] S5, Ep11: A life-saving autism diagnosis: BPD, eating disorders and an autistic experience of the mental health system
19 Mar, 2022
Chloe Slater was diagnosed autistic aged 25, and has been in the mental health system since the age of 16, where she says she has experienced ‘awful treatment, amazing care, and everything in between’. Now 34, she lives in Gloucestershire in the UK, with her two dogs and other pets. Diagnosed first with Borderline Personality Disorder, she describes herself as ‘mostly a happy loner’ who enjoys being surrounded by animals and a select few humans.
[65] S5, Ep10: Equity for autistic people in recruitment and the workplace – and hearing the voices of all autistic people
12 Mar, 2022
Nesceda Blake is a performing arts producer from Melbourne, Australia. She was diagnosed very early, at just three years old. We met on LinkedIn, after I came across a post about her experiences with recruiters which had gone viral. After clashing with the neurotypical standards of professionalism in interview guides and job ads, she passed her feedback on to one recruitment firm, leading to them – and many more recruiters – pledging to change their processes.
[64] S5, Ep9: Autism and epilepsy, shutdown and dissociation
5 Mar, 2022
Aisling Walsh is a queer feminist freelance writer, translator and PhD candidate living in Guatemala City. She is 37 and was diagnosed autistic in December 2021. She was also diagnosed with epilepsy at 23, but now suspects that her seizures might actually be dissociative seizures linked to autistic shutdown.
[63] S5, Ep8: Intersecting identities, neurodivergent families, and inclusion, leadership and representation at work
26 Feb, 2022
Kira Young is a Native American poet, philosopher, activist and singer from Virginia, USA. She is 52 and was diagnosed very recently. Kira has held roles in corporations and the US Government, but her direct communication style and integrity have often led to clashes with authority. She is now transitioning to making a living from her many passions.
[62] S5, Ep7: Autism assessment and diagnosis, and ungendering the diagnostic process
19 Feb, 2022
Victoria is an autistic blogger and PhD student from Manchester in the UK. Diagnosed autistic aged 25, she started an Instagram account and blog called ‘Actually Aspling’ the same year, in 2017. She has an MSc in Psychology and is currently a PhD student in autism research.
[61] S5, Ep6: Empowering labels, navigating relationships and advocating for neurodivergent and disabled people
12 Feb, 2022
Marie Ralph is a disabled single mum to two neurodivergent sons. She is 48 and was diagnosed five years ago. She lives in Newquay, Cornwall in the UK, where as well as being a full time carer, she is Director of Youth Art Connect and Cornwall Tourettes and Tic Disorder Group. She fights for equality, promotes anti ableism and strives to change perceptions of neurodiversity.
[60] S5, Ep5: Autism and the intersection of culture, race and gender
5 Feb, 2022
Suzanna Chen was born in China and raised in Vancouver, Canada. She was diagnosed autistic in her final year of high school. Now 18 she is an undergraduate student at University College London in the UK. Standing at the intersection of gender, racial, and ability minorities, she is passionate about advocating for the overlooked intersectionality of social justice issues.
[59] S5, Ep4: Getting an autism diagnosis while doing a PhD in autism and parenting an autistic child
29 Jan, 2022
Gilly McKeown is an autism researcher in Brisbane, Australia. She is in her thirties and was diagnosed autistic in 2021, when she was already more than halfway through her PhD in autism. She is a single parent to her young autistic and ADHD daughter. Her PhD is investigating the challenges faced by autistic children and young people in sport.Â
[58] S5, Ep3: Women’s health, intergenerational autism and giving language to the autistic experience
22 Jan, 2022
Lucy Pearce is an author, artist and publisher from East Cork in Ireland. When she was 37 she, her mother and her daughter were all diagnosed autistic within 6 months of each other. She founded her own publishing company in 2014 and her books attract a neurodivergent audience.
[57] S5, Ep2: Dancing with differences: autism and disability empowerment
15 Jan, 2022
Disability empowerment coach and poet Amanda Harrinauth was born premature, weighing just 1 pound 7ounces and spent her childhood in and out of hospitals. At 26 she was diagnosed autistic, with an intellectual disability. She began writing poetry as a way to process her thoughts and emotions following her diagnosis, and says it was through her writing that she finally learned how to make her autism work for her.Â
[56] S5, Ep1: Sara Gibbs: From not fitting in, to finding a place in the world as an autistic woman
8 Jan, 2022
After enduring vicious bullying and social exclusion during her school days, and having some pretty horrendous experiences in the workplace, Sara Gibbs has built a successful career as a comedy writer. Diagnosed autistic at 30, she published her brilliant – and hugely relatable – memoir, Drama Queen, in 2021.