Welcome to My Brain: Neurodivergent Pregnancy and Parenting

Hi, and welcome. I’m so glad you’re here.
Neurodivergent pregnancy and parenting has its own set of challenges and difficulties, but it also brings a unique kind of insight, empathy, and strength that can deepen your connection to yourself and your child. Gaining knowledge helps you recognize these strengths and apply them.

I created this blog to offer support for other neurodivergent parents—especially those going through pregnancy, childbirth, and parenting while autistic, ADHD, or both. I want to create a space about pregnancy, birth and parenting that doesn’t rely on generic advice that only works for neurotypical people.

My Story: Neurodivergent Pregnancy, Birth and Parenting

Pregnancy: Intense, Fascinating, and Full of Feelings

My pregnancy was pretty smooth physically speaking, and as it often happens with things I care about deeply, pregnancy and birth quickly became a special interest for me. I wanted to learn everything about it. I read all the books (especially the ones about a natural approach), research, birth stories (the positive ones), anatomy, hormones—you name it. It was so fascinating to me how the body works during pregnancy and birth. Soon I decided that I wanted to give birth at home in my own safe environment with just my boyfriend and a midwife by my side.

I am a very sensitive person like most of us neurodivergents and I needed the midwives and doctors that I met during pregnancy to be calm, kind, and emotionally safe to be with. I’m incredibly sensitive to tone, body language, and atmosphere.

During pregnancy I went to pregnancy yoga. It probably helped me a lot with staying calm and enjoying the experience with minimal overwhelm.

All in all, pregnancy went well and I enjoyed the time.

Birth: Letting Go, Holding On, and Finding My Strength

My due date came and went—and then another week passed, and then another. Two full weeks overdue, and still, nothing was happening. I knew what that meant: I’d have to go to the hospital and be induced. The thought of it terrified me.

I didn’t want to be in a cold, clinical and unfamiliar hospital, with strangers around me making me feel unsafe. After reading all about childbirth, I knew the risks of induction. I knew it was likely to bring with it more interventions, stronger pain, more monitoring, a greater risk of things spiraling away from what I wanted. I cried on the way to the hospital. It felt like I was walking straight into a situation that I wouldn’t be able to handle.

Somewhere on the way I decided to accept this fact though and do the best I could with it. I still had my yoga music and my man by my side. And I would ask for a room with a tub that I could relax in. 

When we arrived, though, all the rooms with tubs were taken so that was not an option. I think my music played once and then everyone forgot about it. My midwives were all wonderful though.

The birth didn’t go as I had planned at all. Everything went wrong but somehow he came out with the help of hospital staff, he was healthy and I had survived!

Postpartum: Sleepless, Overwhelmed, and All Alone

After the birth, I was transferred to the postpartum ward. Into a 6-person room. Yes, six mothers and six newborn babies in the same space, with only a curtain between us. This was where the high-risk women were kept, and I was considered high risk because I had lost two liters of blood during birth.

Of course, I didn’t sleep at all. It was horrible.

My boyfriend had to go home because there was no space for extra people in there, and I was left all alone in a corner of the room with my newborn baby. No privacy, no calm, no rest, just crying babies, constant traffic of people in and out and an overwhelming exhaustion.

Later, I found out that there never were any 6-person rooms in that ward. But at the time I gave birth, the ward was being refurbished, and that’s why it was such a chaotic and uncomfortable environment.

Well… needless to say, I survived that part too. And eventually, I went home.

Parenting: A Daily Dance Between Love and Overwhelm

Parenting with ADHD and autism is a strange mix of deep love and intense overwhelm. For a long time, I had no idea that I was neurodivergent. I didn’t know why parenting was so much harder for me than others. I didn’t understand why I was so overwhelmed and exhausted all the time. And the guilt that came with it was quite heavy. Every time I searched for answers on the internet, I came across postpartum depression. But it didn’t fit because I didn’t feel depressed and my condition didn’t change over time. It was always the same mental overwhelm and mental exhaustion.

Learning I Was Neurodivergent

I didn’t know I was neurodivergent. Like many women and parents, I was diagnosed later in life, after years of feeling like I was just barely holding it together. I got diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 29 and with autism at 37. At that time, my child was 12. Realizing I was autistic and had ADHD didn’t fix everything overnight, but it gave me context. Suddenly I realized why the world felt so loud, why I was always exhausted, and why everyday tasks—especially as a parent—felt so much harder than they seemed for others. And the guilt decreased. I was able to show myself more understanding. I found out that everything I had been feeling that felt so wrong, was very common among neurodivergent parents. This article sums it up beautifully.

Why I Created This Space for Neurodivergent Pregnancy and Parenting

Because this journey of overwhelm and mental exhaustion can be lonely. Because most parenting blogs and pregnancy resources assume a neurotypical brain—and those tips don’t always work for us.I created this space for neurodivergent moms, dads, and parents who feel like they’re doing it all wrong—but aren’t. For those who need permission to do things their way, and practical support that actually fits how their brain works.

What You Can Expect Here

This blog will explore neurodivergent-friendly approaches to pregnancy, birth, and parenting. Being a  certified nurse, midwife, doula, and a neurodivergent mother myself,  I’ll be sharing insights from both personal experience and professional perspective.

Topics I’ll cover include:

• Sensory-friendly tips for pregnancy and birth
• How to advocate for yourself in medical settings
• How executive dysfunction impacts daily parenting life
• Strategies for managing neurodivergent burnout and parenting overload
• Why traditional routines may not work—and what to try instead
• Embracing your unique parenting strengths

This blog is for you if:

• You’re pregnant or parenting with ADHD, autism, or another form of neurodivergence
• You feel like the “normal” advice doesn’t fit you
• You’re trying to stay afloat in a world not built for your brain
• You want real talk, honest support, and less pressure to be perfect
  
  

A Final Word: You Are Not Broken

The world isn’t designed for neurodivergent mothers and parents—but that doesn’t mean you’re the problem or that you can’t thrive.

Here’s your reminder:
You’re neither lazy, failing nor broken.

You’re just wired differently—and you deserve tools, support, and understanding that reflect that. I hope this blog becomes a soft place to land when you need validation, ideas, or just to know you’re not alone.

Thanks for being here 🙂