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Spectrum Events

Spectrum Events: Connecting, Educating, and Celebrating Diversity

Recurring

Multi-Session Support Group for Parents of High School Teens

Virtual

This closed group is designed for parents and family members of Autistic high school teens. This group is limited to 15 participants for caregivers to connect with one another and share information.

Dates
January 9
January 16
January 23
January 30
February 6
February 13
February 20
February 27

$180
Recurring

Multi-Session Small Group Employment Coaching for New Job Seekers

Virtual

If you are starting out on your search for a job or have been looking for some time and it’s all a bit intimidating and confusing for you, this coaching course could be just what you need to demystify the process.

This practical coaching course will cover all aspects of job hunting by building your knowledge weekly, helping you identify action steps and supporting you to work through any worries or issues you face, with the help of a workbook. You will be provided with guidance, training, accountability and inspiration over 8 weeks to help you feel more confident about applying for, interviewing for, securing and keeping a job.

Dates
January 16
January 23
January 30
February 6
February 13
February 20
February 27
March 6

$150
Recurring

Online “Closed” Support Group for Women (18-35)

Virtual

This “closed” support group is designed for Autistic women (18-35). Through this “closed” support group, women (18-35) can build an ongoing connection with a small group of other women. AANE “closed” support groups for women also give women an opportunity to voice their concerns and frustrations. It also lets them acknowledge hard-won and unexpected victories. Common topics of discussion are:

Masking/camouflaging
Sensory sensitivities/overloads
Relationships
Self-care
Empathy

$100
Recurring

Multi-Session Support Group for Parents of Adults (30+)

Virtual

This “closed” support group is for parents who have an Autistic adult child 30+ years of age. Other adult family caregivers may also register for this group. “Closed” support groups are ideal for parents and other adult family caregivers who want to go beyond sharing their stories with newcomers each time at open support group meetings.

AANE support groups provide an opportunity for parents and family caregivers to voice their concerns and frustrations and celebrate hard-won and unexpected victories. Although each group will focus on different themes and questions, here are some of the most common ones:

Now that your child is an adult, how do you support and/or parent without power?
How do you keep the lines of communication open?
How can you help the Autistic adult find and sustain work and live independently?
How do you motivate them to expand their social network?
What types of services have other families used and what were the results?
How have other members tapped into health, income, housing, and other benefits?
Dates
January 2
January 16
January 30
February 6
February 20
March 6
March 20
April 3

$180
Recurring

Multi-Session Support Group for Autistic Parents

Virtual

This is a Support Group for autistic adults who are parents. As an autistic individual, parenting brings with it a multitude of unique experiences and challenges. That’s why we’re here! Together we can share lived experiences and offer support to one another so we can grow and succeed in parenthood. Parents of all genders are welcome, whether your child is arriving soon, a toddler, in high school, or an adult themselves. This group is open to parents of all genders.

Dates
January 9
January 16
January 23
January 30
February 6
February 13
February 20
February 27

$100
Recurring

Multi-Session Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Interest Group for Adults

Virtual

This interest group is intended for post-high school adults who fulfill the player pre-requisites outlined below:

Participants need to have played Dungeons and Dragons before either at AANE or elsewhere.
They must also be familiar with character creation, general rules of D&D Edition 5, cooperation within a team, and following campaign rules and storyline.
Each participant is expected to attend all 8 meetings in order to help his/her team advance as far as possible in the campaign.
This interest series will be using a campaign selected by the Dungeon Masters. Participants must agree to follow the rules of the campaign at all times.
Because this is an interactive/collaborative game. Participants need to be able to participate fully in each game session.
Please note that this is a two-step process (application and registration). If you are interested in this group, please submit the application above.

$100

Freeing the “Anxious Generation” From the Harms of a Phone-Based Childhood

Virtual

Gen Z is the first generation in history to go through puberty with portals in their pockets that call them away from the people nearby and into an alternative universe that is exciting, addictive, and unstable. Zach Rausch, lead researcher for the #1 New York Times bestseller The Anxious Generation, will argue that the decline of independence, responsibility, and free play in childhood and the rise of smartphone and social media use among adolescents is driving the youth mental health crisis that is impacting teens in nations all across the world. Drawing on research from numerous academic fields, he will provide concrete solutions that will help parents and teens to escape out of the social traps they find themselves in.

Learning Objectives
Critically review and analyze adolescent mental health trends to improve the quality of care for young people in treatment.
Better manage adolescent mental health struggles by incorporating collective action solutions that can reduce overprotection in the real world and underprotection online.
Evaluate causal claims related to the impact of digital technology on youth mental health.

$27.18

Employment Workshop – Apprenticeships and Trades for Adults

Virtual

If continuing your academic studies past high school is not attractive or achievable, there are alternatives, regardless of your age! You may want to consider jobs that are more “hands on” such as being a jeweler, brick mason, electrician, dental assistant or elevator mechanic. The world needs individuals with practical skills and certain trades can be very lucrative. Come to this session if you want to explore the options regarding apprenticeships and vocational training. It might be that earning as you learn, with mentorship and oversight is the right solution for your future career.

*Please note that this event will be recorded. The recording will be sent out to registrants a few days after the live event and participants can watch the recording for up to 30 days.

$25

Recurring

Touchpoints Training for Mental Health Clinicians and Developmental Services Providers (JAN 2025)

Virtual

The Touchpoints Approach can be integrated into mental health clinical therapeutic theory and practice, as well as into developmental evaluation and therapeutic services. This training applies Touchpoints to help providers nurture strengths-based collaborative partnerships with families especially when families are affected by children’s special needs.

Brazelton Touchpoints has proven to improve provider and parent knowledge of child development, reduce parental stress, and enhance collaborative family-provider partnerships in service of healthier family-child relationships. Touchpoints implements a deep understanding of children’s behavior as a primary family engagement and treatment strategy by anticipating known periods of increased stress in family functioning that are associated with developmental processes. Touchpoints employs developmental-relational care to effectively manage behavioral, emotional, or relational concerns that might arise about a child.

In this training, participants practice strengths-based strategies to nurture collaborative partnerships with families in service of emotional well-being and parental competence. They also gain knowledge of theory and practice in delivering culturally-humble, relationship-based, developmentally-informed psychotherapeutic services. While Brazelton Touchpoints is a preventive model of care, this adaptation for mental health and developmental clinicians incorporates its theory and practice into intervention and treatment, taking into account effects of trauma and healing upon development and family functioning. Touchpoints is designed to complement existing psychotherapeutic skills to enhance diverse clinical orientations and techniques. These may include infant and early childhood mental health dyadic and family systems, child-parent psychotherapy, interpersonal and psychodynamic, cognitive-behavioral, parent guidance, and developmental play therapy.

Course format: This course consists 28 training hours including six monthly one-hour virtual reflective practice sessions. Each of the five modules takes about five hours to complete, and includes a live, interactive Zoom session, assignments for independent practice, and online discussion. Attendance is required at all live sessions. Participants who complete the course will receive a certificate. This course is approved for 20.25 Continuing Education Credits for physicians, nurses, social workers, and psychologists. Learn more.

Session Dates and Times: Live sessions are on Mondays, 12-4 pm ET / 9 am – 1 pm PT

01/27/2025
02/03/2025
02/10/2025
02/24/2025
03/03/2025
03/10/2025
The live sessions will be followed by six monthly Reflective Practice calls; the schedule will be set prior to the end of the main training.

What you will learn:

Strategies for building partnerships with parents that promote family strengths and emphasize preventive emotional health as well as therapeutic healing
Techniques for integrating strengths-based attitudes and relationship-based practices into therapeutic care for individuals and families
Strategies for strengthening parent-child relationships as a key influence on a child’s development and emotional functioning
How to understand the processes of child development that create stress and conflict within families and how these offer opportunities for deepened relationship and healing
Treatment techniques to address the impact of trauma and adversity within and upon the developmental process
A framework to understand why children’s behavior can sometimes be challenging and confusing
Techniques for talking with families about child development concerns
How to actively listen to families and collaboratively solve problems related to child development or a child-family relationship
Number of participants:

Minimum of 10

Maximum of 20

$895
Recurring

Multi-Session Small Group Employment Coaching for Experienced Workers

Virtual

If you are experienced in your career and are looking for a new job, career, promotion or just ways to make your current job work better for you, this is a coaching course that could be helpful. This practical coaching course will cover all aspects of job hunting/maintaining by building your knowledge weekly, helping you identify action steps and supporting you to work through any worries or issues you face, with the help of a workbook. We’ll cover conflict, difficult conversations and feedback too.

You will be provided with guidance, training, accountability and inspiration over the 8 weeks to help you feel more confident, leaving you with a personalized roadmap for getting what you want in your working life.

$150

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