This episode is the first in a brand new 5-part series on the podcast: Start Where You Are.
This series is designed to meet you wherever you are in your homeschooling journey, offering the resourcing you need to move forward with meaning and acceptance.
And to begin, we’re going straight to the foundation—by naming the elephant in the room: grief.
Grief isn’t just about death. It’s about the losses, big and small, that come with parenting and homeschooling—especially for families raising neurodivergent kids. It’s the grief of unmet expectations. The invisible grief of constant adaptation. The grief of medical interventions, school refusal, autistic burnout, and family rhythms that look nothing like we imagined.
Too often, grief is dismissed, mislabeled, or buried under burnout. But grief is not an enemy to fight—it’s a friend to make room for. It’s a teacher that invites us toward healing, wholeness, and connection.
In this conversation, I’m joined by my friend and Day In The Life community member Emily Souder—therapist, author, homeschool mom, and parent of neurodivergent kids. Emily knows this territory intimately, both through her personal story and her work in the world of neonatal loss and grief.
Together, we explore what it means to befriend grief and create space for it in our families—because tending to grief is not only vital for our own healing, but for the well-being of our children.
In this episode, we talk about:
- What grief is and how it shows up in our nervous system
- Why the 5 stages of grief are often misunderstood
- The Dual Process Model of Grief and how it helps us balance grieving and living
- The invisible grief of unmet expectations, school refusal, and constant adaptation
- What happens when we suppress or avoid grief
- Supporting our children in their own experiences of grief
- Practical ways to tend to grief in our family rhythms
This series, Start Where You Are, is about building a homeschool life grounded in relationship, felt-safety, and resilience. And that starts here—with acknowledging the grief we carry and learning how to walk with it as a friend.
Listen to the other episodes in the “Starting Where You Are” series:
Emily Souder
Emily is homeschooling mother, wife, licensed therapist and author of 4 books: Sparks, Birth Story Held for Loss, Birth Story Brave, and Your NICU Story. Emily has a heart for helping clients work through the tough parts of life. She takes a ‘both/and’ approach to her work helping clients recognize the hope and hurt in their story as they walk through processing grief.
Resources and Support
Learn more about Emily on her website
Pre-order Emily’s newest book, Your NICU Story
Join us for the next Day In The Life Community Open House
- Kelly offers one-on-one coaching and a self-paced course on the 90-Minute School Day method.
- There is also Guide Training™, a live group learning environment, for those who prefer community learning.
- Listen to or invite Kelly to speak about the 90-Minute School Day™.
At the end of the day, trust your instincts and explore alternatives to what isn’t working!
I’d love to connect personally, find me on Instagram.
You’re doing a great job, let’s make it easier!
Kelly
Be Featured on the Podcast!
The 90-Minute School Day™ podcast aims to support all homeschooling families with a focus on neurodiverse families, with learning differences and unique learning styles. Be featured on the podcast by sharing your story, struggle or asking your question here. Or leave your recording by clicking the mic below.
