Episode Details

David welcomes radiologist and author Scott Sherwood to discuss the exhaustion families feel when non-speaking autistic people’s intelligence, competence, and authorship are constantly questioned. Scott shares Lily’s early autism diagnosis, years of intensive therapies (including ABA and speech methods), and how flawed assumptions and motor demands in testing can misrepresent cognition, especially with apraxia/dyspraxia. He describes discovering RPM at age 12, later pursuing spelling-based communication supports, moving to Atlanta for a larger speller community, and using strategies focused on regulation and motor coaching. They critique skepticism around spelling/FC, shifting goalposts such as message-passing tests, underrepresentation of non-speakers in research, and systemic funding gatekeeping tied to ABA and professional organizations. In “Autism Fact or Fiction,” Scott challenges stereotypes about non-speakers lacking nuance, emphasizing their strong grasp of sarcasm and metaphor. Both end on hope: “sheer numbers” of spellers increasingly sharing their voices.

Topics

00:37 Meet Scott and Lily

04:26 Early Diagnosis and Therapies

06:44 ABA Doubts and Data

09:32 Apraxia and Research Gaps

13:33 Ten Years of ABA

16:54 Listening Without Looking

21:16 Discovering RPM Spelling

25:57 Training and Motor Loops

28:13 Moving to Atlanta for Support

29:37 Hand Over Hand vs FC

30:57 Fading Supports to Keyboard

31:17 Spelling Proof Double Standards

32:17 Autism Fact or Fiction

32:59 Non Speakers Get Sarcasm

34:13 Media Bias and Authorship Claims

37:49 ABA Power and Funding Gatekeepers

41:58 Seeing Spelling in Real Life

43:45 Testing Traps and Goalposts

50:24 Dyspraxia and Regulation Partners

52:34 Autistic Brain Wiring Explained

55:11 Hope Through Sheer Numbers

57:07 Final Takeaways and Wrap