The School Can't Experience

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If this episode helped you please take a moment to subscribe, rate, or review the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It genuinely helps other School Can't families find us.
If you are a parent of carer in Australia and experiencing distress, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or contact the Parent Help Line. - https://kidshelpline.com.au/parents/issues/how-parentline-can-help-you
You can contact us to volunteer to share your School Can't story or some feedback via email on schoolcantpodcast@gmail.com
Disclaimer
The content of this podcast is based on personal lived experiences and is shared for informational and storytelling purposes only. It should not be treated as medical, psychological, or professional advice under any circumstances. If you have concerns about your health or well-being, please seek guidance from a doctor, therapist,...

Get in touch? Email us at schoolcantpodcast@gmail.com with your feedback, suggestions or to volunteer to share your School Can't experience.
This episode takes a different shape from our usual format. Rather than a single guest, it draws together voices from more than a dozen past guests and lived experience parents to build a fuller picture of burnout.
At its centre is a reframe: burnout isn't a medical disorder or a character flaw, it's a nervous system response to chronic stress, closer to smoke from a fire than the fire itself. Once that's understood, so much of what looks like laziness, manipulation or misbehaviour starts to make sense as something else entirely: a loss of spark, a slow withdrawal as masking becomes unsustainable, a body and brain that have simply run out of capacity to keep going.
The episode doesn't shy away from one of the most damaging patterns in this space — the well-meaning advice, often from professionals, to make home less comfortable in order to push a young person back into school. 
Several families share what happened when they followed that advice, and the outcomes are genuinely heartbreaking. This section briefly touches on self-harm and suicidal ideation — please take care while listening.
From there, the focus shifts to recovery: what it actually looks like, why following a young person's passions matters more than any formal program, why progress is rarely a straight line, and why parent burnout is just as real and just as deserving of compassion as the burnout experienced by young people themselves. 
The episode closes with a metaphor that's stayed with many of our listeners — the caterpillar dissolving in the chrysalis before it can become a butterfly — a reminder that transformation is often happening even when it's invisible.
Voices featured in this episode include Dr Naomi Fisher, Tiffany Westphal, Tanya Valentin, Laura Hellfeld, Eliza Fricker,  and lived experience parents Mark, Jessica, Jennie, Emma, Diana, Wendy and Jodie.
Content warning: this episode includes discussion of self-harm and suicidal ideation.
Relevant resources: (available in your podcast app)
Episode 60 — Why School Can't Young People Struggle with Self-Care and Hygiene, with Laura Hellfeld 
Episode 55 — Jodie's Lived Experience
Episode 51 — Jessica's Lived Experience
Episode 43 — Wendy's Lived Experience
Episode 42 — Tanya Valentin on School Can't, Parental Grief and Transformation
Episode 28 — Dr Naomi Fisher on Parental Burnout
Episode 27 — Diana's Lived Experience
Episode 23 — Eliza's Lived Experience
Episode 18 — Lived Experience with Mark Thompson
Episode 9 — Jennie's Lived Experience
Episode 8 — Understanding Burnout in Our Young People with Dr Naomi Fisher
Episode 7 — Emma G's Lived Experience
Send us Fan Mail
Support the show
School Can’t Australia Facebook Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/schoolphobiaschoolrefusalaustralia
If this podcast or the School Can’t Australia community has helped you, please consider making a donation or volunteering to help. Find out more here: https://www.schoolcantaustralia.com.au/get-involved#donate

If this episode helped you please take a moment to subscribe, rate, or review the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It genuinely helps other School Can't families find us.
If you are a parent of carer in Australia and experiencing distress, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or contact the Parent Help Line. - https://kidshelpline.com.au/parents/issues/how-parentline-can-help-you
You can contact us to volunteer to share your School Can't story or some feedback via email on schoolcantpodcast@gmail.com
Disclaimer
The content of this podcast is based on personal lived experiences and is shared for informational and storytelling purposes only. It should not be treated as medical, psychological, or professional advice under any circumstances. If you have concerns about your health or well-being, please seek guidance from a doctor, therapist,...

Permaculture designer Cecilia Macaulay joins host Leisa Reichelt for a surprising but genuinely practical conversation about how the design of our home environments can either add to or reduce the nervous system burden on School Can't families.
Drawing on 34 years of permaculture design, and on Japanese cultural practices she's studied over decades, Cecilia introduces the idea that home can be designed to work for us rather than against us, without requiring willpower, discipline, or a big cleanup effort. Her approach, which she calls Togetherness Design, starts from the principle that order is natural, and that small, well-placed design choices can create a sense of competence, calm and belonging for both children and parents.
Cecilia shares practical, immediately usable ideas: why the kitchen sink is the single best place to start, how "floordrobe islands" can transform an overwhelming room into a liveable one, what perpendicular shoes at the front door have to do with nervous system regulation, and why design, not rules, is the key to creating lasting change in a household under pressure.
This episode is also a reminder that the young people in our community who have found their way out of conventional schooling can build meaningful, even remarkable lives on their own terms, Cecilia's own career is a case in point.
Special Offer for Listeners:
The Home That Loves You Back: 9-Month Guided Home Harmonising Project starting June 28: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/the-home-that-loves-you-back-9-month-guided-home-harmonising-project-tickets-1981827693982
Use the code: SchoolCant200 for a $200 discount (limited to the first six to sign up)
Other Resources:
Cecilia’s Website and Blog to sign up for stories and events: https://www.ceciliamacaulay.com.au
Cecilia on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cecilia_macaulay/
Cecilia on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cecilia.macaulay.australia
Send us Fan Mail
Support the show
School Can’t Australia Facebook Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/schoolphobiaschoolrefusalaustralia
If this podcast or the School Can’t Australia community has helped you, please consider making a donation or volunteering to help. Find out more here: https://www.schoolcantaustralia.com.au/get-involved#donate

If this episode helped you please take a moment to subscribe, rate, or review the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It genuinely helps other School Can't families find us.
If you are a parent of carer in Australia and experiencing distress, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or contact the Parent Help Line. - https://kidshelpline.com.au/parents/issues/how-parentline-can-help-you
You can contact us to volunteer to share your School Can't story or some feedback via email on schoolcantpodcast@gmail.com
Disclaimer
The content of this podcast is based on personal lived experiences and is shared for informational and storytelling purposes only. It should not be treated as medical, psychological, or professional advice under any circumstances. If you have concerns about your health or well-being, please seek guidance from a doctor, therapist,...

Tiffany Westphal, director of School Can't Australia, joins host Leisa Reichelt to discuss a common stressful experience facing School Can't families: the school attendance plan.
Drawing on recent survey research conducted with the School Can't Australia community, Tiffany reveals some genuinely shocking findings, including that 46% of families were presented with an attendance plan with no prior consultation, 29% were never consulted at all, and 73% felt pressured to agree to a plan they didn't think would work. Only 20% said their plan reflected the advice of their young person's allied health or medical team.
Tiffany and Leisa explore why attendance plans so often fail. From the absence of child and family input, to the mismatch between what schools are measuring (attendance) and what actually needs to be addressed (the barriers and stressors making school feel unsafe). They discuss the difference between attendance plans and exposure plans, why a distressed child in the late stages of School Can't needs a fundamentally different approach, and what genuine collaborative problem-solving can look like in practice, including how Leisa used a "hypothesis" framing to shift responsibility back to the school.
There's also practical guidance for families who are right in the middle of this: red flags to watch for, when to ask for a different contact at the school, when to bring an advocate, and why it's okay to say "I disagree."
Relevant resources:

Send us Fan Mail
Support the show
School Can’t Australia Facebook Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/schoolphobiaschoolrefusalaustralia
If this podcast or the School Can’t Australia community has helped you, please consider making a donation or volunteering to help. Find out more here: https://www.schoolcantaustralia.com.au/get-involved#donate

If this episode helped you please take a moment to subscribe, rate, or review the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It genuinely helps other School Can't families find us.
If you are a parent of carer in Australia and experiencing distress, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or contact the Parent Help Line. - https://kidshelpline.com.au/parents/issues/how-parentline-can-help-you
You can contact us to volunteer to share your School Can't story or some feedback via email on schoolcantpodcast@gmail.com
Disclaimer
The content of this podcast is based on personal lived experiences and is shared for informational and storytelling purposes only. It should not be treated as medical, psychological, or professional advice under any circumstances. If you have concerns about your health or well-being, please seek guidance from a doctor, therapist,...

Rachel, a parent from southern Tasmania, joins host Leisa Reichelt to share her lived experience supporting her son, now in Year 11 and engaged with school, through what has been anything but a straightforward journey.
Rachel's son is autistic with PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance, or Pervasive Demand for Autonomy), ADHD, dyslexia, dysgraphia and a high IQ. That combination created enormous challenges in settings that weren't designed to accommodate his needs. But also enormous possibilities when the right supports were finally in place.
Rachel walks us through the early warning signs from daycare onwards, a primary school experience marked by suspensions, bullying and the gradual removal of the very accommodations that were keeping her son engaged/ Then the 19-month battle to get him into a school better suited to his needs, which was ultimately resolved in eight days once an advocate got involved.
She shares the specific, practical accommodations that have made the difference: running when overwhelmed, frozen peas and corn for sensory regulation, a safe space during substitute teacher lessons, dropping subjects that created knock-on dysregulation, and a highly modified timetable built around his strengths. She also talks about the role of a positive behaviour support practitioner in shifting the whole school culture, and why that kind of whole-school investment pays off for every student.
Rachel also shares her perspective on what's at stake with the proposed NDIS reforms, and points to resources for families who want to stay informed and take action.
Relevant resources:
The Growing Space (NDIS information and advocacy) - https://www.thegrowingspace.com.au/
Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) - https://www.dpacaustralia.net/
Australian Neurodivergent Parents Association (ANPA) - https://www.thisisanpa.org/
Regional Autistic Engagement Network Tasmania - https://www.raentasmania.com.au/
Association for Children with Disability (national, state branches) - https://acd.org.au/
Send us Fan Mail
Support the show
School Can’t Australia Facebook Community - https://www.facebook.com/groups/schoolphobiaschoolrefusalaustralia
If this podcast or the School Can’t Australia community has helped you, please consider making a donation or volunteering to help. Find out more here: https://www.schoolcantaustralia.com.au/get-involved#donate

If this episode helped you please take a moment to subscribe, rate, or review the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It genuinely helps other School Can't families find us.
If you are a parent of carer in Australia and experiencing distress, please call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or contact the Parent Help Line. - https://kidshelpline.com.au/parents/issues/how-parentline-can-help-you
You can contact us to volunteer to share your School Can't story or some feedback via email on schoolcantpodcast@gmail.com
Disclaimer
The content of this podcast is based on personal lived experiences and is shared for informational and storytelling purposes only. It should not be treated as medical, psychological, or professional advice under any circumstances. If you have concerns about your health or well-being, please seek guidance from a doctor, therapist,...