In this episode we’re joined by Maria Moreno, a paediatric sleep consultant and motherhood life coach. With her wealth of experience, Maria shares insights on the unique sleep struggles faced by autistic children and offers practical advice for parents navigating these challenges. From personalised sleep plans to sensory considerations, this conversation is packed with valuable information to help families find their way to more restful nights.

Biography

Maria Moreno is a certified paediatric sleep consultant—with a specialization in neurodivergent sleep—and a motherhood life coach dedicated to supporting moms through the emotional challenges of motherhood. She holds a master’s degree in art education and has spent over 15 years working with neurodivergent children, bringing a deep understanding and empathy to the families she serves. After navigating postpartum depression and severe sleep deprivation, she founded Mindful Mother to help families restore rest and balance. She’s also the co-founder of Tumago, a handmade comfort blanket brand designed with sensory-sensitive and neurodivergent children in mind. Maria blends lived experience, professional training, and compassionate coaching to empower overwhelmed moms with practical, personalized tools that bring calm, connection, and confidence to their motherhood journey.

Key Takeaways

Understanding Individual Needs: Every child is different, and sleep plans should be tailored to their unique personalities and family dynamics.

Importance of Routines: Consistent bedtime routines can help children understand what to expect and ease the transition to sleep.

Visual Supports: Utilising visuals, like personalised bedtime books, can aid in preparing children for sleep changes.

Sensory Considerations: Addressing sensory sensitivities with appropriate comfort items can significantly improve sleep quality.

Environmental Factors: Creating a calming sleep environment, including blackout curtains and white noise machines, can help minimise disruptions.

Connect with Maria Moreno

Email - [email protected]

Website - www.mindfulmother.biz

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/mindfulmother_sleep/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/mindfulmother1

Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/MindfulMother_LifeCoach

LinkedIn - www.linkedin.com/in/mindfulmother

Maria's Gentle Sleep Starter Guide for Kids with Autism

https://www.mindfulmother.biz/autismsleep

This guide is designed to help parents gently create better sleep routines for their neurodivergent children, without cry-it-out methods or rigid schedules. It’s full of simple, parent-friendly tools that truly make a difference.

In addition to this free guide, Maria is kindly offering 20% off Tumago handmade comfort blankets with code AUTISMMOM These sensory-sensitive blankets were inspired by Maria's own daughters and lovingly handmade by her family.

https://tumago.etsy.com

Connect with The Autism Mums

https://theautismmums.com/

Follow us on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/theautismmums

Follow us on TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@theautismmums

Follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/theautismmums

Transcript

Victoria Bennion: [00:00:00] today, we're excited to welcome to the podcast Maria Marino, a certified pediatric sleep consultant and motherhood life coach. After our last episode about sleep, many of you reached out with questions about sleep challenges, so we thought it would be great to explore these themes further if you don't know Maria, she holds a Master's degree in art education and has over 15 years experience working with neurodivergent children. After navigating her own struggles with postpartum depression and sleep deprivation, she founded Mindful Mother to help families restore balance and rest.

Maria is the co-founder of Tumago. A handmade comfort blanket brand designed specifically for sensory sensitive children. Her blend of lived experience and

professional expertise empowers overwhelmed parents with practical,

personalized tools to enhance their journey.

Natalie Tealdi: Welcome to the podcast Maria.

Maria Moreno: Thank you so much for having me.

Natalie Tealdi: We would love to know more about what inspired you

to become a [00:01:00] pediatric sleep

consultant and motherhood life coach especially for neurodivergent

families, I.

Maria Moreno: I have a master's in art education and I have

worked with kids for over 15 years. Being in the arts or being in

elective class I. I have very single type of kid coming in and out of

my classroom I find that as a blessing

'cause I've been able to work with kids with autism, with kids, with

A DHD, so on and so forth. I have my fair share of experience and I

have always have a special place in my heart because it's just.

Amazing. I love it I became a mom during COVID my little one had

reflux, had a heart condition, had a bunch of things going on at the

same time, and she was a very poor sleeper. She would wake up most.

Five, six times a night for at least the first six months before I

hired my own first sleep consultant.

What was wild to me is that

the pediatrician never really told me anything about a sleep

consultant until I was like, this is really affecting me. My

postpartum [00:02:00] depression was

escalating, postpartum anxiety was escalating. Postpartum rage was

starting to pop up. I was seeing blurry.

It was just not great at all.

I hired, a sleep consultant, with my little one by three to four

nights. She was already sleeping through the night. She would wake up

maybe once to eat and then continue.

From there, I realized a huge

change and how beneficial obviously it is to sleep because a lot of

us, tend to take rest for granted. I was, start helping other moms,

giving them like little tips, tricks and whatever. And then a mom

actually told me, Hey, why don't you do this?

Okay. I got into the sleep

consulting and. Then I realized that, where I got my certification,

they also have four neurodivergent kids. And I like this because that

means I can help more families. My nature is to be able to help as

many families and kids because, I have experienced what sleep

deprivation is firsthand and. I can only imagine having, a little one

with autism with anxiety, with a [00:03:00]

DHD, so on and so forth. I decided to get my certification because I

wanted to be able to help as many as I can. That is how, mindful

mother became to be,

Victoria:

I like what you say. I don't like what you say about sleep

deprivation, but it took me back 'cause my daughter was a terrible

sleeper too. She'd reflux and I think it was 18 months before she

slept through the night. So I didn't know there were such things as

sleep consultant. So it's brilliant to hear what you are doing. In

terms of, your work with neurotypical children and neurodivergent

children. what differences do you see?

Maria

Moreno: Usually it's a process that it's a little bit

longer and the reason why is because I like to take it step by step.

A lot of people tend to put everything just cookie cutter, and ,

every kid. Doesn't matter who. Every kid is completely different. The

personalities are different.

Their needs are different.

Their family dynamics is different. What their parents also need is

different. So I don't like to sit here and be like, Hey cut cutter

here. This is what [00:04:00] you got.

It's fine. It works for every kid. With autism, no, that's not how it

works because I know that there's different spectrums.

I know that, depending on the

texture, depending on the colors, depending on the environment,

depending on everything it's a combination of things, and is one of

the biggest difference that, it's not going to be, two weeks or a

week.

It's gonna be a little bit

longer because it's a prepping work for them to start understanding

what's coming up next and for the family to also be already, okay,

this is what's coming up next, step by step. So that way it's a

smoother transition than if it's just like. Do this, do that, do

this, and just everything is just one to two weeks. That's how we get

more tantrums not very happy families,

Victoria:

yeah, that makes sense. You definitely need the time to get used to

the change. Yeah, I can see that.

Natalie

Tealdi: Can you walk us through what a personalized sleep

plan looks like and how your custom bedtime books support the

process?

Maria

Moreno: A personalized sleep plan I go over with the

family the [00:05:00] intake form. Then

after that I go over the actual plan with them, and then I create a

personalized sleep book for the child. It's not only just one book,

it's a series of okay, this is phase one. Okay, this is phase two.

This is phase three. So let's

say, that child is used to sleeping in the bed, in the room, or in

the bedroom with the parents. And the parent's would like them to be

able to sleep in their own bed or in their own bedroom. How do we

start doing that? So we're not gonna go from okay, you know what?

You're sleeping in your room.

That's it. No, there's different steps to it, right? So creating

these personalized books, it becomes. Personal to 'em. It's oh, this

is me in the book. Awesome. It's easy for them to understand.

It's easier for them to

process. Because any type of change for anybody is very hard. The

best way that I explain it to parents is you have your favorite

pillow, right? And I come along and I either take it away or give you

a different one, or you're gonna be happy.

No,

Victoria:

No.

Maria

Moreno: not at all. So [00:06:00]

imagine, a child. And then a child with autism, it's even harder,

it's harder for them to understand so the books help with that

process, it helps it become more personalized. It helps them to

understand whether, leaving the bottle or this is how we go from

sleeping in the bedroom.

So I had a client. That she

wanted him to start sleeping in his own room. And we did a little

book of okay, we're gonna be sleep, mommy's gonna be in the bed with

you in your room. So that's the first transition. So we started just

little by little working on that.

For him to be comfortable with

his space, comfortable with his bed, and. Like I said, it all depends

on the personality and where in the spectrum,

Victoria:

Yeah, I can see that. Certainly my son and probably yours, Natalie,

would really benefit from seeing things visually. So I can see that a

book is such a good tool to use to help ease that transition. Such a

great idea. I.

Maria:

end of the case, hey, like

Maria

Moreno: if there is,

Maria:

you know,

Maria

Moreno: certain books [00:07:00]

when it's not personalized,

They don't really react the

same way, and that goes for any child. Imagine your name being on, on

a book. It's ooh, oh wow. This is awesome, so yeah. So that's the

reason I really enjoy doing these small little series to help with

the process.

Victoria:

When parents and carers come. To you, are some of them completely

exhausted and overwhelmed?

Maria:

Most of 'em. Yes. Yeah. , Most parents tend to be already on that

thread of just I don't know what else to do.

Victoria:

What do you advise them when they come to you and they're in that

state?

Maria

Moreno: I like to work a step at a time because what I

have realized, even, in my own personal life, when you start taking

everything just one wave, it's a lot. It's a lot for anybody. For

parents, it's tripled because you're not only thinking about

yourself, but you're also thinking about, your kids.

The amount of pressure and now

what society tells you what you should and shouldn't do, and what you

can and cannot do, what's good and for your, it's just so many things

that it's just like it can drive somebody crazy and then we're here

wondering why parents [00:08:00] are

reacting the way that they're reacting.

Natalie

Tealdi: So can you tell us more about to Margo and how

sense. Three friendly comfort items can support neurodivergent

children at bedtime.

Maria

Moreno: So that's actually a cute story. Tomago is

actually a handmade blankets that my mom. Make, I began with my first

daughter they have little holes, both of my girls are so obsessed

with them that I have to wash 'em like three to four times a week. I

would see her and she would just be rubbing it on her face and things

like that, right? And so I would tell my mom I was like, why don't

you start selling them? This is amazing. This is not the typical

blanket that you're gonna see, , in kids stores you're not gonna see

'em anywhere. And she was like, okay. So she started making them and

she makes 'em with so much love. And then as I. Her company continued

growing. I went to different events and then a mom with a little one

with autism came along and he touched it and he did not let it go.

He was like that's not, Nope,

that's not happening. And so that's when it came to me that I looked

at my mom, I was like, mom, [00:09:00]

this could be very helpful. For kids with autism, for kids, even with

a DHD, with sensory, like any, with anxiety.

We have already a couple of

clients that their kids have autism we have the smaller ones that

they can take anywhere, and then you see them putting their fingers

through, right? And so I know that tends to help them soothe overall,

just like the texture itself,

we have different colors to be

less stimulating. We have realized that it really helps kids soothe.

It's just been a wonderful experience to be able to help the

community with their little ones that they could just take it

anywhere, which is the best part.

You're not have to be worrying

about like a big blanket or anything like that. It's the same texture

depending on the size. And yeah, that's how I came to be.

Victoria:

Oh, fantastic.

Natalie

Tealdi: They look lovely. You're giving me flashbacks as

well. 'cause do you remember my yellow blanket, Victoria? I had a

yellow blanket when I was little, and I used to always wanna sleep

with that yellow blanket and my mom would just swap it for another

one that wasn't quite the same, [00:10:00]

just so she could wash it.

And I always knew it was the

wrong one.

Maria

Moreno: Yeah, I actually had a dad that when he came by

the table in one of the events, he was like, oh, he didn't even have

his daughter next to him, but he touched him. He is oh, this is nice.

But he was like, still debating because he was like, I have bought so

many blankets at this point that the one that she had was already

like, she, he was like, it was ready to throw away,

so I was like, listen, it's

okay. Here, take one of the small ones and if you like them. You can

come back, or just contact me and I'll be more than happy to, have my

mom, pick the color you can let me know the size. And then he ended

up buying four because the little girl loved it so much it was almost

three years that he's been trying to find some type of other blanket

to be able to, like exchange.

Natalie

Tealdi: Yeah.

Maria

Moreno: My 4-year-old she has to sleep with four or five

of 'em. And the greatest part of it is like the holes that they

could, they love to put it on their face so you're not, worrying

about like the suffocation either.

Natalie

Tealdi: Yeah.

Victoria:

Can you share any sort of top

practical tips for sleep [00:11:00]

strategies? I know they're personalized, but is there common things

that you see, things that people can do that they're not doing?

Maria:

The pretty obvious ones is have visuals, right? And the routines tend

to be very helpful. But I know that it's hard to stick with the

routines sometimes because of all the therapies and medical

appointments, so on and so forth, I would like for any mom on here

that's actually listening, give yourself grace.

Because at the end of the day,

motherhood is not easy. And just try to take a huge deep breath it's

easier said than done, but. Routines tend to be very helpful. The

books help a lot because that way, the children know what's coming up

next and what the process is gonna be about.

Because , if we prepare our

kids to be able to understand what's going on the transitions tend to

be smoother. Then also the sensory part, usually things like the

blankets tend to help out a lot to be able to help to [00:12:00]

self-soothe throughout the night.

And, I know that melatonin

because I heard the conversation that you guys had in the episode. It

does help but it can...