Haley Graham : A Conversation on Mental Health, Autism, and Finding Your Way
Manage episode 479994398 series 3477439
Psychotherapist Haley Graham shares her journey from pharmacist to mental health advocate after her son's struggle with school led her to found the Bounce Brighter Futures Foundation.
Her personal experience with neurodivergence drives her passion for supporting children, parents, and teachers through therapeutic storytelling and compassionate understanding.
• Founded Bounce Brighter Futures Foundation in 2019, now supporting 90 families weekly with 12 therapists
• Approximately 50% of children seeking support are neurodivergent (autistic or ADHD)
• School attendance difficulties often stem from not belonging in the system rather than just peer bullying
• Cautions against therapists inadvertently teaching autistic children to mask better
• Uses storytelling with woodland animals to help children explore mental health challenges
• Created "Shadow Monster" story as metaphor for facing anxiety and OCD
• Developing new book based on interviews with late-identified autistic adults
• Believes autism itself isn't the problem—fitting into society creates mental health challenges
• Emphasizes curiosity about children's experiences rather than trying to fix them
• Advocates for thoughtfulness and empathy when supporting neurodivergent individuals
Find Haley Graham on LinkedIn, Instagram (hayleygrahauthor), and at Bounce Brighter Futures website.
https://tonymantor.com
https://Facebook.com/tonymantor
https://instagram.com/tonymantor
https://twitter.com/tonymantor
https://youtube.com/tonymantormusic
intro/outro music bed written by T. Wild
Why Not Me the World music published by Mantor Music (BMI)
Chapters
1. Introduction to Haley Graham (00:00:00)
2. Bounce Brighter Futures Foundation Overview (00:02:04)
3. Supporting Neurodivergent Children in Schools (00:04:21)
4. Balancing Therapy and Masking (00:06:56)
5. Personal Journey into Psychotherapy (00:10:51)
6. Bridging Knowledge Gaps for Parents (00:14:22)
7. Storytelling as Therapeutic Tool (00:18:03)
8. Advocating for Thoughtfulness and Empathy (00:22:51)
117 episodes