The Squarepeg Podcast

Podcasts are fantastic resources for learning. I sometimes wish I could use them more, but they tend to be the last thing on my mind. Especially when there are other medias that I consume more. My favourite thing about podcasts is that they are free and many contain no adverts. The ones that do are often short and don’t spoil the podcast much. I get overwhelmed with how many there are.

There are a plethora of them on every streaming service you can think off. They can cover nearly any topic. Just thinking about it tires me out. One of the great podcasts out there is Squarepeg hosted by Amy Richards. Squarepeg is an inclusive podcast for women who either identify as autistic or have had a diagnosis. They are also an inclusive podcast and accept transwomen and non-binary guests. The podcast has been around for a few years now during the lockdown, and have a lot of content already ready to listen to.

Neurodivergent often get branded as lazy, selfish, unmotivated and invalid. When walk in our shoes, you will see that many things are a struggle. Socialising can be exhausting. If you can function or do adult things they’re like “oh you’re not doing bad for an autistic person.” I often get told I can’t be autistic because I’m not lazy. Moments listening to the podcast I often thought: yep, I’ve had that too.

In each episode, the guest introduces themselves and shares their life stories and the things that they are passionate about. They are open and raw about things they share and really break down the stereotypes that have been imposed on us over the years. Many of us are still struggling with the stigma on top of the social issues.

There are a lot of advocate groups for autism. Some have better reputations than others. I was looking for a podcast that would help me understand what others have been through whilst learning to live with my diagnosis. I found not much has changed in my life, but I feel my eyes have opened out.

I feel that it explains my poor social skills and late development as a child. Though because I didn’t know anything else back then, I felt I had a normal childhood even though I was bullied a lot. I thought everybody got bullied and everybody wanted to be popular so they would break the rules to impress people.

I was engaged with the episodes that I have listened to. I appreciate how we’ve had people in different positions like teachers, entrepreneurs and writers. I felt inspired listening to their stories and I didn’t feel alone. It made me feel like I was there listening to their conversations in the room.

It made me feel more inspired to do the things I wanted to do. Lately I have been feeling burned out and drained. Listening to this podcast made me forget that drained feeling. It was really great to see how many of the episodes were positive, encouraging, but also honest and upfront about the day-to-day struggles of being neurodivergent.

Another thing that I really like is the variety of content. This means that some episodes are lot longer than others. The majority of episodes are about an hour but there are some episodes that are about 15 to 20 minutes. One of the bonus episodes I listened to had older guests return on the podcast to show their positive experiences they have had since their diagnosis.

Squarepeg are always happy to have people volunteer as guests and share stories. The podcast has its own website and are availible on Twitter and have their own email address.