You can't co-regulate with someone if you're dysregulated yourself. That's the single most important thing Amanda Werner has learned from years of parenting a neurodivergent child, navigating a marriage through an international move, and researching nervous system regulation as a lifelong special interest. In Part 2 of the nervous system series on the Empower Students Now podcast, Amanda breaks down what co-regulation actually means, what it looks like in a real family (not a textbook), and w...
Jul 5
28 min
You can't regulate a classroom from a dysregulated nervous system. And you can't regulate a nervous system you don't understand. In Part 1 of a three-part series on the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Werner — a certified meditation teacher, 16-year classroom veteran, and AuDHD educator — breaks down what the nervous system actually is, what dysregulation looks and feels like, and what you can do about it right now, this summer, before the next school year begins. This isn't a polis...
Jun 27
37 min
What happens when an American teacher who spent many years teaching English Language Development (ELD) students becomes an immigrant herself? In this deeply personal episode of the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Werner records from Uruguay — her new home — and shares the raw, unfiltered reality of her first month as an American expat in a Spanish-speaking country where she doesn't speak the language. This isn't a polished relocation guide. It's Amanda sitting in her echoey Airbnb (...
Jun 20
31 min
If Part 1 of this series was about what was lost in autism history, Part 2 is about what replaced it — and the damage it caused. In this episode of the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Warner continues her deep dive into Steve Silberman's NeuroTribes, tracing how Bruno Bettelheim's "refrigerator mother" theory blamed parents for their children's autism, how institutionalization tore families apart, and how Ivar Lovaas's Applied Behavior Analysis became the dominant — and deeply contr...
May 16
26 min
Why do so many misconceptions about autism still persist in our schools — even as we know more about autism than ever before? The answer is buried in history. In Part 1 of a multi-part series on the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Werner breaks down the riveting and heartbreaking history of how autism was first identified, researched, and defined — and how decisions made almost a century ago still shape how teachers see autistic students today. Drawing from Steve Silberman's landmar...
May 9
24 min
What if the next time a student lies, sneaks, or breaks a rule, instead of reaching for a consequence, you reached for a conversation? In this episode of the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Werner shares a powerful reframe for how teachers and parents can approach misbehavior — one that prioritizes connection over compliance and treats behavior problems as signals, not crimes. Inspired by a real group text conversation with fellow moms about a child sneaking screen time and ly...
May 2
15 min
What happens when a meditation teacher stops meditating — and decides that's okay? In this deeply personal episode of the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Warner gets honest about the chaos of her life right now: selling a house, moving her family to Uruguay with a one-way ticket, packing up her entire life — and barely keeping up with her own self-care practices along the way. Rather than pretending she has it all figured out, Amanda shares the one mindset practice that's actually g...
Apr 25
12 min
What if the most "difficult" kid in your classroom is actually the one you should be paying the closest attention to — not to discipline, but to champion? In this episode of the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Werner breaks down a powerful Atlantic article by Russell Shaw called "In Praise of Difficult Kids" and explains why the students who challenge you, interrupt you, and push back against your lessons may be developing the exact skills our society needs most right now. Amanda co...
Apr 18
16 min
What do teachers really know about autism — and how much of it is actually wrong? In this episode of the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Werner — a 16-year classroom veteran and AuDHD educator — breaks down five of the most damaging and persistent myths about autism that still circulate in schools and explains why they cause real harm to autistic students. Drawing on research, years of teaching experience, and her own journey as a late-diagnosed autistic person, Amanda shares how th...
Apr 11
34 min
What is neurodiversity — and why should teachers care? In this episode of the Empower Students Now podcast, host Amanda Warner — a certified meditation teacher, 16-year classroom veteran, and AuDHD educator — breaks down the neurodiversity movement in plain language for teachers. You'll learn what neurodiversity actually means (and what it doesn't), where the movement came from, its core principles, and what it asks of educators. Amanda also tackles common misconceptions, like the idea that n...
Apr 4
23 min
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