Chris welcomes Dr. Ingrid Boveda, Founder of The Hive Psychological Services and co-owner of Cogenuity. As a testing psychologist, Dr. Boveda works with neurodivergent children, adolescents, and adults across the country. Through her work with Cogenuity, she partners with schools and treatment programs nationwide to offer low-cost brain mapping and neurofeedback services. In this episode, Chris and Dr. Boveda discuss the power of self-awareness and self-advocacy—two traits often lost in the push to conform to neurotypical expectations. They explore how behaviors frequently seen as “problems,” like rigidity or hyper-focus, can actually be incredible strengths when embraced and understood in context. This conversation is full of compassion, perspective, and practical wisdom on how to truly support autistic individuals—not by changing who they are, but by helping them thrive as they are.

Links:
Autism Learning Lab Website: https://www.autismlearninglab.com/
Email: chris@autismlearninglab.com
The Hive Psychological Services: https://hivepsychological.com/
Cogenuity: https://cogenuity.net/

Quotes:

[21:00-21:28] Dr. Ingrid Boveda: “It's not how close to normal when I think about it. It's not how close to normal or neurotypical that person can become. Because again, there are certain benefits to being able to mask when needed, right? So it's not all bad. But if therapy or treatment or coaching, whatever modality. Like if the goal is let's make them indistinguishable from a neurotypical person, you've just done them a great disservice.”

[28:39-29:07] Dr. Ingrid Boveda: “I tell people sometimes, we’ve got to hack your brain. And take the things that you have been told are the sum of your weaknesses and we have to realize how we can use them as strengths. But then also, you know, thinking about, you know, when we talk about weaknesses or struggles or a disability, right? Like, how much of that is based on the standards of society versus how much is a genuine, you know, disability or genuine struggle, right?”

[30:32-31:15] Dr. Ingrid Boveda: “I want to help as many people as I can and I recognize that as helping professionals, we're looked to as the decision makers or the experts or whatever. And I just, I don't know about any of labels but but what I do know is that you know these are these are people's lives and and I certainly know what it's like to to be misunderstood or to have my behaviors or what I say or do you know be misconstrued usually for the you know for the negative and and I just I want to help in understanding what this really is beyond what society has told us it is.”