Behave: The podcast to unlearn behaviour

The Zones of Regulation are on classroom walls everywhere. But are they helping people understand their emotions, or quietly teaching them which feelings are allowed? Ellie and Erika are joined by Catherine, a rural paediatric OT from Belong Occupational Therapy, to get into one of the most popular regulation frameworks used in schools and therapy. We look at what the Zones do well, where they can...

Reinforcement good. Punishment bad. Right? Not exactly. In this episode, Ellie and Erika unpack two of the most misunderstood concepts in behaviour support: reinforcement and punishment. Because despite how often these words get thrown around in parenting, education and disability spaces, most people aren't actually using them the way behaviour science intended. We explore why reinforcement isn't...

Joined by Aaron Miller , we're tackling a big one: what does good behaviour support actually look like? We unpack some of the biggest myths in the behaviour world, why behaviour isn't something to "fix", and why reducing behaviour isn't the same as improving someone's quality of life. Plus, we're sharing a few Behaviour Support Practitioner "hills we're willing to die on"… and some of them might b...

In this episode, Erika and Ellie unpack one of the most misunderstood profiles in the neurodiversity space:  PDA (Pathological Demand Avoidance / Persistent Drive for Autonomy) . We dive into what PDA actually is, why it has so many different names, and what is really happening in the nervous system when everyday expectations feel like genuine threats. We explore why traditional parenting, teachin...

The NDIA changes announced last month have left a lot of people overwhelmed, confused and for some, scared. Judging by the response to our Instagram poll, this is the topic people most wanted unpacked properly. So that’s exactly what we did. In this episode, we revisit what the NDIS was actually designed to be in the first place (spoiler: an insurance scheme), what the proposed changes really mean...

Ever felt like behaviour “comes out of nowhere”? Spoiler: it usually doesn’t. In this episode, we unpack what’s  actually happening before, during, and after the big moments. We dive into escalation curves, nervous systems under stress, and the often-missed signs that tell us someone is struggling  before  things explode. Precursor behaviour, escalation curves, and why trying to “reason” with some...

Every Behaviour Specialist’s favourite question… and for good reason. In this episode, we’re getting underneath it all — unpacking the  why  behind behaviour. Because every behaviour serves a function. And when we skip the why, we miss the whole point. We break down behaviour as communication (yes, even the ones that make you want to pull your hair out), and why surface-level responses often do mo...

Complex autism isn’t a checklist. It’s not a neat label. And it definitely doesn’t come with a clear roadmap. In this episode, we go there — unpacking what “complex” autism (and other complex diagnoses) actually looks like in real life. The co-occurring conditions, the constant decision-making, the systems that don’t quite fit, and the emotional load families are carrying behind the scenes. We’re...

Regulated = calm. Or at least… that’s what we’ve all been taught. But what if that’s not actually true? In this episode, Erika and Ellie (aka the Regulation Queen) unpack regulation in a way that will likely flip what you thought you knew on its head. We get into why “calm” isn’t the goal, how behaviour is deeply connected to the nervous system, and why regulation is not one-size-fits-all (despite...

Before we can support behaviour… we need to talk about the way we talk  about  behaviour. In this episode, we unpack some of the biggest misconceptions floating around in parenting, education and disability spaces; from “behaviour management” to the obsession with consequences and punishment. Because the language we use isn’t just semantics. It shapes how we see people, how we respond in hard mome...

Episode 1: Why Behave? (And Why Us?) Two behaviour nerds walk into a podcast… In our very first episode, we answer the obvious questions: Who the heck are these two women, and why did they start a behaviour podcast? After years working in disability, education and behaviour support, we’ve watched the conversation about behaviour get louder… and less accurate. Quick fixes. Compliance culture. Overs...