Meltdowns
A meltdown is not a tantrum and it is not something your child is choosing. It is a nervous system that ran out of room. Once you can tell a meltdown from a shutdown, and either one from a bad mood, you stop fighting the wrong thing and you both get through it faster.
Articles & Guides
2Why Kids Have Meltdowns After School
What after-school meltdowns are really about, and how to ease them.
Why Is My Autistic Toddler Becoming More Aggressive?
Aggression is communication. Here's how to work out what's actually being said.
Apps & Tools
1
Mightier
Clinically validated biofeedback games that teach kids to manage big emotions. Built by child psychologists at Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School.
Mightier has helped thousands of families reduce meltdowns and build lasting emotional skills.
Podcasts
2The Autism Consultant Podcast
Molly Johnson, M.Ed.
Molly's weekly show for parents, focused on the practical in-the-home things nobody hands you a manual for.
Meltdowns vs Shutdowns
The Autism Dad Podcast, S7E28
They look different and they need different responses. Knowing which one you're seeing changes everything.
Blogs & Websites
1The Autism Consultant
Molly Johnson, M.Ed.
Molly Johnson's practical, in-the-home coaching on potty training, transitions, and visual supports.
A former public school autism teacher. She gives parents specific things to try tonight.
Accounts to Follow
1@theautismconsultant
Molly Johnson
Visual supports and daily-life strategies you can actually use the same day.
Every step on this page comes from my book.
So Your Child Was Just Diagnosed with Autism
Real Talk, Support, and Next Steps from a Dad Who's Been There
Out December 29, 2026 from Fair Winds Press
This page is the book's living companion. When something changes after the book goes to print, it changes here.
Rob Gorski, single father of three autistic sons and the dad behind The Autism Dad.