FAQ
Where is your office?
Right here. Seriously. You’re reading this on the Internet, and that’s where my office is.
So, we can meet where you are and where I am, wherever that is. Of course, if you printed this out, I guess that’s a bit different… but if you’re not far from the Internet, that’s where you’ll find me.
How do I set up an initial appointment?
Shoot me an email (julie.meyerowitz@hearmywordsautism.com). We’ll set up a time to talk. I’ll get to know you and your situation.
If we decide I’m your person, we’ll figure out which of my services best fits your needs, and we’ll schedule together.
If I don’t have the solution for what you’re carrying right now, I’ll direct you to one or more people who can help.
With what age ranges do you work?
Pretty much all of them. For children, teens, and functionally dependent clients, I work primarily as a coach for parents and caregivers. Together, we design an optimal environment for learning and growing. Then, we collaborate to take advantage of daily interactions to maximize opportunities for cognitive, social, and emotional growth.
With independent adults, we work directly with one another. Whenever possible, we recruit others in your natural environment (that sounds kind of National Geographic…). We work together to make positive shifts in your world and the way you interact with the world – improving your relationships, making life easier, and more fun.
What do you do in session with clients?
In each session, I get as much information as I can about what’s working and what’s not working for you. Then, I help you use what’s working already, together with new ideas and strategies that I share, and practice with you to make what’s not working better.
In the very beginning, I get background information from you and work together with you to figure out where you are right now and what’s making it hard. Some might call this our “baseline.” I call it our “Edge.”
Then, with some guidance from me, you’ll create a “Mission Preview.” This is where you formulate a clear vision for where you want to be.
From here, our work together is all about meeting you where you are (your Edge) and taking you one step closer to where you want to be. We call this “Edge+1.”
As we work together, we solidify each of these steps, bumping up your “new normal,” until where you really want to be is so close you can almost touch it; and you have what you need to get the rest of the way on your own.
Do your clients receive assignments?
What modalities do you use?
The backbone of our work together is something called Relationship Development Intervention or RDI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AgicCm95QFE.
This isn’t about drilling skills. It’s about building the cognitive capacities needed for getting through life smoothly, meaningfully, and independently. When we do this, most of the skills just show up on their own, as a natural part of who you’re becoming.
My goal is to help you clarify your vision, remove obstacles, and strengthen your ability to get yourself where you want to go. I bring in everything I know to make that happen.
What if I need more help?
What’s your professional training and experience?
My undergraduate major was called “dramatherapy.” My work at this time was based on the work of Augusto Boal*. However, you can’t practice Dramatherapy with only a BA. And a real-live Dramatherapist told me after I graduated that what I’d really studied was “socio-drama”; but the diploma was already printed, so officially I say “dramatherapy.”
At any rate, as part of my studies, I participated in something called, The Between Sisters Project. As one of the women selected for this project, I co-led discussions on race relations on my college campus in Baltimore. Yep, she just said, “Race relations in Baltimore.”
Decades later, I’m still trying to wrap my head – and heart – around it. We then created a performance based on these discussions, which we presented for the community. Eventually, we traveled to NYC to present excerpts of Between Sisters at the International Theater and Pedagogy of the Oppressed conference.
Before graduating college, I co-taught two courses with professors in the psychology, sociology, and education departments of my college, training my fellow students in this work.
My senior project involved training my fellow students to lead Theater of the Oppressed workshops with around 60 middle school students at a local magnet school. At the end of the semester, the teachers and principal shared that the students’ grades and social relationships had improved significantly. (I bet you thought this was all a tangent… but do you see where I’m going with this now…?)
Then, I worked for several community-based non-profits in the US and abroad for a few years.
In 2008, I graduated from TC, Columbia University with a degree in speech-language pathology. For over a decade, I worked with children and adults, and coached fellow educators to improve their communication.
In 2017, I began my training as an RDI consultant. Coaching to improve cognition and relationships in Autism Spectrum Disorders has been my professional focus ever since.
All of this and MUCH more informs my work with you.
* https://augustoboaltheatreofoppressed.weebly.com/information-of-augusto-boal.html
Cowboy boots and a fuchsia silk wrap skirt?
Yep, I’m a neo-Chassidish, permie girl. That’s how I roll… but enough about me; I’d love to hear about you.