Fresh Take: Kate Swenson of "Finding Cooper's Voice" on Parenting Autism

Kate Swenson is a mom to four kids, a wife, and a proud Minnesotan. She regularly writes and creates videos about her life as a mother and an autism advocate for her website "Finding Cooper's Voice," a living, thriving community of people who not only advocate for autism, but also make the world a better place for individuals with disabilities and their families. Kate's book Forever Boy: A Mother's Memoir of Autism and Finding Joy is out now. Kate is also the founder of the nonprofit The More Than Project, which supports the needs of special needs families that go beyond the needs of their special needs child. In this episode we discuss Kate's journey to finding the correct diagnosis for her child what led her to put her story out into the world the sometimes-loneliness of special needs parenting, and how the Finding Cooper's Voice community offers insight, support, and fellowship Get FOREVER BOY in our Bookshop store: https://bookshop.org/a/12099/9780778311997 and follow @findingcoopersvoice on Facebook and Instagram. Special thanks to our sponsors for this month: Betterhelp online therapy is affordable, confidential, and effective! Give it a try and see if online therapy can help lower your stress. Get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/fresh. Credit Karma helps you find low-interest personal loans that may well have lower interest rates than your credit cards do now! Head to creditkarma.com/loanoffers to see your personalized offers. Faherty is a family-run brand making high-quality, timeless clothing with modern design and functionality. Head to fahertybrand.com/FRESH and use the code FRESH to snag 20% off. Firstleaf is a no-brainer if you love finding and tasting new wine! Join today and you’ll get 6 bottles of wine for $29.95 and free shipping! Just go to tryfirstleaf.com/LAUGHING.  KiwiCo projects make science, technology, engineering, art, and math super fun. Get 30% off your first month plus FREE shipping on ANY crate line at kiwico.com with the code MOTHERHOOD. Ladder helps you find life insurance without the hassle! Go to ladderlife.com/laughing today to see if you’re instantly approved for up to $3 million in term life insurance. Outschool helps kids explore their interests and discover new ones! Save $15 on your child’s first class at outschool.com/laughing with the code LAUGHING. Peloton has workouts or everyone. And the Peloton Bike+ is now $500 less, its best price yet, including FREE delivery and setup! Visit onepeloton.com to learn more. Pinhook Kentucky bourbon is the perfect gift for the guy who has everything! Each year's vintage is a little different and features an up-and-coming thoroughbred on its label. Text "laughing" to (859) 800-7848 to get connected with a personal shopper- or visit pinhookbourbon.com/laughing to chat with a one right on their website! Prose now makes supplements personally tailored to address your specific cause of hair shedding. Get your free in-depth consultation and 15% off your custom hair supplements at prose.com/laughing.  Shopify powers millions of businesses, from first sale to full-scale. Go to shopify.com/fresh for a free 14-day trial and get full access to Shopify’s entire suite of features. StoryWorth is an online service that helps you and your loved ones connect through sharing stories and memories and preserves them for years to come. Save $10 off your first purchase at storyworth.com/whatfreshhell.