Mel Higgins

My name is Mel,

I am currently working as an allied health assistant with Drivenbyyou.

I have my Bachelor degree in Psychology and I’m working towards my Diploma of Counselling.

My beautiful son was diagnosed with autism at age 3 and this has influenced the way I see the world. He has made me realise how important childhood development is and how parents have such a huge impact and important role in raising confident, capable and resilient children. I believe understanding a secure attachment style and applying this in early childhood is the most crucial parental responsibility that we have.

My dream is to be able to support parents emotionally and practically in navigating the world of autism and adhd. There is too much “let’s change them” rather than “let’s cater to them”. I want to be able to help parents change that narrative and focus on understanding their children and most importantly understanding themselves.

I continue to learn, evolve, grow and educate myself on children that are different. I focus on understanding them, building their confidence and supporting their view and decisions. Just because a child is non-verbal it doesn’t mean they don’t understand you or they can’t hear you. Its about learning the way they communicate and learning the way they see the world.

In my spare time I like to spend time with my family, go for runs, go to the gym or relax at the beach.