MELTDOWN MODE

Motherhood was meant to feel familiar the third time around.

Instead, I was handed Elijah, a toddler who ran before he could walk, slept in 20-minute intervals like a malfunctioning alarm clock, and approached life with the energy of a small, determined hurricane.

Meltdown Mode is a funny, raw and deeply relatable autism parenting memoir about raising an autistic toddler while trying to stay sane, stay standing, and occasionally remember to breathe. It offers an honest look at special needs parenting, neurodiversity and the unfiltered reality of motherhood when life doesn't go to plan.

If you've ever found yourself:
• overwhelmed by challenging behaviours no parenting book prepared you for,
• navigating autism assessments, long waiting lists and confusing advice,
• chasing a toddler who can outrun fully grown adults,
• hiding in the bathroom between meltdowns,
• loving your child fiercely while wondering how you'll make it through another day...

...you will feel understood here.

Through honesty, humour and chaos, this memoir explores:
• the early signs of autism nobody recognised,
• the exhausting cycle of appointments and unanswered questions,
• the reality of eloping, sensory overload and sleep deprivation,
• the impact on siblings, relationships and identity,
• and the unconditional love that makes it all worth it.

Both heartbreaking and hilarious, Meltdown Mode is ideal for:
• parents raising autistic children,
• readers of honest motherhood memoirs and relatable parenting books,
• mums looking for humour and solidarity,
• anyone wanting to understand autism and neurodiversity more deeply.

This book is a lifeline for exhausted parents, a window into the world of raising an autistic toddler, and a reminder that in even the hardest moments, you are not alone.

For every parent doing their best in impossible circumstances, welcome to Meltdown Mode.