It was an honor to have this conversation, and I am so excited to finally get to share it with you today. I’m joined by Raquel Garcia and Natalia Meehan for a meaningful, inspiring conversation. Raquel Garcia is a passionate advocate and mother of Nina, her non-speaking autistic daughter. With 25 years of experience in interior design creating spaces that support how people live, Raquel is passionate about working with other non speaking autistic individuals and their families on their journey to open communication, knowing that healing begins in the home and family system. She focuses on establishing practical protocols and environments where both the non-speaker and their loved ones can thrive, helping families build sustainable practices rooted in hope and the right tools. Natalia Meehan is the Director and Co-Founder of Flowering Futures and Co-Founder of The Bridge, a curriculum that educates the public about spelling-based communication, and she spends most of her time as a Communication and Regulation Partner (CRP) working with autistic individuals with apraxia. Her life is deeply informed by her nonspeaking sister Nina, with whom she runs an herbal practice in service to others, advancing their shared mission of expanding awareness and advocacy around wellbeing & spelling. Natalia believes regulation is foundational to authentic communication and approaches spelling as a complete lifestyle. Through direct feedback from her spellers, she integrates herbal medicine, nervous system healing, and cutting-edge scientific approaches to support neurodivergent individuals in moving from surviving to thriving.

We talk about purpose, the growth that comes from having to acknowledge you weren’t right, and explore different perspectives and approaches to caregiving. They share their experience with developing routines and the impact they can have on emotional regulation. I learned so much today, including about presuming competence, keeping and open heart and open mind, and the undeniable importance of believing in hope, change and possibility.

This conversation expanded my heart, and I hope it’ll fill your day with inspiration as well.

Thank you for being here,
Johanna

Find more on Raquel and Natalia’s work at
https://www.floweringfutures.com/
https://www.instagram.com/flowering.futures/
https://www.thethreesisters.com/
https://www.thenina.foundation/

Eat My Words Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eatmywordsthepodcast/

Eat My Words TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@eatmywords_thepodcast