About this episode

In this episode, Sarah Kernion and Dr. John Gaitanis discuss the importance of understanding the individual child in autism care rather than focusing solely on the diagnosis.

What if autism isn’t one condition to treat, but many different biological stories waiting to be understood? In this episode of Inchstones, Sarah Kernion sits down with pediatric neurologist Dr. John Gaitanis to explore why autism care should begin with understanding the individual child—not simply the diagnosis. Together they discuss autism advocacy, root cause medicine, caregiver experiences, neurodevelopment, inflammation, motor planning, and why families often recognize important patterns long before medicine does. Dr. Gaitanis challenges the idea that autism is a single biological condition, explaining why many children share a diagnosis while presenting with remarkably different medical histories, developmental pathways, and support needs. He shares why physicians should focus on understanding each child’s unique biology, why systemic inflammation and developmental regression deserve closer attention, and how artificial intelligence may help uncover patterns that families have recognized for years. The conversation also explores the emotional side of neurodivergent parenting. Sarah and Dr. G discuss maternal pattern recognition, caregiver stress, nervous system regulation…

People in this episode

Host: Sarah Kernion

Guest: Dr. John Gaitanis

Topics covered

• autism diagnosis
• individual child care
• autism advocacy
• neurodevelopment
• caregiver experiences
• emotional support

Keywords

• autism
• neurodiversity
• pediatric neurology
• caregiver stress
• developmental pathways
• systemic inflammation
• artificial intelligence

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Inchstones

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• Why Autism Moms Never Stop Listening for Footsteps with Libby Hudson · June 16, 2026 · 28 min

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