About this episode

Carolyn Kiel discusses her journey into podcasting and her late autism diagnosis, exploring themes of neurodiversity and self-acceptance.

Carolyn Kiel is the host of Beyond 6 Seconds, a multi-award-winning neurodiversity podcast. She started her podcast in 2018 as a general interest interview show, but in 2022 she shifted the focus to neurodiversity, after receiving an autism diagnosis in her mid-40s. Carolyn interviews neurodivergent people from around the world about their lives, identities and passions, with a focus on the intersections between neurodivergence and race, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and more. Carolyn has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and a Master of Arts in Industrial/Organisational Psychology. In our conversation Carolyn shares her journey from shy introvert to being a podcaster, how podcasting led to her late diagnosis of autism, what she's learned from podcasting – and the value of truly listening. She talks about social anxiety, hyperlexia, coordination and sensory challenges, navigating change, developing self-acceptance, and the role of creativity, strength training, and therapy in caring for her autistic self. Squarepeg is a podcast in which I talk to other late identified autistic women and nonbinary people about their lives, their autism journeys, and what they've learned…

People in this episode

Hosts: Carolyn Kiel, Amy Richards

Topics covered

• neurodiversity
• autism
• podcasting
• self-acceptance
• social anxiety
• identity

Keywords

• autism
• neurodiversity
• podcasting
• self-acceptance
• social anxiety
• hyperlexia
• creativity

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Beyond 6 Seconds, Squarepeg

Places: Australia

More episodes of The Squarepeg Podcast

• 156 [S11 E11] Coming home to myself: feeling 'good enough', unmasking and moving towards self love · July 11, 2026 · 1h 6m
• 155 [S11 E10] Unravelling: masking, personality adaptation and meeting my real self · July 4, 2026 · 1h 12m
• 154 [S11 E9] Finding a really cool rock: figuring out life and work without an 'autistic starter pack' · June 13, 2026 · 1h 14m

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