The people and the ideas behind Nomi
Nomi exists because the wait for support is long and the leaflet at the end of it is thin. Here is who writes what you will find inside, and what we believe about the children it is for.
Leanne Cowan Child clinical psychologist · the person behind Nomi’s lessons
About Leanne
Built by a child clinical psychologist with 26 years’ experience
Nomi’s lessons are built by Leanne Cowan, a child clinical psychologist who has spent 26 years working with children, young people and the parents who love them.
Leanne’s starting point is simple: a child’s behaviour is communication, every child has a limited amount of space each day for everything they are managing, and parents do best with one specific, doable thing to try, not a programme. That is the shape of every lesson in Nomi. Inside the app you can also message her directly about what you are seeing at home. As she puts it there: “there’s no such thing as a small question.”
- 26 years
working as a child clinical psychologist with children, young people and their families.
- 1 voice
Nomi’s lessons and “try tonight” steps are shaped by Leanne’s clinical work, written for parents.
- 0 jargon
Plain language for real evenings. Nothing that needs a glossary, nothing that needs a diagnosis first.
Leanne’s lessons are guidance and education for parents. Messaging her in the app is not therapy or an assessment, and it is not a substitute for care from a clinician who knows your child.
What Nomi believes
Autism is a difference, not a deficit
Everything in Nomi starts from the same place: a neurodivergent child is not a problem to be fixed. They are a person to be understood. That shapes the words we use, the lessons we write and the things we will never ask you to do.
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Different, not less
Autistic and neurodivergent children are not broken versions of other children. They experience the world differently, and the world is mostly built for one kind of brain. Our job is to change the fit, not the child.
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Behaviour is communication
Not naughty. Not manipulative. A meltdown is overwhelm, not a choice, and a nervous system doing its best. When you can read what a behaviour is saying, the day gets easier for everyone.
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Start from strengths
Every map we make begins with what a child loves and is brilliant at. Deep interests, a sharp memory, a fierce sense of fairness: these are the foundations, not the footnotes.
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Support, never compliance
Anything that promises a cure, or needs a child to be distressed to “work”, is a no. We are guided by autistic-led thinking and by what helps a child feel safe, understood and themselves.
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You are the expert in your child
Nomi does not replace your instincts. It makes them more specific. If something you try doesn’t help, that is information about your child, never a failure of yours.
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Good enough, most of the time, is doing well
Everyone has a limited amount of space each day for the things they are managing, children and parents alike. Looking after yourself is part of looking after them.
What Nomi explores
Twelve parts of your child’s world, one map
Every child has areas that come easily, areas that are in between and areas that are hard right now. Nomi looks at all twelve, starts from the strengths, and builds a path around the places where a little support would change the day.
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How I sense the world
- My senses
- My body
- New places
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How I connect
- Being understood
- Friends
- My interests
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How I get through the day
- Routines
- Sleep
- Food
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How I feel and learn
- Big feelings
- Focus
- Doing it myself