Dr. David A. PalmerParent & Family Coach

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About Dr. David A. Palmer

I help parents find clarity when everything feels like too much.

For parents of neurodivergent toddlers to teens navigating big emotional behavior, I turn nervous-system science into practical responses that help a family move forward.

Learn How to Work with Dr. David

30 YEARS IN EDUCATIONProfessional depth.
Lived family experience.

What I believe

You cannot consequence a nervous system into feeling safe.

Behavior tells us something. The work is to understand the message, then help the child and the adults around them build the capacity to respond differently.

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Where this work lives

Regulation has to work in real family places.

The backyard. The park. The museum. Grandparents' house. The school function. This work is built for the places where real families need support, not just the quiet moments when everyone is already regulated.

Family gathered at a backyard table — Backyard

Family sharing a calm moment at a park — Neighborhood Park

Family supporting a child at a museum exhibit — Museum

Multigenerational family together at home — Grandparents' House

Family attending a school community event — School Function

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What shaped this work

Built in the two hardest labs:
Home and School.

I'm a neurodivergent adult, an educator with more than 30 years in the field, and the dad of six neurodivergent children. I do not talk about dysregulation from a distance. I have lived it at the dinner table, in school meetings, in hard nights, and in the repair that comes after.

My work blends lived experience, special education expertise, trauma-informed practice, and practical tools for adults who are done with polished strategies that fall apart when a child is screaming, shutting down, running, refusing, or trying to survive the day.

Rewire the Response™ was created for adults who want to stop escalating the moment and become the steady nervous system children can borrow when they cannot yet access their own.

Kids borrow our calm before they build their own.

Nervous-system-firstTrauma-informedNeurodivergence-affirmingParent + educator lens

Dad of neurodivergent teensNeurodivergent adultEd.D. in Special Education

A practical path forward

The Rewire the Response Framework

Six connected moves that help you replace reflexive reactions with responses that build regulation, connection, and durable resilience.

Embrace

See the whole child—not a behavior to eliminate.

Engage

Respond to the need beneath the escalation.

Enhance

Strengthen regulation and recovery over time.

Equip

Use tools that still work when pressure is high.

Empower

Build on strengths instead of managing deficits.

Embody

Make resilience a lived family practice.

What this looks like in practice

“His insights changed how we understood our child—and what we did in the moments that used to derail our whole family.”
Melissa & James H. Parents

“He changed my classroom practice by helping me see the needs behind behavior, not just the behavior itself.”
Jennifer R. Second-grade teacher

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Why families trust this work

Credentials that serve the family—not the ego.

Ed.D.Curriculum & Instruction: Special Education, Liberty University
30 yearsEducation experience across teaching, coaching, specialist, and leadership roles
Specialized trainingADHD, trauma-informed care, autism-informed practice, and nervous-system-informed support
Family lived experienceA dad raising neurodivergent teens and a neurodivergent adult himself

Start here

You do not need another pile of advice.

You need a clear next step that fits your child, your family, and the pressure you are actually carrying.

Schedule a Parent Clarity Call A focused conversation to identify what support would help most.