🌱 Welcome to UnCommon Design: Your First Step Home
I can create an authentic life experience, one that includes my passions, self-discovery, & personal growth right alongside the journey of caregiving for two extraordinary children. Watch how.
🛑 STOP: Did you read the About page first?
You can listen to my Welcome Message below:
💁♀️ Who Am I?
I'm Cheniece Patrick—a solopreneur, new hobbyist podcaster, Tarot certified attuned Reiki Master, and proud Mother to my two amazingly pretty toddlers on the autism spectrum. Like many special needs parents, I've experienced the particular kind of isolation that comes from navigating a path few others understand: The grief that lives alongside profound love. The guilt that accompanies wanting something for yourself beyond caregiving…
After months of experiencing emotional tumult and a sticky depression during which I barely knew myself, I began my writing practice as a lifeline—as a way to make sense of the complexities that Motherhood, particularly of the special needs variety, brings to the table.
📚 What You'll Find Here
UnCommon Design isn't filled with picture-perfect parenting answers or strictly inspirational platitudes from a prayer devotional. Instead, you'll discover:
Honest Essays: My real reflections on the landscape of Motherhood reshaped by autism—the grief, the joy, the identity shifts, and the search for self.
Mind-Body-Spirit Exploration: Thoughtful approaches to healing that honor the whole person, including mindfulness practices, practical self-care for depleted Mothers, and even insights from the Tarot (!).
Permission to Feel Everything: This is a sanctuary where complex, contradictory emotions are welcomed rather than judged. Bring them with you here.
💌 Why Subscribe?
Regular subscribers receive:
✅ Real-Life Essays – Honestly human storytelling about Motherhood, identity, and self-discovery delivered straight to your inbox.
✅ Spiritual Reflections – Conscious insights from things like mindfulness, energy awareness, and self-care reminders
✅ Community Engagement – Ability to comment, share experiences, and engage in discussions and chats with peer support built right in
✅ Occasional Sneak Peeks – Excerpts or previews of Premium content to give you a taste
✅ Curated Resources – Occasional book & resource recommendations
Paid Members join “The UnCommon Inner Circle”, gaining access to:
✔️ Deep Soul-Work Essays - Go beyond the surface with regular intimate reflections from me on finding meaning in a life reshaped by special needs parenting. In-depth writings that go beyond my public posts—covering identity shifts, mental health, resilience, and finding joy in unexpected places.
✔️ Audio Diaries - Private podcast-style episodes where I share the unfiltered highs, lows, and revelations of autism motherhood. Think: raw, honest, and deeply personal. Listen to my unfiltered audio diaries capturing the 2AM doubts, the guilt-ridden confessions, and the unexpected breakthroughs worth celebrating.
✔️ Self-Care & Mindfulness for Moms – Simple but powerful practices designed for our reality—quick grounding techniques, energy resets, and nervous system support.
✔️ Direct Support Line - Feel free to ask me anything about Motherhood, burnout, identity, and self-care, and I’ll answer in an exclusive post or audio reply.
✔️ Paid Members Chat – Engage in a private community space for deeper conversations.
✔️ Gentle Reconnection Exercises - Guided journaling exercises and small, doable challenges to help you rediscover yourself outside of being "Mom."
✔️ Guest Conversations & Expert Chats – Thoughtful, heart-centered discussions with other special needs moms, therapists, and advocates. Because we shouldn’t have to figure this out alone.
✔️ Bonus Healing Tools & Mini-Guides - Workbooks, guided rituals, self-care guides, and occasional deep-dive workshops to support your personal growth—created specifically for Mothers who feel they're running on empty.
✔️ Your People - A space for real talk, deep support, and genuine friendships with fellow autism moms who get it—without judgment, just realness and encouragement. No toxic positivity, just real connection.
✔️ Early Access & Discounts – Receive first dibs on any new projects, merch, or special offers I may create.
🗃️ Section Topics
Assignments, Audio Diary, Diary, Events & Replays, Health & Wellbeing, Home & Family, Inner Circle, Magick, Membership, Podcast, Resource, Self Studio, Soulful Spirit, The Village & Society, Video, Voice Notes, Work & Craft
👉 Start Here: Essential Reads
If you're brand new, these pages and posts capture the essence of what UnCommon Design aims to be:
💭 The Philosophy
You shouldn’t have to choose between being a good mother and being a whole woman. You can create a life that honors your own sacred humanity. Here, I get to walk beside you as you create a life that truly feels like your own, one gentle and powerful step at a time.
Through the ecosystem of support here:
You will transition from depletion to deep nourishment.
You will move from feeling lost in the role of "autism mom" to being rooted in your identity.
You will shift from guilt-ridden self-abandonment to grounded self-advocacy.
You will transform from burned out to lit up, as moments of genuine joy, rest, and ease become woven into the fabric of your daily life.
✍️ A Personal Note
Simply said, I created this space because I needed it for myself—desperately. On my days spent feeling the most lost that I have ever been, I searched for other voices that could articulate my particular ache of special needs parenting without sugarcoating it, while still holding space for the hope that exists all around…
If you've felt invisible in these same struggles, or if you've ever questioned whether you'll find joy again amid the therapies and advocacy and endless responsibilities—you're in the right place.
This isn't just a newsletter. It's a lifeline, a community, and the gentlest reminder that even in your most overwhelmed moments, you still exist. Your dreams matter. Your identity matters.
You are never, ever alone in this journey And you have the ability to decide how you show up in this life.
