Made by families, for families
No one should start this path without a guide.
We’re a family with a non-speaking autistic son: he doesn’t communicate with words yet, but he does communicate in his own way. It took us a long time to find the right path. Here we share what we wish we had known from the start, and a free app so our children can say what they need.
- Free, always
- No ads
- No personal data asked
Our story
When we started this path, we had no guide.
Matti came into our lives as a baby who looked at us, smiled at us and was starting to say water, daddy, mommy. At one year and two months he began to lose it all. What followed was a level 3 autism diagnosis, schools that closed their doors on us and many people who tried to take advantage.
And today he’s a very happy boy. That’s why we made Mi Voz: so no family has to start alone.
The Leal Carbellido family
The Mi Voz app
Pictures that talk so your child can say what they need. Free, no ads and works offline too.
- Talking buttons
- Visual schedule
- Calm corner
- Print on paper
Guide and community
Everything else: what we learned as a family, step by step, and how we can support each other.
- The path
- The people around you
- Materials
- Directory
- Guide families
Part 1 · For your child
The Mi Voz app
What it does, how to install it and how to start using it at home.
What it does
Mi Voz: pictures that talk
Your child taps a picture and the phone says the phrase out loud. It works on Android and iPhone, even offline, and everything is saved only on your phone. It speaks English or Spanish: choose in Settings › “Idioma / Language”.
Talking buttons
More than 50 ready to start: food, bathroom, feelings, games and people.
Their photos and your voice
Use photos of their real things, ARASAAC pictograms, and record your own voice.
Visual schedule
“First bath, then TV”, step-by-step routines and a timer that empties.
Where does it hurt?
A body to tap the part that hurts, and how much it hurts.
Calm corner
Guided breathing and “how do I feel?” for hard moments.
SOS card
Their name and family phone numbers, in case they get lost or need help.
Install it in 1 minute
- Android: open the app in Chrome › menu ⋮ › “Install app”.
- iPhone: open it in Safari › Share › “Add to Home Screen”.
- To add buttons, press and hold the lock 🔒 for three seconds.
- Want the guide at hand too? From this page tap Share › “Add to Home Screen” (iPhone) or menu ⋮ › “Add to Home screen” (Android): it’s saved as Mi Voz Guide, separate from the app.
- Prefer paper? In Parent mode tap Print, or download the ready-made materials.
Part 2 · For you
Guide and community
What we wish we had known from the start. Each topic has its own page: go to the one you need today.
The path
Step by step, from the first signs to diagnosis, therapies, school and support.
While you wait
An 8-week plan to start helping at home today, even if you’re on a waiting list.
Open →Guide for teachers
How to include an autistic student in class: communication, meltdowns, reasonable accommodations and what the law says. Printable.
Open →The people around you
So family and others understand: it’s not a tantrum, it’s a meltdown.
Open →Food
When they eat very few foods: why it happens, what helps at home and when to get help.
Open →Are they growing well?
Weight and height calculator with the WHO charts, and what to watch if they eat very few foods.
Open →Therapy traffic light
Which therapies have evidence, which don’t work and which are dangerous.
Open →Paperwork and rights
Certificate, pension, ID card and school, in order and with ready-to-fill letters.
Open →Watch out for…
“Miracle” therapies, abusive charges and what to ask before paying.
Open →Printable materials
Boards, routine schedules, social stories, cards and an ID badge.
Open →Directory
More than 250 specialists, centers and support services in Nuevo León, Mexico City, Jalisco and Aguascalientes, reviewed one by one.
Open →Guide families
Families further along the path walk alongside those just starting.
Open →What families go through
What families in Monterrey ask most, without names.
Open →News and progress
What’s new about autism in Monterrey, Mexico and the world, checked and explained for families.
Open →For listening
Podcasts and audiobooks about autism and ADHD in Spanish, free and paid, and which to avoid.
Open →Autism in numbers
How many autistic children there are, waits and costs in Mexico, with sources and no personal data.
Open →Our story
How it all began, and why we made Mi Voz.
Open →In under a minute
Short videos
What we’ve lived with Matti, told in 30 seconds. Narrated in Spanish with subtitles, and with an English transcript under each video, to watch or to send on WhatsApp.
What you can do
- Bring noise-canceling headphones and something that calms them.
- Find a quieter place and wait for it to pass: it isn’t the time to scold or explain.
- Talk little and softly, and make sure they don’t get hurt.
- If you see a family like this: don’t record, don’t comment, and ask “can I help?”.
Read what it says
This isn’t a tantrum. It’s a meltdown. There’s too much noise, light and people. Their brain gets overwhelmed. What hurts most isn’t the meltdown… it’s the stares. They don’t need scolding. They need calm and space. If you see a family like this, don’t judge. Ask: can I help?
What you can do
- Look for quiet clippers (“baby” or low-noise ones are usually gentler).
- Days before, let them touch and hear the clippers, and run them switched off as a game.
- Headphones and their favorite video; prepare them with “First haircut, then…”.
- Short sessions: if only one side got done today, finish tomorrow.
- At a barber shop: the first appointment of the day, and tell them beforehand that your child is autistic.
Read what it says
For Matti, getting a haircut was impossible. The noise, the vibration… everything hurt. We tried many clippers, until we found a quiet one. And his mom learned to cut his hair at home. Calmly, without rushing. It isn’t a whim. That’s how he feels the world.
What you can do
- Hold them and weigh yourselves together; then weigh yourself alone and subtract.
- Same time of day, light clothing and the scale on a hard floor.
- Height: no shoes, heels against the wall, a flat book on their head and a mark.
- If they won’t let you today, try again tomorrow.
Read what it says
Weighing Matti is almost impossible. He won’t stay still on the scale for a second. So Dad picks him up, and they weigh themselves together: 98.5 kg. Then Dad weighs himself alone: 77.9 kg. The difference is Matti’s weight: 20.6 kg. With that number, check his growth in our free calculator. If they won’t let you, it isn’t your fault: there are tricks.
What you can do
- Measure them every 3 to 6 months: what matters is that they follow their own line.
- Take the results to their pediatrician.
- See a doctor soon if they lose weight or accept fewer and fewer foods.
Read what it says
Matti eats very few foods. And we always wonder… is he growing well? That’s why we made a free calculator, with the WHO charts. You enter their weight and height, and it tells you whether they’re within the expected range for their age. Take the results to their pediatrician, and talk it over with data.
What you can do
- Practice it when they’re calm, as a game.
- Do it first yourself: they learn by watching you.
- In the middle of a meltdown, space and calm first; when it eases, breathe together.
- Soap bubbles or a pinwheel work too.
Read what it says
Let’s breathe together. Breathe in, slowly, while the bubble grows. Breathe out, little by little, while the bubble gets small. Three times. Very good. The Calm corner with a guiding voice comes in the free Mi Voz app.
Join us
You’re not alone. There are many of us.
Mi Voz grows with what each family learns. There are many ways to help, and none of them cost money.
Just starting out?
Try the app for a week or two and tell us what worked for you and what’s missing.
Already been down this path?
Become a guide family: walk alongside a family that’s just starting in your state.
Are you a therapist or teacher?
Help us review the guide and improve the app’s buttons.