TPP 502: Alex Mortlock Explains Circadian Rhythm & Complex Sleep Challenges
Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent ChildrenShow Notes
Today we’re diving into the nuanced world of circadian rhythm sleep syndromes, and how biological and environmental factors intersect in shaping our children’s sleep. My guest is Alex Mortlock, a registered clinical psychologist who has been in practice since 2010, with training rooted in evidence-based approaches to mental health. Alex will help us unpack what’s actually happening when a child’s sleep rhythm is out of sync, and why this is so often misunderstood. We talk about practical strategies, the role of light exposure and light therapy, and how melatonin can be used thoughtfully to support regulation.
About Alex Mortlock
Alex Mortlock has been a registered clinical psychologist since 2010, trained at the University of Canterbury with a focus on evidence-based approaches to mental health assessment and treatment. His work is grounded in psychological science, with an emphasis on the interplay of emotion, cognition, and motivation. He uses evidence-based methods to help people make positive changes in their behaviour, fostering an environment of authenticity, acceptance, and understanding.
Throughout his career, Alex has had the privilege of witnessing growth and transformation in people from diverse backgrounds — experiences that have reinforced his belief that, with the right support and guidance, everyone has the capacity to flourish.
He lives in Christchurch, New Zealand with his wife, who is also a clinical psychologist, and their two over-analysed children. Curiosity, compassion, courage, and flexibility are the values that guide him through the professional and personal challenges that human life presents.
Things you'll learn from this episode
How circadian rhythms shape sleep patterns and why they matter for children’s overall health
Why conditions like delayed sleep phase, advanced sleep phase, and non-24-hour sleep disorders can disrupt typical sleep cycles
How neurodivergence can influence light sensitivity and circadian regulation
Why gradual light exposure, environmental adjustments, and low-dose melatonin can help realign sleep rhythms
How habits like late-night screen use can interfere with healthy sleep patterns
When to seek professional support and how parents can practically support their child’s sleep development
Resources mentioned
Alex Mortlock’s website
Late Nights, Later Days: The Under-Recognized Impact of Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome in ADHD (Additude Magazine)
Reset Your Inner Clock: The Drug-Free Way to Your Best-Ever Sleep, Mood, and Energy by Michael Termin, PhD
Prevalence of Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Joint Hypermobility Syndrome: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (National Institute of Health)
Article on Light Boxes (Yale School of Medicine)
Light Therapy Visors (results page from Amazon search)
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
More from Full-Tilt Parenting: Strategies, Insights, and Connection for Parents Raising Neurodivergent Children
Journalist and author Jessica Slice comes back to the show to share her family’s experience with PANS, or pediatric acute-onset neuropsychiatric syndrome, which began when her daughter experienced a sudden and severe change in behavior and functioning following a viral illness. Jessica recently shared her story in a viral article in New York Magazine, and today she takes us deep into what happened to her daughter, the medical dismissal her family encountered, and the long path toward getting a diagnosis and treatment. We also dig into why PANS and PANDAS remain controversial, what researchers believe may be happening in the brain, and what Jessica learned through both her family’s experience and her reporting. And importantly, we talk about what parents can do if their child experiences a sudden, dramatic onset of symptoms that they suspect could be PANS or PANDAS, including where to begin and how to advocate for care.
Beth Gellman-Beer spent her whole career fighting for kids with disabilities — first as a student written off as “lazy,” then as a federal civil rights attorney who found her dream job protecting students like her younger self. But on one ordinary night, a phone call changed everything: Her entire office had been eliminated.
Psychologist, speaker, and author Dr. Mona Delahooke talks about her new book Brain-Body Parenting, and the power in understanding and responding to children's complicated behavior as a symptom rather than a problem.
Today I’m welcoming Amanda Diekman back to the show to talk about her new book, The Parents Handbook for Kids in Burnout: A Low Demand Approach to Healing and Thriving, and what parents need to understand when their child is experiencing burnout. Amanda will explain what burnout actually is, how it can show up differently across childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood, and why it’s so often mistaken for anxiety or depression. We talk about the signs parents may miss, what’s happening beneath the surface when a child can no longer meet the demands of everyday life, and how a low demand approach can create the conditions for healing. And importantly, Amanda shares what recovery can look like, how parents can support their child without inadvertently adding more pressure, and why healing from burnout requires us to rethink our expectations, timelines, and ideas about progress.
Dr. Lori Desautels (author, Connections over Compliance: Rewiring our Perceptions of Discipline) helps educators, parents, and adults who work with children shift the way they think about discipline by reaching for sustainable behavioral changes through brain state awareness rather than compliance and obedience. She’s actively pushing back against reactive and punitive practices that can potentially reactivate the developing stress response systems of children, and is advocating for stronger co-regulation practices and regulated brain and body states for adults.