Autism and ADHD is at the core of what I do. (I just didn’t know it when I was younger)

Working with neurodivergent clients feels like coming home. With every client comes a unique and different insight into how their brain works and how they see the world, and it is amazing.

That is why therapy with a neurodivergent lens needs to be fluid and flexible to allow for the client’s own description of their experience. What I hadn’t realised for years was that my internal world was tuned into so many others who are like me.

Today a young autistic adult drew on my whiteboard how he experiences different feelings using his own grid. He took the pen and he used his own words to describe the aspects of his own experience. 

I felt at home as he drew. No right or wrong, just his internal world being given an image.

Therapy for autism and ADHD isn’t about fixing, it is about having a safe space to understand, validate and work out what feels authentic.

This young adult was clear on the different aspects that can cause a ‘mess’ that is hard to detangle. It isn’t my job to tell him what those aspects are, he is working it out for himself. 

Safe spaces for neurodivergent people allows for safe expression of who we are. 

I hope for a future where there are more environments that allow for more safe and curious conversations, so that all neurotypes can express and learn together. 

#autism #adhd #neurodivergent #therapy #authenticity