Counselling that makes room for the way you experience the world.
I offer online neurodivergent counselling for teenagers, young adults and adults. You may already identify as neurodivergent, have a diagnosis, be waiting for one, or simply be trying to understand patterns that have never quite made sense before.
You do not need to become less neurodivergent to make life feel more manageable.
Therapy is not about teaching you to look more typical, hide more of yourself or push through things that are genuinely difficult.
It can be a place to understand how you experience the world, what takes energy, what helps, what does not, and how years of adapting to other people's expectations may have affected the way you see yourself.
The work starts with the individual, rather than with a checklist of how a neurodivergent person is supposed to think or behave.
There is more to neurodivergence than a diagnosis.
Different people bring very different things to therapy. These are some of the themes that can come up when neurodivergence is part of the picture.
Identity + self-understanding
Making sense of who you are, what feels authentic and what may have developed from years of trying to meet other people's expectations.
Masking + people-pleasing
The effort involved in appearing fine, fitting in, anticipating other people's needs or hiding the parts of yourself that feel less accepted.
Overwhelm + sensory needs
Understanding what overload looks like for you, what contributes to it and how sensory needs, routines or demands affect everyday life.
Relationships + communication
Misunderstandings, rejection sensitivity, boundaries, social exhaustion or feeling as though you are constantly translating yourself for other people.
Sometimes a lot of things make sense in hindsight.
Discovering or exploring neurodivergence later in life can bring relief, confusion, grief, validation and a lot of rethinking at the same time.
Past experiences may look different once you have a new way of understanding them.
You may be questioning which coping strategies still help and which are exhausting you.
You may feel relief alongside frustration that certain things were not recognised earlier.
Therapy can give you somewhere to explore all of that without rushing to a conclusion.
Looking like you are coping does not always mean you are.
Some neurodivergent people become extremely good at appearing capable, calm or socially comfortable while using a huge amount of energy to do it. This can be particularly common for women and girls. Therapy can be a place where you do not have to keep performing that version of yourself.
Neurodivergence rarely exists in isolation from the rest of life.
It can intersect with eating disorders, body image, anxiety, relationships, sport, perfectionism and identity. Those connections matter because support can look very different when we understand the whole picture.
Explore Eating Disorder Therapy →This might include...
- Sensory differences and relationships with food.
- Strong routines, change and the need for predictability.
- Perfectionism, control and fear of getting things wrong.
- Sport or performance becoming closely tied to identity and self-worth.
Flexible therapy for people who do not fit neatly into one model.
Integrative
I draw mainly from person-centred and psychodynamic approaches, adapting the work around the individual rather than following one rigid model.
Collaborative
You set the pace and we work together to understand what is useful for you.
Direct when useful
I can be honest, curious and challenging when that helps, rather than simply agreeing with everything that comes up.
Online + flexible
Sessions take place via Zoom and I try to keep scheduling as flexible as possible.
Neurodivergence is one of the areas I have chosen to focus on.
I am an integrative therapist with a background in psychology and counselling. My interest in neurodivergence is shaped by personal experience as well as the ways I see it overlap with eating disorders, identity and sport.
More about Sara + training →You do not need a diagnosis or a perfect explanation before getting in touch.
Tell me a little about what you are experiencing and I can let you know whether my approach may be suitable.