Neuronormative therapy models create hidden obstacles when counselling autistic individuals. Psychotherapy /Counselling has historically centred non-autistic experiences. Bolton (2022) describes how the field has used a neuronormative frame that subtly positions autistic experience as something to be corrected or reduced, rather than understood. Even approaches considered non-pathologising, such as person-centred therapy, have often relied on medicalised language within its l

The drive for autonomy, when the brain says NO! A Gentle Look at Your Demand Avoidance - The Pursuit of Autonomy as the Underlying Truth I want to talk with you about something that can feel really confusing and sometimes heavy. It’s those moments when you find yourself pulling away from a request or struggling to do something, even when you genuinely want to. People often label this as “demand avoidance,” but I don’t see it as a flaw in you. What I see is a very human need f

Talking about Sex and intimacy, how this can be experienced, what it might look like and the acknowledgement of its value and relevance.

Recent research has found that reduced synaptic pruning - the natural process by which the brain trims unused neural connections - may play a key role in how neurodivergent people experience and process the world. During infancy, there is a period of increased synaptic development. From birth through adolescence, synaptic pruning occurs following the initial overgrowth. This process optimises the neural network by removing underused connections. This process is considered to