What is Neurodiversity-affirming therapy?

Woven Self Therapy is a neurodiversity-affirming practice. What exactly does this mean?

For me neurodiversity-affirming therapy means taking your neurotype into account as part of the whole person you are, rather than treating it as something separate or something that needs to be corrected.

You may come to therapy wanting to explore your neurodivergence directly, perhaps around diagnosis, masking, burnout, identity or understanding yourself differently. Or neurodivergence may simply be one thread of who you are while you seek support with something else, such as anxiety, grief, relationships, chronic illness or a major life change.

Either way, you should not have to leave that part of yourself at the door, or feel that you need to start from the beginning by explaining what neurodivergence means for you.

A neurodiversity-affirming approach means being curious about how your neurotype may shape the way you experience, communicate with and respond to the world, without assuming that every difficulty you bring to therapy is caused by neurodivergence.

It also means adapting therapy around you. This might include considering communication preferences, sensory needs, processing style, executive functioning, pacing or the way you prefer to reflect and make sense of your experiences.

My approach is informed by substantial training and lived experience in neurodivergence and neurodiversity-affirming practice. This means we can focus on your individual experience, rather than spending therapy educating me about the basics.

At its heart, neurodiversity-affirming practice recognises neurodivergence as part of human diversity. The aim is not to make you think, communicate or cope in a more neurotypical way, but to understand what works for you and support you in building a life that feels more sustainable and authentic.