Neurodivergence and counselling
Welcoming Autistic people to Spectra's counselling
A large proportion of our clients at Spectra are neurodivergent, often Autistic or AuDHD (Autistic & ADHD) - and a fair number of our counsellors are neurodivergent too! There can be some big barriers to accessing good counselling or therapy as an Autistic person, and at Spectra we do our best to have an inclusive service that welcomes neurodivergent clients. As a team of counsellors, we're committed to continuously learning and improving practice - we learn from each other, particularly from Autistic and neurodivergent colleagues, as well as having specialist training.
Neurodivergence is something we ask about at our initial assessment, so we can make sure that we meet your access needs and can answer any questions. Here are some of the common questions our counsellors get about neurodivergence:
Do I need a diagnosis to be recognised as Autistic?
No!
Whilst some people have a diagnosis, many don’t have access to an assessment – due to financial restrictions or because of the very long NHS waiting lists - and others aren’t interested in pursuing a formal diagnosis – a process which can be very draining for neurodivergent folks. We know that even those who do want diagnosis might spend years waiting. On that basis, we work with self-diagnosis and those that are just exploring what an understanding of themselves as Autistic or otherwise neurodivergent might mean.
We’ll offer you accommodations and support based on what you need and what you find most helpful.
Will you try and cure my Autism?
Absolutely not!
We work in an affirming way across our services. We recognise Autism as one way a person is, and not something that needs to be ‘fixed’. Being Autistic in a world set up for neurotypical people is often stressful and difficult, and can often cause distress and problems in school, at work, when studying or trying to access services. We can explore this with you, and the ways you cope or adapt, but we won’t be pushing you to change or hide who you are. We accept you as you are!
We can also help you explore the strengths of Autism too – if that’s something you’re interested in.
How safe is it to be myself in counselling?
Part of counselling is about the relationship you and your counsellor build, and a key part of that is trust and feeling as safe as possible. It can take time for that to be built and for you to feel confident in trusting them - particularly if you have had difficult experiences before.
We welcome you to bring parts of yourself that you might hide or mask in other spaces. All our counsellors have an awareness of things like stims, tics, using fidget toys, different preferences around eye contact, and a variety of ways people express feelings - physically, verbally or creatively. We’ll give you the space to talk about this if you want. If you want to experiment with trying out different ways of being around other people - for example, not forcing yourself to make eye-contact if that’s something you do - counselling sessions can be a good space to explore it. You’re always welcome to ask questions about process, or anything that doesn’t make sense to you.
That said, counselling isn’t always comfortable and doesn’t always feel great. You might be coming to talk about or explore difficult topics. Your counsellor might ask questions about behaviours or ways of talking to try and understand what’s going on for you – that might be annoying or frustrating. What's different about counselling, is that we are trained to be open about feelings, make space for you to tell us that something doesn’t work for you or is upsetting you. We can then try and figure out ways to fix the problem and repair the relationship.
I struggle with focus; how will you deal with that?
This is something that comes up a lot for clients, and your counsellor will likely check in with you on how you want to work with it. Some people really prefer to be able to talk without being interrupted for periods, and others have a strong preference for being brought back to a topic or theme. Another thing that might happen is that your counsellor might notice patterns in particular topics that prompt distraction or that you move away from quickly and might point it out in case it’s helpful to notice or might be a sign that something causes stress.
Some people prefer to have shorter sessions, or a rest or movement break during sessions too if focus is hard or exhausting – you can talk through all options with your counsellor.
So what kinds of adjustments can you make?
There are a lot of ways that counselling can be adapted for different people that might help if you are Autistic. Adjustments we regularly make include:
- short calls before the initial meeting to talk through the process
- working online with audio only or on the phone
- Reminders before sessions
- using fidget toys in sessions and welcoming stimming behaviour or movement, whether online or in-person.
- shorter sessions,
- sessions with breaks or using creative or non-verbal prompts.
A lot of what might make sessions more accessible might be in how the counsellor approaches topics in the session – making sure the pace works (more pauses for some, less for others), introducing or explaining ideas in different ways, not assuming you feel and name emotions easily, skipping metaphors or using them carefully.
Conclusion
Counselling is highly individual and Autistic people (like everyone) have a wide range of experiences, preferences, needs and reasons for coming to counselling. We don’t work with the idea that there is one approach that is going to help everyone – but we’ll work with you to figure out how you can get the most from your sessions. If you have any questions or concerns do get in touch!