Articles

My approach to autism & ADHD assessments is not about analysing the person. It’s about listening, respecting and collaborating. In this blog I discuss how I ensure the assessments I deliver are affirming and client-led, and why this is so important.

Being ADHD can be disabling and very exhausting at times… and even more so with the internalised ableism that comes with it. In this blog I share examples of how disabling it really can be and how this shows up day to day for me.

Since my own diagnosis, I've been asked many times by people what to expect from the autism assessment process. The answer to that is a lengthy one, so I thought I would collate what I know in the blog. The process differs from person to person and service to service,...

Autistic burnout is something that many people within the autistic community experience and something that is relatively untouched in research. I’ve experienced a lot of burnout and get asked about it a lot, so I thought I would share some strategies on how I avoid and recover from autistic burnout! 

Read about how I process language differently as a neurodivergent person and how I interpret it as a Speech and Language Therapist.

Transitioning to neurodiversity-affirming practice is not just about making adjustments to the way you delivery therapy and assessments. It’s about changing the infrastructure of your entire belief system.

Reflections of a Semi-Speaking Speech & Language Therapist and why it’s important that semi-speaking, autistic people are providing with the communication tools they need and deserve.

Autistic people should never have to change who they are to meet social norms, which are based on the neurotypical experience. We are great as we are and our differences should be celebrated! 

My diagnosis has also allowed me to be kinder to myself, I am able to communicate to people that I can’t commit to many golf social occasions or drinks after a game, allowing myself to advocate for my mental health and put that above pleasing people.

The way we talk about autistic people matters, even if you think it’s ‘only words’. The way we describe people affects our and others’ viewpoints of that person and how we treat them.

One thing we know for sure is that goals on eye contact don’t benefit the child, they only make them conform to neurotypical expectations and encourage them to mask. And we know that masking leads to mental health issues and burnout.

I’m so unbelievably happy that I’ve finally got my diagnosis, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t hard. It’s so hard and I have so much to learn. But the one thing I’ve learnt is that I’m not changing a single thing about myself to suit the neurotypical world that determines what’s acceptable and what is not, based on completely unwritten and confusing rules.