Autism.
Navigating a possible Autism diagnosis in adolescence or adulthood can be a difficult, confusing and often long process. As part of my therapeutic practise I aim to help individuals navigate this process.
Building on my background in learning support for neurodivergent individuals and my subsequent experience in working therapeutically with Autistic clients, I offer sessions aimed at individuals who want to discuss the possibility of an Autism diagnosis. Additionally, in these sessions we can work together to develop an ‘autistic burnout’ and ‘autistic meltdown’ plan, which will aim to help you deal with the exhaustion and overwhelm that can come with Autism.
While these session do not constitute a formal diagnosis, they do have 2 aims:
1- To offer initial support and the space to discuss any issues arising from the possibility of neurodivergence. This may be immediate measures to deal with meltdowns/burnout, or, once we have worked together to potentially rule out common mental health issues, I can write a recommendation for your employer to advise on reasonable adjustments if this is necessary. This would be a letter to say your issues seem to be more than or separate to common mental health issues and that you are taking active steps to pursue a formal Autism diagnosis, if this is the case.
2- With NHS waiting times being measured in years and private Autism assessments costing £2,000, for those wishing to gain an informed opinion before seeking a formal diagnosis, these sessions offer a comparatively low-cost way to try and distinguish between common mental health problems and the symptoms of Autism. As well as emotional support, I use my experience in the field to discuss the diagnostic criteria with you in realistic, non-clinical terms in order to give you a better indication of wether or not you are likely to be diagnosed before you enter into the long NHS diagnostic process or taking the costly private route.
While these sessions have no fixed upper or lower limit, I suggest 4-6 sessions in order to discuss the full situation. You are of course welcome to extend these sessions if you subsequently wish to work through emotions which may result from the initial block of sessions.
I suggest that we run these sessions in person to allow a better opportunity to see how you are. These would be from my consulting room in Stroud town center. However, if necessary we can discuss online sessions.
The cost of these session is the same as a standard counselling session- £45.
If you have any questions about this service, please feel free to get in touch to discuss either via email or in a free telephone consultation if you prefer. I am able to run these consultations in any way that suits your needs, so please let me know if you need an adjustment to suit your needs.
