What do I mean? Something about how I feel in her presence, cared for and understood, at ease and able to be myself, free from judgement, pressure, or expectation. (At least, I don’t think she’s judging me!) And for me, there is this very important factor of empathic resonance, and she, or we, have it.

What is this empathic resonance? It is the feeling of being gotten on a visceral level, or the feeling of relational contact in a resonant intersubjective field (Larson, 1987; Strong, 2021). In the fields of interpersonal neurobiology and affective neuroscience, it has been suggested that such phenomena are the result of right-brain-to-right-brain implicit communication (Schore, 2003). In this view, the therapist is able to help the client regulate their emotions via implicit nonverbal emotional communications (Hill, 2015).

This is important for helping therapy clients earn more attachment security, especially for those who tend towards avoidant or disorganized insecure attachment states (Hill, 2015). Of course, folks with preoccupied insecure attachment states also need attuned relationship— however, they often need help learning how to self-regulate, and therapy can help with that, too (Hill, 2015.)

resonance and attunement

Personally, I have found that a good capacity for empathic attunement and dyadic regulation is a fundamental need for me as a therapy client. It may be that I have a stronger hunger for this kind of contact than many people; or perhaps, as a therapist myself, I am simply an informed consumer who won’t settle for less. In any case, I know that my nervous system needs the feeling of empathic attunement to be able to relax and deepen into good therapy.

My therapist has other traits that are neurocompatible for me, including taking my sensory needs seriously (esp. around light in the office) and actually listening to me. (I know that these are pretty basic, but you’d be surprised…)

To be clear, I’m not writing in order to brag about how great my therapist is. Rather, I want to put forward this ‘neurocompatibility’ concept in case it helps you, dear reader, think about the relationships in your life. What’s working well? Who do you just ‘click’ with? Where are the hot spots? Are those things that can be overcome with more communication or other skills? Or is it more a… neurocompatibility issue?

To put it differently, do some brains simply resonate better together? I don’t want to reduce everything to neuroscience, but talking about the wetware substrate of experience (so much of which remains a mystery) can be a helpful model for including aspects of experience that we don’t understand conceptually, but can get a felt sense for (Gendlin, 1981).

As a therapist, I have trained my capacity for empathic resonance (i.e. my embodied brain’s ability to resonate with other embodied brains), and even so, I can’t resonate with just anybody. There is some ineffable goodness-of-fit in relationship that you can’t just get out of a box (or a degree program). While some relationships can be cultivated and the members can dial up their compatibility, others simply don’t have enough traction, i.e. neurocompatibility.

relational neurocompatibility

I’d like to give another example. I was in a relationship with someone recently, and we clicked really well. She really got me, and even though she wasn’t autistic, she understood me as an autistic person really well. It was my first serious relationship since self-identifying a few years ago (Strong, 2024), and it felt really good to know how to ask for my sensory needs to be met and not to have to mask all the damn time.

Things ended recently due to a life-situation-incompatibility-issue, and although I am sad about that, I also found it really healthy, helpful, and healing to be in such a lovely neurocompatible situation. And I would never have picked this person from a list of people I might get along well with- on paper (or egad— on the apps!), she wouldn’t even have been in my top 10. But it was wonderful, and such a refreshing experience.

So my advice, if you want to hear it, is to keep seeking out the people who are neurocompatible with you, whatever your neurotype. Friends, therapists, lovers, coaches, clients, teachers, bosses, whatever. Of course, we all have to work with people who are different from us, and interpersonal friction can produce growth and new learning— of course, of course. However, you can make it easy on yourself, things don’t have to be hard all the time, you do get to choose, and autistic, neurodivergent, and disabled people already have enough hassles (i.e. oppression) to deal with. So find the folks who fit you!

In summary, neurocompatible people are out there. I’m an autistic person, but I won’t necessarily get along with all autistic people. However, I know (most of) my needs, and I’m able to identify people I’m a good fit with in pretty short order, when I actually meet them in an environment that’s not overstimulating. Empathic resonance is a key factor in deep relationships (at least for me). Identifying the factors that lead to satisfying relationships can help autistic and other neurodivergent people optimize their social activities and live more satisfying lives.

References

Gendlin, E. T. (1981). Focusing. Bantam Books.

Hill, D. (2015). Affect regulation theory: A clinical model. Norton.

Larson, V. A. (1987). An exploration of psychotherapeutic resonance. Psychotherapy, 24(3), 321–324. https://doi.org/10.1037/h0085722

Schore, A. (2003). Affect regulation and the repair of the self. Norton.

Strong, S. D. (2021). Contemplative psychotherapy: Clinician mindfulness, Buddhist psychology, and the therapeutic common factors. Journal of Psychotherapy Integration, 31(2). https://doi.org/10.1037/int0000191

• Group meets Tuesdays and Thursdays at 11am online.
• We are currently looking more like a process & support group with some skills sprinkled in— maybe 80% discussion, 20% skills.
• We talk a lot about everyday life, anti-oppression frameworks, and queer-, trans-, and neuroaffirming perspectives.
• When folks want skills, we do more skills; when folks want more discussion, we do more discussion.
• We have BIPOC and white members, and the group is an anti-racist space.
• Members also have disabilities and chronic pain; the group is an anti-ableist space.

The group’s needs have evolved beyond a mostly-skills format. The group is still a great space for prosocial neurospicy queer and trans adults who are looking for connection and support.

More info about RQ-DBT here. Hope you can join us if you wish!

I am a queer, trans, and autistic group therapist in Portland, OR. I had the pleasure of presenting a queer, trans, and neurodivergent special institute, and a trans-affirming group therapy workshop, at AGPA Connect 2025 in San Francisco. I was gratified to feel well-received by the AGPA community, and I am thankful to my institute and workshop attendees for the opportunity to learn with them. I am writing this article to explain the importance of neuroaffirming therapy, to provide some suggestions for making groups more neuroaffirming, and to connect with other neuroqueer group therapists. Where relevant, I discuss my lived experience.

Introduction and Definitions

In recent years, clinicians and the public have increasingly been recognizing that some people have brains that do not conform to cultural expectations. Autistic people, ADHDers, and folks with dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, and Tourette’s, are examples of people with different brains. Neurodivergence means that some nervous systems differ from this cultural ‘normal.’ It is debatable whether neurological norms are statistical, inborn, learned, or imposed; probably it is a combination of these. Brains that can conform to these cultural norms are neurotypical (Walker, 2021).

Cultural institutions and practices such as education, work, psychology, and psychotherapy cater to and cultivate ‘normal’ brains. These fields have mostly sought to marginalize, pathologize, and control neurodivergent people (Price, 2022; Chapman, 2023). Institutions and practices that punish the neurodivergent and reward the neurotypical are neuronormative. In sum, neuronormative culture creates and rewards neurotypical people, and punishes and pathologizes neurodivergent people (Walker, 2021). Happily, in recent years, neurodivergence is becoming more accepted, and people increasingly accommodate the needs of diverse neurotypes. A neurotype is akin to a distinct style of brain.

Neuroqueer is where neurodivergence meets queer theory (Walker, 2021). This could mean queer, trans, and neurodivergent brains; or people whose practices make their brains neurodivergent; or neurodivergent people whose queer theory and practices subvert and resist neuronormativity’s hegemonic grip (Walker, 2021). Personally, my autistic, trans, and queer experience and life practices are an interwoven and inseparable whole cloth of joy, strength, pain, difference, and resistance.

Neuronormativity creates enormous pressure and friction for neurodivergent people. Minority stress theory is one way to conceptualize this process. It was first developed and applied to LGBT populations (Brooks, 1981; Meyer, 1995) and later extended to autistic people (Botha and Frost, 2020). Minority stress is the result of living in a society that is not built for you and which constantly creates obstacles, shame, and confusion about who you are and whether or not you belong. Minority stress leads to adverse life outcomes, and it can express as mental health symptoms. Therapists who treat the symptoms—rather than minority stress, internalized oppression, and the person-environment mismatch—miss the root causes of distress and risk recapitulating these harms.

Ideas have power, and I’m a fan of theory you can use. These definitions and their associated ideas around neuroqueer liberation have made a difference for me (Strong, 2024). They are theoretical tools for creating neuroaffirming groups, cultivating cultural humility, and accepting and accommodating neurodivergence. To make them useful, you have to use them.

Neuroaffirming Therapy

I think of neuroaffirming therapy as having three main components: 1) Understanding, accepting, and accommodating neurodivergence; 2) Reprocessing, deconstruction/reconstruction, and identity transformation; 3) Dealing with neuronormative hassles. These are interwoven processes, and they apply just as well to a neuroaffirming self-help journey. I’ll briefly explain each with personal examples.

Understanding, Accepting, and Accommodating Neurodivergence

Some people have known that they are neurodivergent for a long time; others have only recently learned about it. People are in different places in their different journeys. Neurodivergent people often suffer from shame, self-judgment, and internalized ableism. When neurodivergent people understand and accept their differences, they can acknowledge and work with their strengths and limitations.

Since self-identifying as an autistic person, I have relinquished years of misplaced shame and striving (i.e. holding myself to neurotypical standards) and reoriented to the things I actually enjoy and want to do in my life. I have learned more about what my needs actually are and how to accommodate them. For example, I am quite sound- and light-sensitive. I have started using supports, such as sunglasses and earplugs, and I have learned about which environments I can tolerate. I continue to work to understand, accept, and accommodate my needs in different life situations.

Reprocessing, Deconstruction/Reconstruction, and Identity Transformation

Neurodivergent people often need to reconceptualize the past, reprocess their feelings and needs, and come to a new self-understanding. They may need to relinquish long-held habits of body and mind, find new ways to be themselves, and gain more flexibility around masking that used to seem automatic and compulsory. (Neurodivergent people use masking behaviors to camouflage and compensate for their differences, Pearson & Rose, 2021). People may feel grief about the past, relief at recognition, and longing for neuroaffirming community. Neurodivergent people may need to modify their self-concept to include their specific strengths and vulnerabilities. This can make it much easier to accommodate their needs and request accommodations from others.

Personally, accepting autism has opened the door to meeting my authentic needs and enjoying their satisfaction. For decades, I used striving, perfectionism, and intellect to compensate for my differences. This was a constant and dissatisfying struggle. In my early twenties, I experienced a period of intense emotional and existential turbulence, which was diagnosed as bipolar (II) disorder. Looking back, this is better explained as autistic burnout due to minority stress, unmet needs, and masking (Strong, 2024). Since retelling my life story, I am more compassionate towards myself, more realistic about my needs, and more forgiving about the ways I have tried to survive neuronormative culture. These change processes take place on somatic, social, emotional, conceptual, imaginal, and spiritual levels.

Dealing with Neuronormative Hassles

Most neurodivergent people will need to relate to neuronormative society in some fashion for the rest of their lives. Each contact with neuronormativity and ableism occasions minority stress. Thus, there is an ongoing need for neuroqueer resilience when dealing with ableist culture. Anticipating needs and challenges, having a deep well of self-compassion and inner resources to draw on, and building neuroaffirming community can all help buffer against such insults and injuries.

I’ll use my experience of AGPA Connect 2025 as an example, not because it was terrible, but because it is illustrative. Initially, the presenter application process, which I began in May 2024, demanded a great deal of executive function. The forms were confusing and the online platform was finicky. Even my strong executive function skills were taxed. I suspect the process is insurmountable for many folks with executive function challenges.

I have sensory sensitivities and significant dietary restrictions (two common autistic traits.) Thus, travel is stressful and exhausting. The airport lighting, the din of traffic and plane engines, the insufferable reading lights in the plane, the tinny speakers and the captain’s blaring announcements, all impinged on my sensitivity and eroded my ability to self-regulate. Finding food I can actually eat in an airport is always a struggle, so I brought my own. This added weight to my baggage, which stressed my injury-prone shoulders.

The built environment of the hotel was mostly tolerable, both because I wore sunglasses and a hat constantly, and because I had been there before and knew what to expect. Still, I switched rooms twice, for fear the street noise would keep me up at night. Workshops with many simultaneous conversations were extremely challenging due to my sensory processing issues. My high-quality earplugs and noise-cancelling headphones were often not enough. I felt overstimulated, overwhelmed, and exhausted every night. Finally, although I made my dietary restrictions clear when I registered, I could eat almost none of the food served at the institute faculty tables or the Foundation banquet. (I believe this is the hotel’s shortcoming.) I subsisted on roasted almonds and ricecakes, and by day five, my stomach was quite irritated.

I give these examples not to complain about Connect 2025, but to explain the kinds of hassles I face as an autistic person, and what participating in neurotypical society costs me. Certainly, travel and conferences are stressful for many people, we all make sacrifices to participate in activities we enjoy, and we all deal with challenges and discomforts in doing so. But for neurodivergent people (as for folks in other marginalized identity positions), the costs are higher and seemingly at every turn.

I’m glad to report that my social differences were well-accommodated at Connect. I generally felt accepted and comfortable as a visibly queer and trans person, which was delightful, and I was able to connect with other queer, trans, and neurodivergent community members. I have high needs for interpersonal contact and intellectual stimulation, and these were well met.

I was also able to use a tool to self-accommodate. Over the past several months, I have been developing an autism accommodation card sort. About a week before Connect, awash in anxiety, I used it to analyze my needs. This instance of using the card sort helped me realize that 1) I would need to work hard to accommodate some of my needs, which normalized and eased my anxiety; and 2) my needs for social connection and stimulation would be very well met at Connect. This helped me stay motivated for the experience, anticipate my needs, and plan my accommodations in advance. By helping me take care of myself, it also helped me show up for the folks in my institute and workshop. I feel proud to have offered AGPA’s first queer, trans, and neuroqueer special institute.

Neuroaffirming Group Therapy

My connection to my own neuroqueer identities allowed me to hold an emancipatory space in my institute and workshop. Neuroaffirming groups are perhaps best offered by neuroqueer therapists who are engaged in their own journeys of neuroqueer liberation (see Strong, 2024). Something special happens when group leaders share (some of) the marginalized identity positions of their group members. Leticia Nieto and colleagues (2014) articulated a developmental model of social justice skills. For people in an oppressed identity position, a turning point occurs with regular access to social space composed only of folks who share that identity position, and in which they discuss the reality of their shared oppression (Nieto et al., 2014). That said, it is meaningful and important for neurotypical group leaders to adopt neuroaffirming practices. Moreover, in any group, there may be a mix of neurotypes. Here are five suggestions for neuroaffirming group therapy for all group leaders.

1. Listen to peoples’ access needs and accommodate them.

Different people have different needs. These can include sensory sensitivity, the need to stim, the need for things to be explained differently, physical impairments, the need to use assistive devices, and so on. Group leaders can accommodate neurodivergence by not imposing neurotypical norms on group members.

2. Get curious about your own unmet needs.

As group leaders, we may have needs that are poorly accommodated by our assumptions about how group therapy is ‘supposed’ to work, or what being ‘professional’ means. Growing as a neuroaffirming group therapist includes accommodating your own needs and preferences, rather than policing yourself according to neurotypical standards.

3. Accept neurodivergent communication styles.

Neurodivergent people think, feel, act, and experience the world differently, so it makes sense that they communicate differently. This includes differences in narrative style, eye contact, emotional expression, cognition, and perception. Stay curious and accommodate different styles of communication.

4. Let my people stim.

Many neurodivergent people need to move their bodies in ways that neurotypical people do not. For my special institute at Connect, I brought a bag of stim toys and put them out on the table. Those toys sent the instant message that stimming is acceptable and you’re in good company. Offering stim supports that members can use to modulate their activation is an easy and powerful neuroaffirming practice.

5. Keep learning about neurodivergence and neuroaffirming therapy.

When group leaders accept neurodivergence as a bona fide difference to be accommodated, rather than a clinical problem to be coped with or overcome, neurodivergent members can engage fully with group. Becoming a neuroaffirming group therapist means cultivating curiosity, cultural humility, and respect. This includes ongoing learning from neurodivergent people, as neurotypical ’experts’ have an unfortunate habit of throwing us under the bus (Price, 2021).

Becoming a Neuroqueer Group Leader

The process of neuroqueering my group leadership style has brought me face-to-face with my own vulnerability, tenderness, strengths, foibles, and limits. The work is hardly done, but I would like to offer some initial notes. Pleasure, ease, and curiosity have been watchwords for me in this process.

As a neuroqueer group therapist, I would like to be self-accepting, self-accommodating, and self-aware. I would like to use masking behaviors if I wish, but flexibly and with a light touch. I enjoy and want to continue spending time with my own neuroqueer community, so that my own cup is full. That way I can offer myself to my groups without wanting them to meet too many of my needs. I also want to be able to accept help and nourishment from my groups and group members, in a way that is humane, appropriate, and consensual.

I would like to keep recognizing, enjoying, and expressing my own organicity. I would like to let my aliveness compost the ableism and neuronormativity I have internalized, so that it can make good medicine, good dancing, good stories, and good love for myself and my community. I want to keep coming back to aliveness, and keep learning from my aliveness and others’ aliveness about how to live in and enjoy and heal this world. And I want the strange hillock of expertise, training, and administrative skills I have built be a support for doing this alive work in the world.

I hope these remarks are helpful for group leaders of any neurotype. If these words inspire you, I would be happy to connect. Please feel free to get in touch.

References

Botha, M., & Frost, D. M. (2020). Extending the minority stress model to understand mental health problems experienced by the Autistic population. Society and Mental Health, 10(1), 20–34. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156869318804297

Brooks, V. R. (1981). Minority stress and lesbian women. Lexington Books.

Chapman, R. (2023). Empire of normality: Neurodiversity and capitalism. Pluto Press.

Meyer, I. H. (1995). Minority stress and mental health in gay men. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 36(1), Article 1. https://doi.org/10.2307/2137286

Nieto, L., Boyer, M. F., Goodwin, L., Johnson, G. R., Smith, L. C., & Hopkins, J. P. (2014). Beyond inclusion, beyond empowerment: A developmental strategy to liberate everyone. Cuetzpalin.

Pearson, A., & Rose, K. (2021). A conceptual analysis of Autistic masking: Understanding the narrative of stigma and the illusion of choice. Autism in Adulthood, 3(1), 52–60. https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2020.0043

Price, D. (2022). Unmasking autism: Discovering the new faces of neurodiversity. Harmony Books.

Strong, S. D. (2024). Learning to be an Autistic therapist: Personal steps towards an Autism-affirming psychotherapy. Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.9707/2833-1508.1196

Walker, N. (2021). Neuroqueer heresies: Notes on the neurodiversity paradigm, autistic empowerment, and postnormal possibilities. Autonomous Press.

Standard DBT has the metaphor of a house. Radically Queer DBT has the metaphor of a cake.

First off, Standard DBT is like box cake mix. It does what is says on the box: it helps you build a life worth living. All well and good.

So Standard DBT makes plain vanilla cake. Ok, so now you have cake. But trubs is, queer, trans, and neurodivergent people aren’t plain vanilla people— Standard DBT doesn’t really meet their needs.

Basically, Plain Vanilla Cake is kinda boring. But you aren’t— so why not spice it up a bit? Enter Radically Queer DBT and its ‘special sauce’ of Radically Queer fillings. We’re going to make a layer cake.

So the serving suggestion here (imagine these are jam jars or Nutella jars or whatever— not radioactive play-doh, unless, of course, that’s your jam ) is to layer the Standard DBT cake layers with the following ingredients, which I think makes a particularly enjoyable QT+ND affirming cake:

These are the Radically Queer fillings we’ll be trying out in RQ-DBT. So it looks like this:

On the left side are the four Standard DBT modules:

• Core Mindfuless
• Interpersonal Effectiveness
• Emotion Regulation
• Distress Tolerance

On the right side are the Radically Queer fillings:

• Queer Resilience
• Somatics
• Expressive Arts
• Neuroaffirming Praxis

And when you put all these layers together:

When you assemble the cake, ingredients get stacked in a particular order. But when you eat it, you slice through all the layers and put it on a plate: they’re all in there when you serve it up. All the distinct elements of RQ-DBT are interrelated and interconnected. And finally:

You get to decorate your cake however you want. (I mean, really, you get to do the whole thing however you want!)

The best cakes are the ones we make our own: in our own style, to our own taste. You get to make Radicially Queer DBT your own. How does it fit in your life? How do you want to make it fabulous? You get to choose.

If you want to learn more about the ideas behind RQ-DBT, check out About Radically Queer DBT. To join an upcoming group, fill out the interest form or click below.

Extending DBT to Serve Neurodivergent People

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT) was originally created by Marsha Linehan to help people with borderline personality disorder. Subsequently, it has shown benefit for many different people and has become a common treatment in in-patient and intensive outpatient programs.

However, because DBT was not made for neurodivergent people (such as Autistic folks, ADHDers, and others with brain-based differences), many of the skills and assumptions of DBT aren’t the best fit for us. In particular, mainstream DBT ignores the sensory sensitivities, processing differences, and social differences that neurodivergent people experience. Many of the difficulties experienced by neurodivergent people are due to differences in neurotype, but clinicians who are ignorant of brain-based differences fail to meet the needs of neurodivergent people.

Social Justice & LGBTQ+ND Resilience

Although DBT acknowledges that a person-environment mismatch can contribute to later suffering, it does not include social justice resilience practices. The minority stress model, originally developed by Virginia Brooks, points out how stigma and discrimination can create adverse life outcomes for queer and trans people, including mental health symptoms. Oueer and trans resilience practices and frameworks provide a basis for developing a critical analysis and cultivating inner strength and skillfulness in the face of cisheteropatriarchal culture. Similarly, neuroqueer pride entails acceptance and accommodation of differences in neurotypes, and the development of neuroaffirmative resistance practices and frameworks.

In my view, DBT is a rich collection of materials for adaptation and extension— for queering. In my own development as an Autistic therapist, I have found embodiment, mindfulness, and neuroaffirming frameworks to be invaluable. For many years, I have also used expressive arts practices to explore and discover the emergent edge of my self-understanding. Therefore, I propose a integrative mashup and critical adaptation of mainstream DBT skills with neuroaffirming, queer and trans resilience, somatics, and expressive arts practices and frameworks.

RQ-DBT Values

Radically Queer DBT is grounded in the following values:

• body-mind holism
• complex integration
• neuroaffirmation, acceptance, and accommodation
• organic aliveness
• queer and trans liberation
• reconstructive postmodernism
• social justice
• pleasure
• fun

RQ-DBT Attitudes

Radically Queer DBT invites clients to try on, and perhaps adopt, the following attitudes:

• a willingness to experiment and find out
• curiosity
• self-acceptance
• a sense of humor
• openness
• embodied mindfulness
• non-conceptual creativity
• unconditional friendliness
• gentleness
• love

RQ-DBT Practices

RQ-DBT includes all the main skills of standard DBT: Core Mindfulness, Interpersonal Effectiveness, Emotion Regulation, and Distress Tolerance. However, it adds skills and perspectives that help LGBTQIA2S+ and neurodivergent people work with their experience and build resilience. For example:

Blending these different practices and perspectives, and integrating standard DBT skills with QT+ND resilience practices and frameworks, are represented in the metaphor of the Cake of Radically Queer DBT. In RQ-DBT, you can have your cake and enjoy it, too.

An Experimental Attitude for Iterative Learning

RQ-DBT is in a process of active development, and the spirit of ongoing experimentation (in the sense of first-person empiricism) is a core attitude. I envision RQ-DBT groups as being a place for group members to come together to learn, discuss, and practice new skills, and to practice critiquing, modifying, and adapting them for their particular needs and desires. It is in this sense that RQ-DBT queers (and neuroqueers!) DBT— by making use of materials from mainstream culture and adapting them to our own ends.

If you’re interested in joining an upcoming RQ-DBT group, please fill out the interest form or click on the button below. (Or to learn more, check out the Radically Queer DBT group page.)

If you choose to watch the interview, I hope you enjoy!

In this training experience, I integrated Leticia Nieto’s social justice developmental skills model into understanding how to support queer, trans, and neurodivergent folks. The didactic materials and group experience also integrated the common factors in group therapy (Yalom & Leszcz, 2020).

Together, we created a space for neurodivergent people to feel comfortable unmasking, and we took time to discuss the different identity positions in the group. This helped create safety, cohesion, and healing conversations around differences. As we all shared queer and/or trans identity positions, we were able to create a space for empowered community discourse (cf. Dr. Nieto’s model).

It was an honor to be on the teaching faculty at this event, and to be the first to offer a queer, trans, and neurodivergent-specific 2-day training institute at AGPA. Looking forward to creating more community together!

I hope it will of value to other autistic therapists, and autistic people generally. (Could be helpful for neurotypical therapists, too! ????)

If you’re interested, you can download the open access article from Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture.

Suggested citation:

Strong, S. D. (2024). Learning to be an Autistic therapist: Personal steps towards an Autism-affirming psychotherapy. Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture, 6(1). https://doi.org/10.9707/2833-1508.1196

FWIW, here are the works cited, in case you’re interested:

Barker, M.-J., & Scheele, J. (2016). Queer: A graphic history (K. Jamison, Ed.). Icon Books.

Bornstein, K. (2013). My new gender workbook: A step-by-step guide to achieving world peace through gender anarchy and sex positivity (2nd ed). Routledge.

Botha, M., Chapman, R., Giwa Onaiwu, M., Kapp, S. K., Stannard Ashley, A., & Walker, N. (2024). The neurodiversity concept was developed collectively: An overdue correction on the origins of neurodiversity theory. Autism, 28(6), 1591–1594. https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613241237871

Botha, M., & Frost, D. M. (2020). Extending the minority stress model to understand mental health problems experienced by the Autistic population. Society and Mental Health, 10(1), 20–34. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156869318804297

Brooks, V. R. (1981). Minority stress and lesbian women. Lexington Books.

Caldwell, C. (2014). Mindfulness and bodyfulness: A new paradigm. The Journal of Contemplative Inquiry, 1(1). https://digscholarship.unco.edu/joci/vol1/iss1/9/

Chapman, R. (2023). Empire of normality: Neurodiversity and capitalism. Pluto Press.

Cherewick, M., & Matergia, M. (2024). Neurodiversity in practice: A conceptual model of autistic strengths and potential mechanisms of change to support positive mental health and wellbeing in autistic children and adolescents. Advances in Neurodevelopmental Disorders, 8(3), 408–422. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41252-023-00348-z

Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black Feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 1989, 139–167. https://chicagounbound.uchicago.edu/uclf/vol1989/iss1/8

Engelbrecht, N., & Silvertant, E. (n.d.). Embrace Autism | The ultimate autism resource. Embrace Autism. Retrieved August 31, 2024, from https://embrace-autism.com/

Foucault, M. (1980). Power/Knowledge: Selected interviews and other writings, 1972-1977 (C. Gordon, Ed.). Pantheon Books.

Foucault, M., Martin, L. H., Gutman, H., & Hutton, P. H. (Eds.). (1988). Technologies of the self: A seminar with Michel Foucault. University of Massachusetts Press.

Gratton, F. V. (2019). Supporting transgender autistic youth and adults: A guide for professionals and families. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Gratton, F. (2023, May 6). Affirming & anti-oppressive practices for working with trans and non-binary Autistic people. National Trans Health Summit 2023, San Francisco, CA.

Halperin, D. M. (1997). Saint Foucault: Towards a gay hagiography. Oxford University Press.

Hạnh, T. N. (1975). The miracle of mindfulness: An introduction to the practice of meditation. Beacon Press.

Hartman, D. (with O’Donnell-Killen, T., Doyle, J. K., Kavanagh, M., Day, A., & Azevedo, J.). (2023). The adult autism assessment handbook: A neurodiversity affirmative approach. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Harvey, D. (2018). Marx, capital and the madness of economic reason. Oxford University Press.

Hooks, B. (2014). Feminist theory: From margin to center (3rd ed.). Routledge. (Original work published 1984)

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• HRT
• coming out at work
• navigating family and partnerships
• dealing with internalized transmisogyny and intense beauty standards
• deciding the transition steps that are right for you
• building frameworks for empowerment and resistance against cisheteropatriarchy
• being people and connecting with others

If this sounds appealing, please check out the group page and see if it might be a fit for you. Or get in touch to learn more! Looking forward to hearing from you!

Join us in a supportive group environment that can usher you toward the financial and career freedom you’re seeking. Learn how to start a private practice on the side, or escape the burnout fountain of agency work or extractive group practices. Gain the freedom to choose your caseload, set your own hours, and do things your way! You’ll learn all the basics and more. Register here!

Benefits of Private Practice

• Make more money — set your own rates so you can take home more money than most agencies and group practices will pay you
• Have more time to spend with friends, family members, and yourself
• Build relationships with the colleagues and organizations you want to align with
• Improve your health by choosing the work-life balance that works for you
• Do things your way— set your own hours, take vacations, and work with the clients and issues you feel excited about

I’ve been in private practice since 2016, and I’ve helped friends, colleagues, and supervisees get into private practice to achieve the freedom, satisfaction, and work-life balance they crave. I love helping people do what they love and sharing my knowledge with folks like you— folks who are doing good work in the world, but need a little help to do it their way.

Course Outline

• Envisioning your Ideal Private Practice
  • Lifestyle
  • Your Niche
  • Abundance
  • The Professional You
• Planning the Details
  • Finances
  • Marketing
  • Accounts
  • Liability
  • Schedule
  • Technology
  • Location
  • People
• Implementing the Details
  • Building and Using your People and Support Network
  • Implementing your Checklist for Success
  • Launching Your Private Practice
• Optimizing
  • Onboarding & Screening
  • Marketing
  • Client Retention
  • Systems
  • Recommended Resources

Bonus Items

• Private Practice Planning Checklist
• Financial Planning Spreadsheet

As part of your participation in the course, you will receive a five-page Planning Checklist and a five-sheet Planning Spreadsheet. The checklist makes it easy to research, plan, and organize your private practice launch. The spreadsheet will help you estimate your workload, billing, profit, and tax margins.

These tools will save you hours of labor and confusion, so you can launch your practice with a clear roadmap.

Ready to go? Register here!

Format and Structure

• four 90-minute sessions spread over 6 weeks
• Friday afternoons at 3pm on May 26, June 9, June 16, and June 30
• lecture, breakout groups, and Q&A
• weekly calls with an accountability buddy who is also in the training
• 3 detailed checklists to prepare and launch successfully

Enrollment will be capped at 20 people to promote a community feeling among professional peers. Community is a big part of moving forward with our plans. Let’s create a supportive environment for social learning!

There is no requirement to attend all 4 sessions. If you miss a session, we can schedule a make-up session for an additional fee.

Pricing

I’m offering a few pricing tiers, ranging from $400-$150 for the course (that’s $100-$37.50 per 90-minute session). This includes a solidarity pricing tier for LGBTQIA2+, BIPOC, disabled folks, and folks from other historically marginalized communities.

After you open your business and cover your overhead costs, you will recuperate your investment in just a few client hours.

Money-Back Guarantee

I offer a 30-day money back guarantee. If you’re not fully satisfied with the course, just contact me within 30 days of your last session. I’ll refund 100% of your fee. The checklist and spreadsheet are yours to keep.

Next Steps

Ready to get started? Private practice can be the gateway to prosperity, work-life balance, and fulfillment as a helping professional. Get the information and support you need. Register here!

Not able to attend this cycle? Fill in this Google Form to add your vote on days and times that could work for you.