Autism & ADHD Therapy
for late identified/diagnosed adults
“One of the cruelest tricks our culture plays on autistic people is that it makes us strangers to ourselves. We grow up knowing we’re different, but that difference is defined for us in terms of an absence of neurotypicality, not as the presence of another equally valid way of being.”
What is Autism & ADHD?
Autism and ADHD are both types of neurodivergence - a variance in the human neurotype. Autism and ADHD are neurodevelopmental conditions, meaning they are frequently genetic, are present in utero, and influence how the brain functions and develops, be it in cognitive, emotional or social ways.
Despite being labeled as disorders in the medical field, autism and ADHD are simply different ways of perceiving, processing and interacting with the world. As the world is not built for neurodivergent people, being neurodivergent comes with numerous hardships and challenges.
Autism and/or ADHD can show up as*:
Sensory issues and/or overwhelm
Whether it is sound, smell, sight or tough, neurodivergent folks frequently experience intense responses to sensory stimuli, making them feel anything from distracted to completely overwhelmed.
Interoception issues
Interoception is about perceiving body cues and responses, i.e. recognizing hunger, thirst, needing to use the restroom, feeling pain, etc. Folks with ADHD and autism both struggle with noticing body signals and can go for hours without eating, drinking or going to the restroom.
Emotional regulation difficulties
In both autism and ADHD, naming emotions that are being experienced or being able to identify why an emotion is arising is difficult and at times impossible.
Executive functioning difficulties
Executive functioning helps us plan, organize and execute tasks. Things like shifting from task to task, working memory (i.e. remembering details), attention and focus, planning ahead are all affected when there is executive functioning difficulties.
Stimming (or self-stimulating)
Stimming is a self-stimulating behavior that provides soothing to an overwhelmed nervous system. It is employed in order to decrease sensory input. Autistic folks frequently stim, and while it looks different for everyone, can look like rocking, spinning, playing with hair/jewelry/clothing, nail biting, pulling hair, tapping, humming, etc.
Fidgeting
While stimming is associated with autism, fidgeting is associated with ADHD. Fidgeting is about increasing sensory input and frequently done to drive more dopamine into the brain. Fidgeting helps folks with ADHD to complete tasks that may otherwise be tedious, boring or overwhelming. Fidgeting can look like bouncing a leg, tapping fingers on the table, chewing on a lip/inside of cheek, playing with jewelry, squeezing a stress ball, etc.
*This list is not meant to be exclusive and doesn’t list every possible trait of neurodivergence
How can therapy help?
Therapy for autistic and ADHD folks is not about fixing or curing the “disorder”; in fact that would be harmful and invalidating instead of helpful and affirming.
Therapy is about learning your particular flavor of neurodivergence, discovering your tolerance levels for stimuli, identifying ways you can pace and ration your energy, exploring what works for you and what doesn’t (be it sensory- or executive functioning-wise), and beginning the process of unmasking in safe ways and safe spaces to ease the burden of camouflage on your daily life.
You don’t have to figure it all out on your own
Reach out to get support and care today.
Related posts
Neurodiversity: What It Is and Why Does It Matter
Whichever corner of the Internet you frequent, you have likely stumbled upon the term neurodiversity, neurodivergence or neurodivergent and want to learn more about their meaning.
In today’s blog post we will talk about the terminology of neurodiversity and its meaning, both on a collective and on an individual level.
Stimming vs. Fidgeting: What’s the Difference?
As conversations about neurodiversity become more mainstream, so do the characteristics of certain neurotypes. Learning about autism and ADHD may introduce the idea of fidgeting and stimming, yet in many online resources the two are conflated as essentially the same thing.
In reality they are not, and in today’s blog post I will discuss what is fidgeting and stimming, what is the difference between them and why it's important to delineate them as unique.
Autism and ADHD in Adults: Differentiating Between Neurotypes
Autism and ADHD are neurotypes that share many similarities, but that does not make them the same.
In order to differentiate between them, we will take a look at where they overlap and the important aspects that make each of them unique.