The Squarepeg Podcast 106 [S9 E1] ND-affirming therapy: sensory regulation, integrating identity and understanding diffuse experiences
Dr Megan Anna Neff is a neurodivergent Clinical Psychologist from Portland, Oregon, in the USA. She has a small private practice specialising in neurodivergent-affirming therapy and is the founder of Neurodivergent Insights, where she creates education and wellness resources for neurodivergent adults. She is also co-host of the Divergent Conversations podcast.
Dr Neff is dedicated to educating the mental health field on non-stereotypical presentations of autism and ADHD. Now 39, she was diagnosed autistic over two years ago, and also has ADHD. She is also a parent to two neurodivergent children.
She regularly provides trainings on neurodivergent-affirming practices and is the author of the forthcoming book Self-Care for Autistic People.
I’m delighted to share my conversation with Dr Neff.
We talk about:
➡ What happened after she discovered she was autistic a few weeks before completing her PhD - and realised that a lot of what she’d been taught about autism was incorrect.
➡ OCD, PTSD, learning difficulties, dyslexia, and difficulties at school
➡ Misdiagnosis, what autistic people often get misdiagnosed with, and why
➡ Autistic people and CBT, what neurodivergent-affirming therapy can look like and the importance of the sensory aspect
➡ The challenges of being a content creator in the autism space
➡ Identity and terminology, and integrating our intersecting identities and unexplained experiences
TRIGGER WARNING: brief mentions of mental health and self harming throughout, but not in any detail.
Squarepeg is a podcast in which neurodivergent women, and trans and nonbinary people, explore navigating a neurotypical world and share their insights, challenges and successes.
I hope that these conversations will be inspiring and thought provoking, open you up to new ways of thinking about being neurodivergent, and help you feel more connected to a worldwide community of people with similar experiences.
I’m Amy Richards, and after being diagnosed autistic at the age of 37 I’m now on a mission to learn more about different perspectives and issues around being a neurodivergent adult in a world that feels like it doesn’t quite fit.
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Book: Self-Care For Autistic People: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Self-Care-for-Autistic-People/Megan-Anna-Neff/9781507221938
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