Neurodiversity

Empowering Families Around Neurodiversity

Neurodiversity recognizes and celebrates that human brains naturally develop and function in many different ways—all of which are valuable and valid. Just as biodiversity strengthens ecosystems, neurodiversity enriches our communities with different perspectives, problem-solving approaches, and ways of experiencing the world. Being neurodivergent means your brain processes information, experiences sensations, learns, communicates, or focuses differently than what society has established as “typical”—and these differences come with unique strengths, talents, and perspectives alongside genuine challenges.

Neurodivergent individuals may experience tendencies towards autism, have ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, dyscalculia, Tourette’s, or other neurological differences. Whether you’re a neurodivergent adult seeking to better understand yourself, a parent supporting a neurodivergent child, or a family navigating these differences together, you deserve therapy that honors who you are rather than trying to change your fundamental nature. At BeWELL, we practice neurodiversity-affirming therapy—an approach that values your neurological differences, builds on your inherent strengths, helps you develop strategies for real challenges, and addresses the barriers in environments rather than seeing you as the problem. We understand that many struggles neurodivergent people face result from living in a world designed primarily for neurotypical brains, and we’re here to help you advocate for the accommodations and understanding you deserve while building skills that honor your authentic self.

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Common Experiences for Neurodivergent Individuals and Families:

Navigating a world not designed for your brain – You or your family member constantly encounter environments, systems, and expectations built for neurotypical processing, leading to exhaustion from trying to adapt to spaces that feel overwhelming, confusing, or hostile. Sensory environments may be painfully overstimulating, social rules feel arbitrary and confusing, organizational systems don’t match how your brain works naturally, and you face constant pressure to “just try harder” to function in ways that feel fundamentally misaligned with your neurology.
Recognizing and honoring your unique strengths – Neurodivergent individuals often possess remarkable abilities: intense focus and deep expertise in areas of interest, exceptional pattern recognition and problem-solving from unique perspectives, creative and innovative thinking that sees solutions others miss, remarkable memory for specific details or visual information, authentic communication style without social pretense, strong sense of justice and integrity, ability to hyperfocus and achieve extraordinary results in engaging work, and sensory sensitivities that allow noticing details others overlook—yet these strengths are often overlooked while challenges receive all the attention.
Masking and the exhaustion of trying to appear “normal” – Many neurodivergent individuals, especially those diagnosed later in life or raised without understanding of their neurodivergence, have learned to “mask” or camouflage their natural behaviors to fit in. This involves suppressing stimming, forcing eye contact when it’s uncomfortable, scripting conversations and rehearsing “appropriate” responses, mimicking neurotypical social behaviors, hiding sensory distress or overwhelm, and constantly monitoring yourself to appear “acceptable”—all of which leads to profound exhaustion, loss of authentic self, burnout, anxiety, depression, and identity confusion.
Sensory processing differences that impact daily life – You experience the world with different sensory intensity than most people: certain sounds, lights, textures, or smells may be painfully overwhelming while others barely register, transitions between activities feel jarring and difficult, busy environments drain your energy rapidly, you need specific sensory input (movement, pressure, sound) to regulate, clothing tags or certain fabrics may be intolerable, or you require quiet, dim spaces to decompress. Others may not understand that these aren’t preferences but genuine neurological differences that affect your functioning.
Executive function challenges that don’t reflect your intelligence – Neurodivergent individuals, particularly those with ADHD or autism, often struggle with executive functions like planning, organizing, time management, task initiation, working memory, and flexible thinking—not because they lack intelligence or don’t care, but because their brains process these functions differently. You may understand what needs to be done but can’t make yourself start, lose track of time consistently, forget important commitments despite caring deeply, struggle to break large tasks into steps, or have difficulty shifting between activities, leading to harsh self-judgment when these challenges don’t match your capabilities in other areas.
Social communication differences and relationship challenges – Your brain may process social interaction differently: reading unwritten social rules feels like trying to learn a foreign language without a dictionary, small talk feels meaningless while deep conversations about specific topics feel natural, you communicate more directly than others expect, you miss indirect communication or sarcasm, you need time to process before responding, maintaining friendships requires more effort and explicit planning, or you prefer fewer, deeper relationships over many casual ones. These differences can lead to loneliness, misunderstandings, and feeling like an outsider, even when you genuinely want connection.
Late diagnosis or self-discovery bringing relief and grief – Many adults, especially women and people of color, realize they’re neurodivergent later in life, often after their child receives a diagnosis. This discovery typically brings both tremendous relief (“I’m not broken, my brain just works differently!”) and profound grief for years spent believing something was fundamentally wrong with you, being punished for behaviors you couldn’t control, missing accommodations and support you deserved, and developing anxiety, depression, or trauma from constantly failing to meet neurotypical expectations without understanding why.
Parenting a neurodivergent child with unique joys and challenges – As a parent, you want to support your child’s authentic development while also helping them navigate a world that may not understand them. You’re learning to distinguish between helpful skill-building and harmful pressure to conform, advocating with schools and other parents who may not understand neurodiversity, managing your own emotions when others judge your child or your parenting, celebrating your child’s unique gifts while supporting them through genuine struggles, and possibly recognizing your own neurodivergence as you learn about your child’s.
Finding your community and authentic identity – Many neurodivergent individuals describe finding neurodivergent community as life-changing: finally being understood without explanation, sharing experiences of both challenges and joys unique to your neurotype, learning to unmask and be authentic, receiving validation that your experiences matter and your needs are legitimate, and building identity pride rather than shame. However, finding these communities and developing positive neurodivergent identity after years of being told you’re “the problem” requires support and healing.

How BeWELL Can Support Neurodivergent Individuals and Families

At BeWELL Psychotherapy and Wellness, we practice neurodiversity-affirming therapy that honors your neurological differences as natural human variation deserving of respect and accommodation. Our therapists in NYC and Hoboken understand that the goal isn’t to make you more “normal” but to help you understand yourself better, build on your strengths, develop strategies for challenges that honor your authentic functioning, heal from trauma caused by living in a neurotypical-centered world, advocate for the accommodations you deserve, and create a life that works for your brain rather than against it. We support neurodivergent adults, children, teens, and families with a strengths-based approach that celebrates who you are.

Our Neurodiversity-Affirming Approach

We presume competence, use strengths-based interventions that build on your natural abilities, help you develop self-advocacy skills, create sensory-friendly accommodations in our practice, adapt therapeutic approaches to match neurodivergent processing styles, work with families to foster acceptance and understanding, coordinate with schools and workplaces for appropriate accommodations, and address co-occurring challenges like anxiety, depression, or trauma that often result from living in an unaccommodating world. We never aim to eliminate autistic traits, train masking behaviors, or pressure you to conform to neurotypical standards.

What to Expect in Neurodiversity-Affirming Therapy

We’ll work collaboratively to understand your unique neurology, identify your strengths and challenges, explore how masking or accommodating neurotypical expectations has affected you, develop strategies that work with your brain rather than against it, and build skills for self-advocacy and self-acceptance. For families, we provide education about neurodiversity, guidance on creating supportive home environments, and help distinguishing between supporting your child and pressuring them to conform.