Neurodiversity-affirming Occupational Therapist & Neurodivergent Support Practitioner: Emma

Hello, I’m Emma, an HCPC and CORU registered Occupational Therapist and Co-Director of Divergent Minds. I support adults who are Autistic, ADHD, AuDHD, late-identified, self-identified, waiting for their formal identification, or beginning to wonder whether they may be neurodivergent in other ways.

If you are considering booking a session with me, I wanted to share that my approach is neurodiversity-affirming, anti-oppressive and collaborative. I do not see my role as telling you who you are or what you should do. I aim to start with your lived experience alongside my own lived and work experience, so we can think together about what might be useful for you at this time.

My background includes teaching, occupational therapy, mental health, disability-related work, and Autistic and ADHD identification across NHS, HSCNI and independent services. I also have additional therapeutic and psychology-informed training and work supporting Autistic adults experiencing burnout.

I can support you with:

Understanding Autistic, ADHD, AuDHD or wider Neurodivergent Experiences
Exploring whether neurodivergence may help make sense of your experiences, including sensory needs, attention, communication, emotions, executive functioning, relationships, masking, burnout and daily life.

Life after Identification
Making sense of what your identification means now, including relief, grief, doubt, validation, anger, confusion, or re-looking at your past through a different lens.

Burnout, Energy and Recovery
Understanding what drains you, what restores you, how burnout shows up, and what may help you live in a more sustainable way.

Masking and Identity
Exploring how you may have learned to adapt, hide, perform, people-please or push through, and what more authentic ways of being might look like for you.

Sensory Needs and Everyday Environments
Understanding how sensory experiences affect your wellbeing, focus, fatigue, sleep, work, relationships and daily routines, and identifying practical adjustments that may help.

Emotional Overwhelm, Meltdowns and Shutdowns
Making sense of what happens when things become too much, what helps you recover, and how others can support you respectfully.

AuDHD Needs
Exploring the differences that can come with needing routine and novelty, rest and stimulation, structure and flexibility.

Attention, Deep Focus and Interests
Understanding your attention patterns, including deep focus, transitions, strong interests, repetitive thinking or difficulty switching tasks.

Relationships, Family Life and Parenting
Thinking through communication differences, boundaries, emotional labour, conflict, misunderstanding, sensory needs or parenting as a neurodivergent adult.

Work, Study and Daily Life
Identifying what makes everyday life harder than it needs to be, including executive functioning, social expectations, sensory environments, uncertainty, planning and fatigue.

Self-Advocacy and Practical Support
Working out what you need, what helps, and how to communicate this to employers, family members, education providers, services or professionals. I can also support people to think through disability benefits, forms or other practical systems.

How Sessions Might Work

Sessions are flexible and led by what feels most useful to you. You may want space to talk and process, or you may prefer structure, prompts, written reflections, practical strategies or problem-solving.

You are welcome to use voice, text, email, written notes, pauses, or a mixture of communication methods. You do not need to communicate in a particular way to access support.

Relevant Training Includes

• PGCert Autism.
• MSc Occupational Therapy.
• BPS-accredited MSc Psychology.
• CPCAB Level 3 Counselling Studies.
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.
• EMDR.
• Trauma-Informed Training.
• Sensory Integration Level 1
• Specialist Training and Experience in Autistic, ADHD and Neurodevelopmental Understanding.
• Working Therapeutically with Autistic Adults