Autism Acceptance Month!
It’s estimated that 1 in 36 individuals are autistic in the US (1 in 100 estimated globally, but there are many countries where this information is unknown). Autistic people are here and they belong!
In the last couple of months I’ve been working on completing a new course called EMDR and Neurodiversity, focusing most specifically on learning about neuro-affirming practices and using and adapting EMDR for individuals with ADHD and Autism (we prefer identity-first language of ADHDers and autistic individuals over person-first language, but you do you!). It’s a series of 6 sessions (18 hours) and has been amazing thus far.
If you’re a therapist, psychologist or psychiatrist, I highly recommend checking it out! Here is the website from Divergent Futures
This has been an ongoing mission of mine for several years to learn more about neurodiversity (check out this amazing book We’re All Neurodiverse by Sonny Jane Wise) and how to be a neuro-affirming practitioner, parent and overall person. As an ADHDer myself with many loved ones who also experience different neurotypes, I want to learn and grow (hello deep dives!).
While there are many experiences that fall under the neurodiversity umbrella, this month we are focused on autism! As a trained EMDR clinician since 2016, I have been passionate about the results I have experienced myself and also have witnessed in others due to this amazing theory and intervention, so I am PUMPED to learn even more about how to adapt it with different neurotypes (beyond what I’ve already figured out on my own and read in various locations).
EMDR for ADHDers and autistic individuals aims to help individuals who may have had some distressing or upsetting experiences related to social differences, executive functioning issues, invalidation, masking, bullying, etc. EMDR can help people find some relief from these challenging experiences and work to build a healthy self-concept and a better understanding of their specific preferences and needs or how to self-advocate or ask for support when needed in this neurodiverse world.
These, among other reasons, makes EMDR a nice fit for autistic folks. Because EMDR is not “talk therapy”, the client does not need to verbally explain as much to still experience some relief and make connections to positive, adaptive information.
But you know what would be even better? Accepting autistic individuals for who they are, supporting them so they can show up in ways that feel good to them, and continuing with research on how to recognize autism early, how to break barriers to appropriate and timely diagnostics, and how to support families with diverse neurotypes (I see you UCLA, Rutgers, Boston University and others…keep it up!)
OK but don’t just take my word for it on these things, check out the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN) link below: