Neurodiversity-affirming therapy
CBT for neurodivergent adults — Online across the UK
If you've spent most of your life feeling like you're working twice as hard as everyone else just to keep up, masking, adapting, pushing through, you'll know the particular exhaustion that comes with that. And if you've recently been diagnosed with ADHD or autism, or suspect you might be neurodivergent, you might also be making sense of a lifetime of self-criticism that suddenly has a different explanation.
You were never broken. You were navigating a world that wasn't designed for how your brain works.
What neurodiversity-affirming therapy means
Neurodiversity-affirming therapy means I don't treat your neurodivergence as something to fix. ADHD, autism, and other forms of neurological difference are not disorders to be corrected, they are different ways of thinking, processing, and experiencing the world, each with genuine strengths alongside real challenges.
What I do work with are the struggles that often come alongside being neurodivergent in a neurotypical world, the anxiety, the exhaustion from masking, the shame that builds up from years of feeling different, and the particularly harsh inner critic that many neurodivergent adults develop as a result.
CBT adapted for neurodivergent adults
Standard CBT was largely developed with neurotypical clients in mind. I adapt my approach for neurodivergent adults. That means flexible session structure, a focus on practical tools over theory-heavy frameworks, and an understanding that things like time blindness, emotional dysregulation, and sensory sensitivity are real experiences that affect how therapy works best.
I have extensive experience working with neurodivergent clients within the NHS, and I bring that experience into my private practice. Sessions are genuinely flexible. We work in the way that works for you.
Late diagnosis — making sense of your history
A late diagnosis of ADHD or autism can be both a relief and a grief. Relief that there's finally an explanation. Grief for the younger version of you who struggled without one — and often blamed themselves for it.
Many of my clients who receive a late diagnosis carry years of internalised self-criticism: "Why can't I just focus?" "Why do I find this so hard when everyone else seems fine?" Therapy after a late diagnosis is often about gently rewriting that narrative, understanding your history through a new lens, and releasing the self-blame that was never deserved.
What we might work on together
Anxiety and overwhelm
Shame and self-criticism after late diagnosis
Masking exhaustion
Emotional dysregulation
Low self-esteem rooted in feeling different
Burnout from years of overcompensating
Perfectionism as a coping strategy
Rejection sensitive dysphoria (RSD)
People pleasing and difficulty with limits
RELATED
Burnout is one of the most common experiences among neurodivergent adults. If you're exhausted from years of masking and pushing through, read more about CBT for burnout here.
Working with me
I'm Eszter, a Cognitive Behavioural Psychotherapist with NHS experience working with neurodivergent adults. I work online across the UK via Zoom, and I offer a genuinely flexible, affirming space, one where you don't need to mask, perform, or explain yourself before we get to the real work.
I combine CBT with Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT), which is particularly valuable for neurodivergent clients who have developed a harsh inner critic as a result of feeling different for most of their lives. The goal isn't to make you more neurotypical, it's to help you feel steadier, kinder to yourself, and more at home in your own mind.
Getting started
The first step is a free 15-minute consultation — a relaxed, no-pressure call where you can ask questions and get a feel for how I work before committing to anything.
You don't need to have everything figured out before you reach out. That's what the call is for.