What Is a Holistic Approach to Counselling? Why Is It Different?
In a world that often expects people to fit into neat boxes, many neurodivergent women—particularly those diagnosed later in life with autism, ADHD, or AuDHD—find themselves feeling unseen, misinterpreted, or overwhelmed by the pressure to conform.
Traditional counselling approaches may offer support, but they don’t always honour the complexity of masking, late diagnosis, identity confusion, or the deep exhaustion that comes from living in a world not built for you. That’s where a holistic approach to counselling comes in.
So what exactly is a holistic approach—and why does it matter?
The Heart of Holistic Counselling
A holistic approach to counselling recognises that people are more than just a set of symptoms or a diagnosis. Instead of viewing emotional distress in isolation, it takes into account the whole person—your mind, body, relationships, history, identity, values, and lived experiences.
But holistic doesn’t mean vague or unstructured. In our practice, it means weaving together evidence-based, trauma-informed modalities that speak to the unique challenges and strengths of neurodivergent women—especially those who are late-diagnosed and navigating complex issues like masking, burnout, trauma, and identity.
Why This Approach Is Different
Many conventional therapies focus on symptom reduction or behavioural change. While helpful for some, these models can unintentionally reinforce feelings of “brokenness” or the need to be “fixed.”
A holistic, integrative counselling approach does something different. It affirms who you are—not just who the world expects you to be. It honours the inner complexity of your story and provides space to explore it gently, safely, and with deep compassion.
Here’s how the integration of seven powerful therapeutic modalities offers a transformative and affirming experience for neurodivergent women:
1. Person-Centred Therapy – Foundation of Safety and Acceptance
At the core is Person-Centred Therapy, which offers unconditional positive regard, empathy, and authenticity. This creates a non-pathologising space where you are deeply seen and accepted exactly as you are. For neurodivergent women, this foundation is critical—it allows for self-paced exploration and honours emotional and sensory safety.
2. Relational Therapy – Healing through Connection
Relational Therapy places the therapeutic relationship at the centre of healing. It addresses relational trauma, masking, and loneliness, helping clients experience a reciprocal, validating connection that challenges internalised beliefs of being “too much” or “not enough.”
3. Psychodynamic Therapy – Exploring the Roots
This modality looks at the unconscious patterns and early life experiences that shape how we relate to ourselves and others. Through this lens, we examine roles like the “good girl” or “peacekeeper,” and unearth the origins of fawning, masking, and self-silencing—often rooted in complex trauma and social conditioning.
4. Internal Family Systems (IFS) – Understanding Inner Parts
IFS offers a compassionate way to explore the different “parts” of ourselves—like the Masker, the Overachiever, or the Shamed Inner Child. It teaches clients how to nurture these parts with compassion, building Self-leadership and inner trust. For neurodivergent clients, this can be a profound way to integrate identity and heal internalised shame.
5. Narrative Therapy – Rewriting the Story
Narrative Therapy helps challenge dominant cultural narratives (e.g., “You’re too sensitive,” “You need to be productive to have worth”) and empowers women to re-author their identities from a strength-based, neurodivergent-affirming perspective. Your voice matters—and this therapy helps you reclaim it.
6. Attachment-Based Therapy – Repairing Core Wounds
This approach explores how early attachment experiences shape our capacity for connection, emotional regulation, and self-worth. Whether your patterns are anxious, avoidant, or disorganised, attachment therapy supports the development of secure, trusting relationships—internally through IFS and externally through therapy and safe connections.
7. Existential Therapy – Making Meaning as a Neurodivergent Woman
Existential Therapy helps explore questions like:
“Who am I outside the mask?”
“What kind of life feels meaningful to me?”
This modality supports clients in finding freedom, authenticity, and purpose outside of societal expectations, empowering you to live in alignment with your own truth.
Why This Matters for Neurodivergent Women
This integrative, holistic approach is not a one-size-fits-all model. It’s a flexible, collaborative process that adapts to your needs, your pace, and your way of processing the world.
Here’s how it supports neurodivergent women in meaningful, lasting ways:
✔ Creates emotional and sensory safety through presence and validation
✔ Deepens insight into trauma, identity, and internalised roles
✔ Repairs relationship patterns by building secure attachment and trust
✔ Supports post-diagnosis integration and identity reclamation
✔ Encourages connection to body, intuition, and inner wisdom
✔ Amplifies authentic voice, agency, and expression
✔ Celebrates neurodivergent strengths—from sensitivity to creativity
Final Thoughts
Healing isn't about “fixing” yourself—it’s about remembering who you are beneath the layers of masking, shame, and survival.
A holistic approach to counselling recognises that your neurodivergence isn’t a flaw—it’s a rich, complex part of who you are. And when therapy honours that, something powerful happens: you begin to feel safe enough to come home to yourself.
Ready to begin your journey?
If you're a neurodivergent woman seeking support that honours your whole self, you are not alone—and you don’t have to navigate this path without guidance.
Contact me to explore how this integrative, trauma-informed approach can support your healing and growth.