Gillian Fagan, AcoraTherapy

Woohoo another therapist has joined our team. AcoraTherapy’s growing, delivering anti-oppressive therapy online.

Just realize it’s 4 months since I logged in.
That would be a combination of the old time blindness and object permanence.
So hello again… for now.

Hey fellow neurodivergents, does it sometimes feel like your experience of counselling is like conversion therapy?
Trying to fit get you to fit in with a neurotypical world or neurotypical therapy modalities?

Therapy can often harm us rather than help us, especially before we’re diagnosed ND.

Ireland: overwhelmingly votes for an independent left wing candidate

Irish Media: We must do more to help the far right!!

We’re burning out from being human in an inhuman system.
We’re not falling, the world is.

Trauma

When life imitates art

If you want the best laughs today, read #SmeartheBejaysis tag.
( context for non-Irish folks: A ghastly politicians said his tactics to destroy socialist Catherine Connolly's presidential campaign would be to 'smear the bejaysis out of her- you'll see how people approach mockery here )

Im not quite sure but I do know there had to be a “y” in there!

Neurodivergent burnout is trauma.

Let that land.

The quiet, cumulative kind
born from an environment, a world, a system, a society that asks more than a person can give.

That expects us to mask to feel included.

#Neurodiversity #ADHD #Autism #TraumaInformed #ADHDawarenessmonth

October isn’t just about darker evenings & woolly hats.

For many ND nervous systems, the change in light, routine & sensory input hits hard.

More fatigue. Mood dips.
Sensory overwhelm.
Dopamine dances.

If you’re feeling off right now, it’s not in your head. Your body is adjusting.
#Neurodiversity

Neurodiversity isn’t new.
What’s new is that we’re finally talking about it.

ADHD, dyslexia, autism, dyspraxia, PDA, DID, Tourette’s, sensory profiles…have always been part of the story.

The difference now is language, visibility & community.

#Neurodiversity #Psychotherapy #ADHDAwarenessMonth

For starters reflection, accountability, flexibility, self-awareness.

It helps to understand ableism, bias and privilege too.

You can’t have non inclusive, rigid systems and then claim to be neuro-affirmative!

Neuro-affirming practice is everywhere now.

It’s a great start.
But if it stays at the level of buzzwords, checklists, and slogans, we risk creating the appearance of inclusion without the substance.

What’s the neurodivergent version of pink washing?

Real inclusion demands more…

Human brains are gloriously varied. Imagine a world where they’re not!
The systems we’ve built for our wonderful brains… not so much.

Instead of embracing difference, we often try to excuse, justify, cure or eradicate.

That’s dangerous.

Without diversity, what would we become?

#Neurodiversity

October’s a great month for reflection.

Therapists, how does your own neurotype show up in the therapy room?
Whose communication styles feel easy to you and why?
What assumptions do you already have?

Neurodiversity work starts with awareness, not toolkits.

#Therapy #Neurodiversity #Psychotherapy

Neurodiversity is NOT “we’re all a little bit…”
Neurodiversity is NOT a new fad.
Neurodiversity is NOT one size fits all.

Neurodiversity IS the fact that brains come in many flavours.

Society was made for vanilla.
Some of us are pistachio, rum raisin or chilli chocolate.
#Neurodiversity #inclusion

EAIP Biennial Conference We invite you to the 12th Conference of the European Association for Integrative Psychotherapy, hosted by IAPTP, 10 -12 October '25

I’m delighted to be presenting at the EAIP Biennial Conference, talking about:

Anti-Oppressive Practice with Neurodivergent Clients: Beyond Affirmation to Accountability
(Opening the Door to Real Inclusion in Integrative Psychotherapy)

I can’t wait!

👉 Book here www.eventbrite.ie/e/eaip-bienn...

Late diagnosis isn’t rare. It’s just rarely talked about. It’s often seen as jumping on a bandwagon but some of us are finally getting the medical model to catch up with our lived experience.

#Neurodiversity #LateDiagnosis #ADHD #Autism #Psychotherapy

I’ve met people diagnosed in their 50s, 60s, even 70s. A lifetime of “coping” suddenly makes sense. The unmasking, unpacking and identity journey can feel mammoth.

There’s grief, relief, rage, understanding and often a spark of finally seeing themselves clearly. The paradox!

We talk a lot about neurodiversity in kids, many of us assume to know about autism or ADHD but through a child’s experience.

What about the generations who grew up without language for it? I was 40 when I was diagnosed AuDHD. I walked out of that appointment crying every emotion I could ever feel.

I think the below is one of the most succinct descriptions of what it is to be neuro divergent.

In times of increasing attacks from bad faith ideologues against anything that threatens any attempt at greater inclusivity & acceptance, concise, clear messaging is a must.

Still one of my favourite albums!

Neurodiversity isn’t a trend, a diagnosis, or a club.

It’s the reality that human brains are naturally varied, in how we are, sense, process, connect, learn & regulate.

The question isn’t if or why neurodiversity exists. It’s whether systems, politics, schools & workplaces are willing to catch up.

My favourite month, October!

A whole month of spookiness and neurodiversity chats: ADHD, dyslexia, masking, inclusion… basically, my natural habitat.

My AuDHD mind is going to be rambling away… so be warned!
#Neurodiversity #psychotherapist #ADHDAwarenessMonth #DyslexiaAwarenessMonth

This year, don’t just prepare for dark evenings.
Prepare for unpredictability.

Our mental health depends on more than daylight, it depends on rhythm, ritual & connection.

How will you ground yourself as the autumn rolls by with winter on the horizon?

We can’t stop the seasons from shifting but we can adapt.

Individually through light & ritual.
Collectively through community, climate action & compassion.

Seasonal Affective Disorder isn’t just personal when climate instability is considered, it’s cultural now.

Climate change doesn’t cause Seasonal Affective Disorder.

But it destabilises the environmental rhythms that we relied on for centuries.

The result? A longer, less predictable, sometimes more intense SAD season.

This along with Eco Anxiety can be quite challenging.

In Ireland, warmer autumns can often delay SAD onset but create a longer, murkier tail end in spring.

The calendar isn’t always the best predictor now. The weather is distorting our circadian rhythms, our moods, our wardrobe and routines.

Climate instability is rewriting the rules.