Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi,
Prior to my autism diagnosis I had around 8 sessions with a CBT therapist which I think did more harm than good. It was as a result of this that I saw a psychiatrist which set me on my journey to a diagnosis.
Since then I have been seeing a therapist who uses a “people centred approach”, which seems to largely involve her asking me how I feel about things.
I’ve had around a dozen sessions now and while the first few were cathartic, I now feel I’m at an impasse. This approach isn’t helping me find any solutions or move my life forward and I’m starting to panic a little, feeling that there is no hope.
Have any of you had a more positive experience of therapy, and if so was it a specific kind of therapy?
I had CBT on two separate occasions and I didn't feel much different. I didn't feel I was properly processing anything I was talking about.
I've been having person-centred therapy since March with someone who's also autistic. I've felt like it's better for me in terms of processing things and understanding them, plus we get along so I look forward to speaking to them.
I guess it has been better to not rush into solutions and I much prefer the approach of not being given homework! But yeah, there's a lot that I don't think I would have understood if they hadn't asked questions etc.
Interesting, how did you find an autistic therapist?
I couldn’t even find one with expertise or experience of autism.
Wow, why didn’t I find this before!?
Thank you so much!
I was quite lucky because it was a recommendation from someone I knew at the time.
There's a directory for neurodivergent therapists: neurodivergenttherapists.com/