Is your Highly Sensitive, Gifted, Neurodivergent Teen/Young Adult with ADHD and Learning Differences Struggling Despite Being Smart and Capable?
If so, they may benefit from online counseling with Me, a specialist in Florida for highly sensitive, intuitive, empathic, neurodivergent folx!
Hey Parents, welcome.
If you are here it is probably because you are worried about your kiddo and maybe even questioning where did I go wrong?
You just want your kiddo to have a better life and you want a better relationship with them!
I get it. Raising kids who are neurodivergent is HARD! and REWARDING…and HARD!
Who is this stranger living in my home?
Will we ever have a peaceful loving relationship again?
Will they ever be able to take care of themselves?
Why am I having to repeat myself AGAIN?
Will they make it in the real world?
Who is this demon child? and where did my sweet baby go?
How come they are struggling so much, what can I do to help them?
What can I do to make sure we have a better relationship?
Why does normal parenting with consequences and rewards not work with them?
Some of the questions we ask ourselves when we see our kids struggling are things like:
Whether you have known forever that your child is neurodivergent, or just learning, what if instead of feeling hopeless, worried and overwhelmed, you could feel excited for your child’s future?
You could have a peaceful relationship?
You could trust your child got their their “stuff” done, without feeling like a nag?
Enjoy dinners as a family again?
What if your teen started to tell you they feel good about themselves again?
Having your child in therapy with me can help you understand what is going on for them…and like you are the best advocate your child could have! AND help your teen learn how to manage their unique brain!
If all this feels like I have been a fly on the wall in your house, keep reading. Let’s see if the type of therapy I do, will work for your teen/young adult.
Does your teen:
Struggle with academics, despite being intelligent?
Come home tired and overwhelmed after a day at school?
Complain social interactions wear them out?
Have difficulty relating to their peers, because kids their age just talk about “dumb stuff”?
Seem super aware of the world, wise beyond their years, and can't remember where they left their cell phone?
Understand complex concepts yet struggle with three-step requests?
Lean towards being an introverted perfectionist?
Have an extremely messy room, and know where everything is?
Frequently have bruises they have NO IDEA of where they came from?
If this sounds like your young adult, I can help.
Hi, I’m Laura
I help Neurodivergent teens/young adults and their parents understand how their brains work differently than neurotypicals. Then together we learn and implement strategies to help them manage their everyday lives. Through understanding their unique perception of the world, I help young adults learn to embrace their strengths and let go of perceived weaknesses. Neurodivergent people think differently, and if we try to do things the way that neurotypicals do, we often struggle. Neurodivergent people are often more creative and great problem solvers. I help teens and their families harness this creativity so that they can be more efficient and find joy in their lives. On the other side of therapy, my teens report that they understand how to get things done, feel good about themselves and like they are ready to take on the world.
Not sure if therapy is the right fit for your kiddo?
You have tried so many things already, and there are so many issues, that you don’t know where to start. Let me help.
Neurodivergent teens and young adults, are sometimes called multi-exceptional kids if they are considered “gifted” and have a second (or third or fourth) diversity such as dyslexia, ADHD, High Sensitivity, other learning differences, or being Autistic. As a parent, (and the young adult experiencing the struggles), it is hard to KNOW which issue is causing the struggle! Is it the Giftedness? Is it the ADHD? The dyslexia? Is my child just being lazy?
I GET IT!
It is hard to know if therapy can help. The reality is that therapy will not address all the things. However, working with me, a therapist who has a background in education and who is neurodivergent herself, you are getting someone who has a first person experience and has helped thousands of young adults understand their overlapping exceptionalities.
Imagine your teen turning their exceptionalities into their own Unique Problem Solving Powerhouse!
When I work with kids, we explore their strengths, their unique perceptions and the way they LIKE to do things. Through this strengths-based approach, we work together to build self-esteem, and tap into those things that really WORK for them. We then come up with strategies that they can use in their everyday lives.
“I am not sure if it is my young adult’s learning issues causing the problems we are having.”
Many times, multi exceptional kids struggle with:
maintaining focus for long periods of time
organization, spatial relations
being able to have water cooler talk.
A messy bedroom
Time management
And feelings of not being good enough
Add in being an introverted perfectionist, and you have a recipe for a young person who feels misunderstood, overwhelmed, and who is struggling in both academics and peer relationships.
Multi-exceptional kids can frequently experience things such as anxiety, depression, and overwhelm due to their unique brain structure, the combination of being bright, sensitive, and having a divergent thinking style can make it hard for neurodivergent teenagers to fit in with their peer groups.
Imagine if your child, through therapy with me, would understand how their neurodivergence was impacting all these areas of their life and you could give up the battles, the nagging and the lectures. What would life be like if your young adult learned lean into tools so that you didn’t have to be their brain? Imagine your teen beginning to take initiative and you having peace of mind!
I get it…the messy room battles, the did you get your work done nagging, the get off the computer and hang out with real people lecture!
For Neurodivergent teens, therapy needs to go beyond what traditional therapy focuses on.
Lots of traditional therapists only target one area. Therapy with multi-exceptional teens needs to go beyond just one area. It needs to target the different facets of divergence.
Many neurodivergent teens don’t see their heightened awareness of the world and their ability to think about things from so many angles as a gift that can result in unique insights and creative problem-solving skills. Instead, as they go through normal teenage development, where they explore becoming their own person and recognize that they think differently than their peers. They begin to think of their neurodivergence as a curse. They feel like misfits. This can sometimes lead to mental health issues, such as anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem They may compare themselves to peers and feel like they come up “short.” The intense emotions they experience, coupled with the pressure to conform, also known as masking, to outside expectations and societal norms can lead to feelings of overwhelm and isolation.
It is not that these teens cannot relate to their peers, actually, it is the opposite, they can OVER relate. In fact, they may have a hard time specifically because they are so in tune with how others feel, that they have difficulty expressing their own needs, wants, and desires. They worry they will hurt the other person. They worry that they will disappoint the adults in their life, they worry about the future.
So you may be thinking… how does therapy deal with all of these things?
Well in therapy with me, your child:
Learns Empowerment Through Understanding
Receives Validation and Acceptance
Develops Skill-Building for Self-Expression
Cultivates Resilience
Embraces Individuality
Explores Positive Future Perspectives
Even if they have done therapy with someone before. With me, they are getting someone who is not only brings book understanding, but who has lived experience as a neurodivergent herself, has worked with thousands of kids over a 20 year career, and who is ALSO the parent of neurodivergent kiddos! I REALLY DO GET IT from all angles!
Imagine your child being excited about their potential, and their future. Imagine you as their parent being able to breathe a sigh of relief, as you know your young adult is going from failure to launch to reaching for the stars! Ready to get started? Schedule your free consult today!
Can Online/Virtual Therapy help my Child?
I get your hesistancy! Actually, virtual therapy may work better than in-person therapy. Here is why:
Familiar Environment: Virtual therapy takes place in your child's own environment, using tools they are already comfortable with. This familiarity helps them feel more relaxed and open during sessions, making it easier for them to express themselves authentically.
Tailored Support: I provide personalized support tailored to your child's unique needs, leveraging their understanding of online tools and environments. By incorporating familiar tools into therapy sessions, I help create a more engaging and effective experience.
Promoting Self-Acceptance: Through virtual therapy, your child can explore and embrace their neurodivergence, fostering self-acceptance and self-esteem. Discussions about their strengths and abilities, facilitated within their familiar online environment, help them develop a positive self-image.
Empowerment and Advocacy: Virtual therapy empowers your child to advocate for themselves and understand their differences compared to their peers. By gaining insights into their actions and those of others, they can navigate social interactions more effectively
Academic Success: Virtual therapy helps neurodivergent teens better structure their lives and academically succeed by working with their unique thinking style. By embracing their way of thinking and implementing strategies learned in therapy, they can excel academically, benefiting from the familiarity of online tools.
What I hear from my kids and their families is that they have improved peer and family relationships. By understanding themselves better and learning to communicate their needs, they can foster healthier relationships both at home and with their peers.
Of course, every child’s needs are different, and I want to help you find the right fit.
Schedule your free consult, to see if what I do is a good match for your neurodivergent young adult!
