23. S2, Ep11: Autistic adults and children in therapy: attitudes and approaches

Deborah Cullinan was diagnosed autistic about 10 years ago. She is a psychotherapist in her early 60s, working in a busy CAMHS clinic (that's Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) in Hertfordshire in the UK.

She started her career as an artist and art teacher, before retraining and qualifying in Psychoanalytic Child Therapy in 1992, a very different time in terms of mental health. She has gone on to create a role for herself as an autism specialist in CAMHS.

In our conversation we talk about:

➡ Her experience of psychoanalytic therapy

➡ Growing up in a dysfunctional (and possibly autistic) family

➡ How autistic people are accommodated in schools and workplaces

➡ How autism is viewed by psychotherapists and psychologists - and how attitudes have changed in the last 30 years

➡ Her hopes for autistic young people now and in the future.

Squarepeg is a podcast in which neurodivergent women, and trans and nonbinary people, explore navigating a neurotypical world and share their insights, challenges and successes.

I hope that these conversations will be inspiring and thought provoking, open you up to new ways of thinking about being neurodivergent, and help you feel more connected to a worldwide community of people with similar experiences.

I'm Amy Richards, and after being diagnosed autistic at the age of 37 I'm now on a mission to learn more about different perspectives and issues around being a neurodivergent adult in a world that feels like it doesn't quite fit.

EPISODE LINKS:

Deborah's website: www.autism-psychology.co.uk

Article on trauma and autism - transformingautism.org

Differentbrains.org

Books:

A Spectrum Girls Survival Guide - Siena Castellon

Autism in Heels - Jennifer O'Toole

If you'd like to connect or get in touch with Squarepeg, you can find me on:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/squarepeg.community/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/squarepegautism

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/squarepegautism/

Or on my website: https://squarepeg.community/

THANK YOU TO MY PATRONS!

A huge thank you to my amazing patrons, who support my work on the podcast:

Corinne Cariad
Katharine Richards
Lilli Simmons
Sarah Hardy

If you're enjoying the Squarepeg podcast and would like to help me carry on making new episodes, you can become a member of the Squarepeg community on Patreon from £3 per month: https://www.patreon.com/squarepegpodcast