As someone who’s Highly Sensitive and on the AuDHD spectrum, I also have a particularly soft spot for similarly Neurodiverse folks.

I’ve felt this deep, recurring sense of “not belonging” since as far back as I can remember.

I remember feeling at a young age that I didn’t belong in the family I was born into.

And even when I finally found regular people I actually liked to be around and work I enjoyed, sooner or later this distinct sense of my own weird-ness and otherness would inevitably show up.

I’ve recently learned that’s one of the hallmarks of being neurodiverse and Highly Sensitive. I’ve spent my life simultaneously being proud of my otherness yet also subconsciously rejecting and feeling a need to hide the parts of myself that couldn’t understand and didn’t seem to fit into this often confusing world.

This dichotomy of self, of thinking, of interests, has been present throughout my life and I’ve often struggled with it, frequently finding myself in the place of grappling with that immensely frustrating idea that I had to “choose” one thing to focus on, settle on one thing.

I’m so grateful that I’ve come to a place where I finally recognise that all of it is a part of me, and I don’t have to choose to orphan, reject, or put any of it on hold if I don’t want to. I don’t have to cut parts of myself off to fit into a small frame that I was never meant to fit into.

I’m allowed to write my own story, choose my own way to be, and find a lifestyle, and way of being that actually fuels and fulfills my singularly weird soul even if it goes against all the “expert” advice out there.

And I now see that this internal knowingness, the wisdom I’ve accessed and gained throughout my life, my natural aptitude for shadow work, and all the experiences I’ve lived through, and the deep sense of self-compassion I’ve come to learn embrace, are intrinsically part of my mission and what allows me to provide a safe space to all of you beautiful souls on a similar journey.