Neurodiverse Affirming Practice
At Glow Speech Pathology Services, we exclusively use neurodiverse affirming practices within intervention. Unfortunately, the assessment process is based on the medical model of disability and is normally used to assess and “grade severity of deficits”. Therefore, we take great care in ensuring that the administration of theses assessments are completed in as neurodiverse affirming way as possible and only complete standardised assessments if required/requested for funding or diagnostic purposes. We believe that the diagnosis process should not be a traumatic experience and would like to be a part of making this an empowering experience.
As a neurodivergent person working within neurodiverse affirming practices is more ethical in addition to being best evidenced-based practice. More traditional types of therapy have been linked to compliance-based therapy which has been shown as being detrimental to the mental health and wellbeing of neurodivergent individuals. Neurodivergent adults have reported that working within compliance-based practices was harmful as this places neurotypical expectations on neurodivergent people. We listen to the neurodivergent wider communities and have shifted your practice accordingly. We may not always get it right, this is an ever-changing area, but we are watching, listening, learning and adjusting our practice as required. We are open to questions and welcome others providing their opinions from their lived experiences.
Neurodiverse affirming practice acknowledges and celebrates all neurotypes. Within intervention we work within the social model of disability not the medical model of disability. The medical model of disability sees deficits and attempts to make people “more neurotypical” in their presentation. We at Glow Speech Pathology and Services do not believe that neurotypical skills, communication styles and/or presentations are superior to neurodivergent skills, communication styles and/or presentations. We view all neurodivergent and neurotypical skills, communication styles and presentations as valid.
Using neurodiverse affirming practices have been reported to have positive effects on individual’s self-identity, has increased engagement in therapy and has resulted in an increase in developing meaningful goals for participants.
