The Wisdom of Difference: Affirmative Approaches to Neurodivergence

Learn how to better meet and support clients who live with neurodivergence in this one-day in-person workshop with Karen Rawden.

A rich, experiential introduction to working psychotherapeutically with neurodivergence, specifically, Autism, ADHD, Dyslexia and Autism with ADHD (AuDHD). Grounded in psychosynthesis principles and practice, including meditation, pair work and discussion, therapists will gain a valuable insight into what it can be like to live with neurodivergence, and learn how psychosynthesis can support practitioners and clients in working flexibly and respectfully with attention and processing differences. In addition, attendees will learn what it means to step aside from their own agendas to meet the client’s connection to their being, bear witness and affirm and the process of Self-realisation.

Workshop’s Purpose

Psychosynthesis offers a unique psychospiritual framework, with the potential to resonate with neurodivergent people seeking a holistic, expansive, and validating approach to therapy. Yet working effectively with neurodivergent clients is nuanced and requires skill. It calls for knowledge, flexibility and attunement, which can challenge even the most experienced practitioner, particularly as many clients arrive having encountered previous therapy that was painful or dismissive.

This one-day experiential workshop brings these strands together in an informative, reflective and practice-based introduction, which interweaves psychosynthesis theory, clinical insights and ethical considerations. By cultivating more informed practice, including deepening knowledge around neurodivergence, psychosynthesis practitioners can hone their therapeutic skill that further embodies the core values of psychosynthesis and aligns to the needs and will of the unique being they meet.

Whether or not we actively intend to work with neurodivergence, these elements will invariably find their way into our practice. As such, we are continually called to a place of humility and openness to meet this work, to review our own process, and our willingness to develop informed, and accessible approaches.

Developing our capability and proficiency is key. And while neurodivergence wasn’t named in Assagioli’s time, psychosynthesis provides a powerful and transformative approach for supporting the healing journey of living with an undiagnosed and misunderstood condition.

Along with this, holding deep respect for the client’s experience from the outset and honouring them as a co-creator in their therapeutic process, can further support the reparative experience for neurodivergent clients with or without a formal diagnosis.

As psychospiritual practitioners, we do well to question what it means to work ethically and respectfully with neurodivergence while holding a psychospiritual context. When we strive to learn what we can to better meet them where they are we truly open to the wisdom of difference and the possibility of profound and transformative experiences for both therapist and client.

Who is it for?

This workshop is designed for qualified psychosynthesis counsellors and psychotherapists who wish to deepen their knowledge and proficiency to meet their clients in a way that is respectful, integrative, and psychologically expansive. This is a broad topic, so this workshop will provide a solid foundation of working impactfully in this area, whether in short term or open-ended therapy.

Learning Outcomes:

The workshop will be held in person at The Psychosynthesis Trust and together we will explore:

• The collaborative journey: exploring how relational attunement supports every aspect of practice
• The evolving language of neurodivergence: understanding current concepts, research, and lived experience
• Understanding and working with the soul wound in neurodivergent experience: recognising the impact of past wounding on identity, self-worth, and relational patterns
• The reparative potential of Assagioli’s core concepts in neurodivergent-affirmative work: applying psychosynthesis theory to support growth, resilience, and self-realisation
• Supporting wholeness without erasing difference: ethical, clinical, and relational approaches to honouring uniqueness while fostering integration

What to expect?

A rich, experiential learning grounded in psychosynthesis principles and practice, including meditation, pair work and discussion.

Drawing on the work of Roberto Assagioli and the evolution of psychosynthesis over the decades, we will explore the multiplicity of the psyche, the role of subpersonalities, and the process of integration particularly relating to masking, identity, and the impacts of traumatic wounding. In addition, participants will consider some of the many co-occurring intricacies of neurodivergence, including diverse experiences of interoception (internal states), alexithymia (recognition of emotions) or aphantasia (non-visual inner experience) which call for us to be willing to be innovative and flexible in our own processes.

Therapists will gain a valuable insight into what living with neurodivergence can feel like, learn how psychosynthesis can support them to work flexibly with attention and processing differences, while fostering the development of the client’s internal unifying centre, consciousness, and will. In addition, they will explore how they can step aside from their own agendas to fully support the client’s unfolding relationship with their inner and outer world.

This is an opportunity to deepen your practice in a way that honours both diversity and the underlying unity of the unique being you sit with, supporting the starting point of identification toward a more spacious, integrative understanding of the person.

Our Approach

My work is grounded in psychosynthesis and informed by psychodynamic and humanistic perspectives. I work integratively, drawing on a range of approaches, including somatic and neuroscience-informed perspectives, with care, creativity and clinical discernment.

At the heart of my approach is the belief that therapy extends beyond resolving problems. It is a tender and courageous process of remembering who we are and reconnecting with a core sense of self, while holding the journey of survival with compassion and grace. This supports the development of a more integrated inner life and fosters more authentic and relational ways of being in the world.

Alongside a broad clinical practice, I have a particular interest in the intricacies of neurodivergent experience. I support those who identify as neurodivergent, those diagnosed in childhood or later in life, and those exploring whether diagnosis is right for them. Guided by a commitment to evolving practice, I have developed a multi-dimensional approach that brings together applied psychosynthesis with neurodivergence-informed models, offering ways of working that are both inclusive and clinically robust.

Ticket Price

At the Trust we appreciate that each person has their own unique situation, so we invite you to select the price point that feels like it represents a fair contribution for attending this event.

There are three options to choose from when purchasing tickets: £75; 100; £150. If you have any concerns around affordability, please contact Kajal at events@ptrust.org.uk.

If you book a ticket and cannot attend, you can claim a refund up to seven days before the event. Eventbrite fees are non-refundable.

About the Karen Rawden

Karen Rawden UKCP RegMBACP is an award winning psychosynthesis psychotherapist and Certified ADHD Clinical Provider in private practice in Northamptonshire. Trained at the Institute of Psychosynthesis in London, Karen’s qualifications include an MA in Psychosynthesis Psychology, Diplomas in Psychosynthesis Counselling and Psychotherapeutic Counselling and a Post Graduate Diploma in Psychosynthesis Psychotherapy. Karen’s 2020 MA thesis about working psychotherapeutically with ADHD clients received the Emma Stavrou award for a thesis that advances clinical insight and academic perspective into the theory of a psychospiritual psychology. As well as Karen’s work at The Soulful Practice, she facilitates groups, delivers programs to therapists on creating supportive and transformational therapeutic spaces for people who identify as neurodivergent, and tutors neurodivergent students. Karen writes for the counselling and psychotherapy community and has been featured in the UKCP New Psychotherapist Journal and the BACP Psychospiritual Journal, Thresholds. Karen founded the first Covid support group for those in the UK and Ireland at the start of the pandemic, which continues to serve as a welcoming place for thousands of people. She has held a position at the Institute of Psychosynthesis in London as a Studies Advisor, served on the board of the European Psychosynthesis Association (EpA) from its formation until the end of 2023, and is a member of ‘DiverseMinds’, the UKCP Special Interest Group for Neurodivergence Psychotherapy.

Karen can be reached at www.thesoulfulpractice.com.