Neurodivergent-Affirming Therapy in New York & New Jersey
Many neurodivergent people come to therapy after years of trying to become someone else.
Perhaps you've spent years masking, pushing through burnout, or wondering why everyday life feels harder than it seems to for others. You may have been told you're "too much," "too sensitive," or "not trying hard enough."
Therapy doesn't have to begin from the assumption that something is wrong with you.
My work is grounded in the neurodiversity paradigm, which understands neurological differences as part of the natural diversity of human experience. While burnout, trauma, anxiety, shame, and executive functioning challenges are real, they often make more sense when understood in context rather than as evidence that you are broken.
My Approach
Therapy with Merle Maynard, LMFT, is collaborative, trauma-informed, and grounded in the neurodiversity paradigm. Rather than treating neurological differences as deficits to correct, the work focuses on understanding your nervous system, reducing shame, and building a life that fits who you actually are — not who others expected you to be.
I see diagnosis as one way of making sense of experience—not the whole story.
Rather than trying to "fix" who you are, therapy can be a space to understand your nervous system, honor your needs, and create a life that works for you.
Together, we'll explore your experiences with curiosity instead of judgment. Rather than asking how to become more neurotypical, we'll ask:
What environments help you thrive?
What adaptations genuinely support you?
How has masking shaped your life and relationships?
What would it look like to build a life that fits who you are?
My approach is collaborative, trauma-informed, and neurodivergent affirming.
Therapy may be a good fit if you're:
ADHD, Autistic, AuDHD, or otherwise neurodivergent.
Exploring whether you may be neurodivergent.
Recovering from burnout.
Navigating sensory or executive functioning differences.
Processing a late diagnosis or changing understanding of yourself.
Working through trauma, shame, or chronic self-criticism.
You do not need a formal diagnosis to work with me.
How it works
Virtual therapy sessions available to adults throughout New York and New Jersey. Out-of-network; superbills provided for insurance reimbursement.