In a world where therapy can too often feel inaccessible or invalidating for those living outside the cis-heteronormative or neuronormative mainstream, Violet Psychology stands out as a beacon of affirmation and understanding. Founded by a queer, neurodivergent therapist, the practice was born from a desire to create the kind of therapeutic space its founder once needed but couldn’t find: one that celebrates difference, honours lived experience, and refuses to pathologise identity.

In this conversation with GCN, the minds behind Violet Psychology share the story of how the practice came to life, what makes neurodiversity-affirming and LGBTQ+-affirming therapy so vital, and how their team is reimagining psychotherapy as a tool for both personal healing and systemic change.

What is Violet Psychology and who is it for?

Violet Psychology is a Counselling and Psychotherapy service specialising in supporting the LGBTQ+ and neurodivergent communities. We are trained in multicultural therapy and GSRD (gender, sexual, and relationship diversity), and we also welcome disabled clients, people in polyamorous relationships, kink communities, and sex workers. Our work is grounded in a feminist, trans-inclusive approach.

We offer both face-to-face therapy in Dublin and online therapy for individuals living in other parts of Ireland, Europe, and the UK. We work with individuals and couples, adults and teenagers. In addition, we run autistic burnout support therapy groups, AuDHD support groups, and autistic emotional regulation groups. We also provide neurodivergent exploration sessions for people questioning whether they might be autistic, ADHD, dyspraxic, or dyslexic (while aware that neurodivergence is a broad umbrella, these are our areas of expertise). We also offer training in neurodiversity for organisations and companies.

Why is it important for queer people to access LGBTQ+-affirming Therapy?

Increasingly, we hear from our clients, and we’ve experienced it ourselves, that their therapists don’t fully understand LGBTQ+ identities. There’s often stigma, assumptions that everyone is cisgender or heterosexual, or even when that isn’t the case, it can be exhausting to spend sessions educating the therapist instead of receiving therapy.

Part of living in a cis-heteronormative society is constantly experiencing discrimination or microaggressions (and sometimes not-so-micro ones!) in everyday life. Therapy can be incredibly powerful when it becomes a space where those experiences don’t happen, where clients are fully seen and affirmed. To be able to tell a therapist about those experiences and hear, “I understand, I’ve experienced something similar”, can be transformative. Therapist self-disclosure can be a powerful tool, creating connection, validation, and a sense that the client is not alone.

Some therapists are not LGBTQ+ themselves but have invested in training, reflected on their cis-hetero privileges, and genuinely strive to be affirming. And that’s wonderful. Yet so many still believe that being “person-centred” and treating everyone “the same” is enough. At Violet Psychology, we say it isn’t.

Navigating a cis-heteronormative system impacts queer people’s lives, and it’s our responsibility to understand that without clients having to educate us. Therapy should be a space of affirmation and understanding, not one where someone feels unseen, misunderstood, or gaslit.

How is neurodiversity-affirming psychotherapy different from regular psychotherapy?

Regular psychotherapy is often framed within a neuronormative framework. Neuronormativity is a system of power that assumes certain ways of thinking, perceiving, and behaving are “better” than others. Neurodivergent clients are often measured against these standards, which can make therapy feel invalidating or alienating. Even training in psychotherapy reinforces neuronormative expectations, and it is structured around neuronormativity. For example, we are taught SOLER techniques (Sitting squarely, Open posture, Leaning in, Eye contact, and Relaxed posture). For someone who is autistic, ADHD, or AuDHD, like me, these expectations can feel impossible or unnatural. I fidget in my sessions, I avoid eye contact or sit in unusual postures. Traditional feedback received during my training was something to correct.

But there’s a bigger issue: neuronormative therapy often interprets clients’ natural ways of being “resistant” or disengaged. For example, if a client avoids eye contact, certain interactions or challenges, it can be seen as oppositional, when in fact it’s often a response to the therapy itself being inaccessible within a neuronormative framework. Similarly, when autism is discussed through a neuronormative lens, it is frequently seen as something “to fix” or inherently negative, rather than a valid way of being.

At Violet Psychology, we say you are welcome as you are. We encourage unmasking, and we do the same ourselves. Neurodiversity-affirming therapy doesn’t try to fix or pathologise differences, it welcomes and celebrates different neurotypes as valid, enriching ways of being in the world. We create a space where neurodivergent traits are not shamed but understood and respected.

Personally, when I was a teenager in therapy, I was often shamed for being quiet, for preferring to write letters instead of speaking in sessions, and for other autistic traits. Neuroaffirming therapy ensures that you are never shamed for being who you are. We don’t want anyone else to go through my experience.

How did Violet Psychology come to be?

Violet Psychology began as a hyperfocus project, driven by my special interest and a sense of justice. My own experiences seeking therapy as a neurodivergent and queer person were challenging…feeling misunderstood, judged, and sometimes gaslit. I didn’t want anyone else to go through that. I started the project solo, and soon I was receiving overwhelming interest from clients who shared our values. I realised I couldn’t do it alone, and over time, amazing practitioners joined the team. Today, Violet Psychology is a collective space, where we share values, support each other, and provide a safe, affirming space. It’s a dream come true. A therapy community built on neurodiversity affirming and LGBTQ+ affirming values, care and inclusion.

What should people expect if they choose Violet Psychology?

Clients can expect a space where all parts of themselves are welcome. Our sessions are interactive, not silent or blank-slate. Therapy here is inherently political, addressing systemic injustices alongside personal experiences. We are competent, trained, neuroaffirming, and queer-affirming, and we offer diverse modalities including IFS, Art Therapy, Eco-Therapy, EMDR, Brainspotting, and more. We also have a low-cost service with trainee therapists, trained in LGBTQ+ and neurodivergent affirming approaches, so therapy is accessible even for those who cannot afford full-price sessions.

Is there anything you’d like to add?

One thing I’d like to highlight is that at Violet Psychology, therapy is political. We refuse approaches that place all responsibility on the individual, pathologise difference, or ignore the societal structures shaping our lives. We know that living in a patriarchal, colonial, cisheteronormative and neuronormative society affects us deeply.

We believe in a psychology that is deeply political. One that not only helps you understand yourself, but also supports activism, systemic change, and collective care. We want therapy that empowers you to see how personal struggles connect to broader injustices, and gives you tools to challenge the structures that enforce inequality.

You can find more information about Violet Physocolgy online here.