For Parents
Maybe she has always been described as too sensitive, too intense or too much. Maybe she works incredibly hard but still seems to struggle in ways that do not quite make sense. Maybe she holds it together at school and falls apart completely at home. Maybe she has been told she cannot have ADHD or autism because she is doing well academically, or because she does not present the way clinicians expect.
If you have always felt like something was being missed, you are probably right.
ADHD and autism present very differently in girls and young women than they do in the population on which most diagnostic criteria were historically based. Internalised presentations, masking and the enormous effort many neurodivergent girls put into appearing typical can mean that the signs go unrecognised for years, sometimes decades.
Our practice understands this. Support is available now with no waitlist, and no referral is required for private fee appointments.
For Girls and Young Women Aged 12 to 25
Maybe you have always felt like you were running a different operating system to everyone around you. Maybe you have spent years working out the rules that other people seem to know instinctively, exhausting yourself to keep up and then collapsing when you get home. Maybe you have recently started to wonder whether there is a name for the way your brain works, and whether understanding it might finally explain some things.
Maybe you have had a diagnosis for years but never had support that truly understood your experience as a neurodivergent young woman, not just a neurodivergent person in general.
You deserve support that starts from the understanding that your brain is not broken. It works differently, and it deserves care that reflects that.
Private fee sessions are available directly with no referral and no GP visit required. Send an email to info@nvpsychology.com.au to get started.
ADHD in Girls and Young Women
ADHD in girls and young women is frequently missed, misdiagnosed or dismissed. The hyperactive presentation most people associate with ADHD is less common in girls, who more often present with inattentive or combined type ADHD characterised by internalised symptoms that are easier to overlook.
Common experiences of ADHD in girls and young women include:
- Difficulty sustaining attention, particularly for tasks that are not intrinsically interesting
- Hyperfocus on areas of genuine interest, sometimes to the exclusion of everything else
- Chronic disorganisation, difficulty with time management and losing track of things
- Emotional dysregulation, including intense reactions that feel disproportionate and difficult to manage
- Rejection sensitive dysphoria, an intense emotional response to perceived criticism or rejection
- Chronic overwhelm and difficulty knowing where to start
- A persistent sense of underperforming relative to intelligence and effort
- Masking and people-pleasing as strategies for managing social expectations
- Fatigue from the ongoing effort of compensating for executive functioning difficulties
- Anxiety, depression and low self-esteem as common co-occurring experiences
Autism in Girls and Young Women
Autism in girls and young women is one of the most consistently underidentified presentations in clinical practice. Many autistic girls develop sophisticated social masking strategies from a young age, learning to imitate the social behaviour of those around them in order to fit in. This can make the signs of autism genuinely difficult to identify, even for experienced clinicians.
Common experiences of autism in girls and young women include:
- Intense, focused interests that bring deep joy and meaningful connection
- Sensory sensitivities to sound, light, texture, smell or physical sensation
- Difficulty with transitions and unexpected changes to routine
- Exhaustion from the ongoing effort of masking and navigating social environments
- Difficulty understanding or expressing emotions, or intense emotional experiences that feel hard to regulate
- A strong sense of justice and fairness, with significant distress when these are violated
- Preferring deep one-to-one connections over large social groups
- Feeling deeply different without always being able to articulate why
- Autistic burnout, a state of physical, emotional and cognitive exhaustion from sustained masking and overextension
- Late identification or diagnosis, often in adolescence or early adulthood following years of feeling like something was just not right
Co-Occurring Conditions in Neurodivergent Girls and Young Women
Neurodivergent presentations rarely exist in isolation. For many girls and young women, ADHD and autism co-occur with a range of other conditions that are frequently missed or treated separately, when understanding how they interact provides a much more complete picture.
Our practice is informed by an understanding of how these conditions overlap and interact, and approaches each young person as a whole person rather than a set of individual diagnoses.
Commonly co-occurring conditions include:
PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder)
Research indicates that PMDD occurs at significantly higher rates in neurodivergent women than in the general population. Hormonal fluctuations across the menstrual cycle can intensify ADHD and autism symptoms, including emotional dysregulation, sensory sensitivity and executive functioning difficulties. Dopamine, which plays a central role in ADHD, is directly influenced by oestrogen levels, meaning that the hormonal shifts of the luteal phase can significantly amplify ADHD-related symptoms. Recognising this connection is an important part of understanding the full picture of a young woman's experience.
Anxiety
Anxiety is one of the most common co-occurring conditions in neurodivergent girls and young women, and is frequently the presenting concern that brings them to support before a neurodivergent profile is identified. Understanding whether anxiety is a standalone condition or a response to an unidentified or unsupported neurodivergent profile changes the therapeutic approach significantly.
Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD)
RSD is an intense emotional response to perceived or actual rejection, criticism or failure that is particularly common in people with ADHD. It can manifest as sudden and overwhelming emotional pain, people-pleasing, avoidance of situations where failure is possible, or intense shame following perceived mistakes. It is not a separate diagnosis but is an important part of understanding the ADHD experience in girls and young women.
Sensory Processing Differences
Many neurodivergent girls and young women experience significant sensory sensitivities that affect daily functioning, including responses to noise, light, texture, smell and physical sensation. These sensitivities can contribute to anxiety, emotional dysregulation, avoidance and difficulties in school and social environments.
Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) and Hypermobility
Research indicates that autism and ADHD are more commonly found in people with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) than in the general population. The relationship between connective tissue differences, nervous system regulation and neurodivergence is an emerging area of understanding, and one that is relevant for many young women who carry multiple diagnoses across these areas.
Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS)
MCAS, a condition involving immune system dysregulation and heightened responses to environmental triggers, is more commonly reported in people with EDS and neurodivergent profiles. Symptoms can include fatigue, brain fog, heightened sensory reactivity and emotional dysregulation. Understanding this overlap can help contextualise experiences that might otherwise be difficult to explain.
Iron Deficiency and Dopamine
Iron plays an important role in dopamine synthesis, and iron deficiency, which is common in menstruating young women, can significantly worsen ADHD symptoms including concentration difficulties, emotional dysregulation and fatigue. This is not a medical intervention but an area of awareness that can be relevant when understanding why symptoms may fluctuate or worsen at particular times.
While our practice is a psychology practice and does not provide medical diagnosis or treatment for these physical conditions, an informed understanding of how they interact with mental health and neurodivergent presentations means that support is genuinely tailored to the whole person, not just the psychological symptoms in isolation.
Masking and Burnout
Masking, the process of suppressing or camouflaging neurodivergent traits in order to fit into neurotypical environments, is one of the most significant and least understood experiences of neurodivergent girls and young women.
For many, masking begins in childhood and becomes so automatic that it is invisible, even to themselves. It can look like being polite, agreeable and socially capable on the outside while feeling completely dysregulated, exhausted and disconnected on the inside.
Over time, sustained masking can lead to autistic burnout, a state of physical, cognitive and emotional exhaustion that goes beyond ordinary tiredness. Burnout can present as a sudden loss of previously held skills, withdrawal from social life, an inability to manage daily tasks, intense sensory sensitivity and a deep sense of not knowing who you are anymore.
Burnout is not a failure. It is the result of a nervous system that has been working far too hard for far too long. Recovery is possible, and support that genuinely understands the experience of masking and burnout makes a meaningful difference to that process.
Late Identification and Identity
Many girls and young women are not identified as neurodivergent until adolescence or early adulthood, sometimes following years of struggling without understanding why. A late identification can bring enormous relief alongside a complex process of re-evaluating past experiences through a new lens.
Questions that often arise following a late identification include:
- Who am I without the mask I have been wearing?
- How do I grieve the years I spent struggling without support?
- How do I understand my past relationships, academic experiences and mental health through this new understanding?
- How do I tell others, and how do I navigate their responses?
- What does a life that works for my brain actually look like?
These are not simple questions, and they deserve genuine, thoughtful support. Therapy following a late identification is not about fixing anything. It is about understanding yourself more fully and building a life that fits who you actually are.
What to Expect
The first session is focused on understanding each young person's specific experience, her history and what she is hoping to get from support. There is no pressure to present in a particular way or to mask. Sessions are adapted to suit different communication styles and sensory needs wherever possible.
From there, sessions draw on evidence-based approaches including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT), all of which are adapted for neurodivergent presentations rather than applied from a neurotypical framework.
ACT supports the development of a clear sense of values and identity that is grounded in who each young person actually is, rather than who she has learned to perform. CBT helps identify and work with the thought patterns and behavioural responses that are causing difficulty, adapted to account for the specific cognitive style of ADHD and autism. DBT builds practical skills for emotional regulation, distress tolerance and interpersonal effectiveness, areas that are frequently challenging for neurodivergent young people.
Where anxiety, trauma or other co-occurring presentations are part of the picture, EMDR may also be incorporated. Where PMDD or other cyclical experiences are affecting mental health, this is acknowledged and accounted for within the therapeutic approach.
Every approach is individually tailored. Sessions are available weekly, fortnightly or monthly, with after-school and evening times available to fit around school, university and work commitments. All sessions are delivered via secure telehealth video call across all of Australia.
Assessments and Supporting Documentation
Psychological assessments and supporting documentation are available for neurodivergent girls and young women, including:
- Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) assessments
- Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) assessments
- Combined ASD and ADHD assessments
- School accommodation letters and flexible education plans
- NDIS access request reports and supporting documentation
- University disability support and academic accommodation documentation
Assessment availability and timeframes are discussed directly upon enquiry. Please reach out early if there is an upcoming deadline for school, university or NDIS purposes.
This is a private fee service.
Accessing support
Private Fee Sessions
Private fee sessions are available at $260 per session with no referral required and no annual session limits. The most direct way to get started.
Medicare Rebates
Available with a Mental Health Care Plan from your GP, providing up to 10 rebated sessions per calendar year.
Bulk Billing
Available for eligible clients. Please reach out to discuss eligibility.
NDIS Funding
Accepted for self-managed and plan-managed participants under Improved Daily Living. Direct liaison with plan managers and support coordinators is available to make the process as easy as possible.
For a full breakdown of all funding options, visit our Fees and Funding page.
Ready to get started?
Support for neurodivergent girls and young women is available now, with no waitlist. Whether you are ready to book or simply have a question, send an email to info@nvpsychology.com.au — we are always more than happy to help.