The Pincus Center has been working with people with autism since our inception in 2011, but we didn’t fully understand the prevalence of autism in our communities until much more recently. The Pincus Center has always worked primarily with kinky, ethically non-monogamous (ENM), and LGBTQIA+ clients. Some of our people have struggled with social connection starting very early in life or had specific interests that were captivating. We have come to realize that the incidence of neurospiciness in the communities we serve appears to be higher than that of the general public.
In 2022, when Tamara (the practice owner) realized her daughter was autistic, she began a journey of learning more about autism in order to help her child and to be better at working with autistic clients. Tamara took a class with the properties of light on how to view autism through a neurodiversity affirming lens. This class was instrumental in getting her started. Tamara began understanding her clients on a different level and seeing things that had before seemed like quirks as a pattern. In general, working with adults hasn’t been centered on an official diagnosis. The real focus is helping clients understand and accept themselves for their difference instead of in spite of it. Sometimes that has meant connecting clients with autism resources or recommending books to read to help understand their experience.
The Pincus Center also has a neurodivergent therapist on staff, Reese Hebrank, who is truly gifted in working with clients that other clinicians struggle to connect with. He works with neurodiverse couples to accommodate each other’s needs and with individuals on how to navigate the world as an autistic person.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has recently made statements to the effect that autism is an “epidemic” which is preventable. He has suggested that autistic people are incapable of many of the activities that contribute to society, such as paying taxes and writing poetry. Though some high needs autistic individuals may not be able to do some of these things, painting the autistic community with such a broad brush is harmful in that it serves to reinforce stigma and oppression. All autistic people are humans deserving of respect and privacy, even if they don’t conform to capitalistic productivity standards. RFK Jr. also threatened to create a registry of people with autism. The Pincus Center is highly suspicious of the intentions behind creating a federal autism registry and we will never knowingly share any protected health information with the current federal administration.
The Pincus Center strives to support neurodiverse clients in becoming comfortable with themselves and living in a way that embraces neurodiversity. We encourage people to unmask and be their true selves when that is safe. We help neurodiverse clients learn how to build coping skills when sensory sensitivities or living in a neurotypical world become too much. We do not see autism as a problem to solve. What we need to address is the stigma, social isolation, and feelings of depression or anxiety that can come along with being different. As a result, therapists at The Pincus Center will not diagnose someone with autism unless specifically requested. We stand by the autistic community and are committed to providing services that uplift those marginalized by society.
Interested in learning more about how neurodiversity and gender diversity overlap? Check out our class Autism, ADHD, and Gender: How Gender Expression & Neurodiversity Intersect.