AuDHD Therapist for Women in North Carolina and South Carolina

By Kristen McClure, MSW, LCSW | Neurodivergent-affirming therapy for women

If you are autistic and have ADHD—or think both may fit—therapy can miss you when it treats each difficulty as separate or relies on strategies that require more masking. I provide online therapy for adult AuDHD women throughout North Carolina and South Carolina.

This page is about therapy rather than formal diagnostic assessment. If you want a fuller explanation of the overlap, start with AuDHD Women: When Autism and ADHD Exist Together.

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What AuDHD Therapy May Need to Account For

Autism and ADHD can affect attention, sensory processing, emotional regulation, communication, task initiation, transitions, relationships, and recovery. They can also create needs that pull in different directions. A person may seek novelty and rely heavily on predictability, want connection and need long periods alone afterward, or understand exactly what needs to be done while still being unable to begin.

No single list describes every AuDHD woman. Therapy needs to pay attention to your particular pattern, including:

• sensory overload, understimulation, and changing sensory needs
• masking, social monitoring, and the crash that may come later
• difficulty starting, stopping, shifting, or recovering between demands
• communication differences, conflict, boundaries, and relationship strain
• burnout, fluctuating capacity, sleep, pain, hormones, and physical health
• the effects of years spent misunderstood, misdiagnosed, or unsupported

What We Can Work On

Therapy may focus on one immediate problem or several connected patterns. Areas we might work on include:

• making sense of a late diagnosis or a changing neurodivergent identity
• understanding AuDHD burnout and what is continuing to drain your capacity
• noticing ADHD and autistic masking without treating unmasking as an obligation
• building self-accommodations for sensory, executive-function, communication, and recovery needs
• working with emotional intensity, rejection sensitivity, shame, and self-criticism
• setting boundaries and communicating needs in relationships or at work
• creating routines and supports that remain usable when capacity changes

My Neurodivergent-Affirming Approach

I do not use appearing more neurotypical as the measure of whether therapy is working. We look at the environment, relationships, expectations, sensory load, health, and available support—not only at what you need to change about yourself.

Therapy can be adjusted to reduce unnecessary processing and communication load. That may include direct language, written prompts, fewer questions at once, more time to answer, clearer session structure, or permission to move, look away, pause, or use sensory supports.

When it is useful, I use the Flourish Model to organize the work around self-awareness, self-compassion, self-accommodation, self-advocacy, and practical care. It is flexible rather than a fixed protocol.

You Do Not Need a Polished Explanation

You can contact me whether you have formal diagnoses, are waiting for an assessment, or are trying to understand why one diagnosis has never explained the whole picture. We can discuss whether my therapy practice fits what you need. Formal autism and ADHD assessment is a separate service from therapy.

Online Therapy Across North Carolina and South Carolina

I am licensed in North Carolina and South Carolina, and all sessions are held through secure telehealth. My practice is based in Charlotte, but you can attend from anywhere in either state. Learn more about online therapy in North Carolina or online therapy in South Carolina.

Fees and Insurance

Individual sessions are 55 minutes and cost $110. I accept most Blue Cross Blue Shield plans and can provide superbills for possible out-of-network reimbursement. Coverage varies by plan. Review the full fees and insurance information before scheduling.

Questions About AuDHD Therapy

Do I need formal autism and ADHD diagnoses?

You can ask whether therapy may be a fit even if you are still exploring, waiting for assessment, or have only one formal diagnosis. I can explain what my therapy practice offers. Therapy does not replace a formal neurodevelopmental evaluation.

Will therapy expect me to stop masking everywhere?

No. Masking can be protective, and being visibly neurodivergent is not equally safe in every relationship or workplace. We can look at where masking happens, what it costs, and where you have enough safety and choice to respond differently.

Can therapy help with AuDHD burnout?

Therapy can help identify patterns in demand, sensory load, masking, sleep, boundaries, and recovery, then develop accommodations and changes around them. Burnout-like symptoms can overlap with depression, sleep disorders, pain, medication effects, hormonal changes, and medical conditions, so other assessment may also be needed.

Is therapy available outside Charlotte?

Yes. Sessions are online for clients located anywhere in North Carolina or South Carolina at the time of the appointment.

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