This is an example of a training I did for King County (Washington) Collaborative Law on the topic of how neurodiversity changes the framework of dissolutions. It is very important that legal professionals understand the implications of neurodiversity in their clients. Please let me know if you'd like a similar presentation for your group. 

Other professional organizations can also benefit from understanding neurodiversity as it pertains to their field of expertise.

Neurodiversity And Divorce - Sarah Swenson, LMHC

Join King County Collaborate Law for the first of a series of lunchtime CLEs addressing the many issues that collaborative professionals experience in our work with clients.  

We are excited to start this year’s programs with a training by Sarah Swenson, LMHC and hosted by our own Timothy Peterson on Neurodiversity and Divorce: Hidden Relationship Dynamics in Complicated Dissolutions.  

Learn how to recognize and accommodate neurodiversity in our work.

Hidden Relationship Dynamics in Complicated Dissolutions: 

how to recognize and accommodate neurodiversity

Globally, 97% of us are what we call neurotypical. The other 3% includes autism, dyslexia, and ADHD. The neurodiverse relationship (in which one partner is autistic) has unique characteristics which show up most strongly during times of conflict. Sometimes, individuals with a formal or informal diagnosis of autism will disclose autism to professionals; other times, they won’t. If you are told, it is an important element to understand and accommodate. If not, it is always something to consider as a possibility when couples seem particularly challenging to you.

Since everyone is likely to interpret others’ behavior as meaning what it would mean if they did it, we are all capable of making errors of attribution, and behavior can be particularly misleading in the neurodiverse relationship. Understanding this can help you support your clients.

In this presentation, Sarah Swenson, LMHC will discuss the implications of neurodiversity and address some of the myths surrounding autism. She will also offer practical insights and strategies for communicating effectively with your neurodiverse clients.

While working with couples as a psychotherapist in South Lake Union, Sarah encountered neurodiversity so often that she narrowed the scope of her practice to concentrate on working solely with this population as a licensed therapist in Washington and as a coach with clients around the world.