Stop Masking, Embrace your Authentic Self!

I help autistics struggling with the energy loss and pressure of masking live more fully and authentically without berating themselves to be something they are not.   

My clients struggle as you do. Despite being intelligent, self-reflective, and honest, life is hard.

When they first come in, they are wondering ‘what is wrong with me’.  They are trying harder than other people around them, and yet feel like they aren’t moving forward. 

They long for community, and yet are exhausted by social interaction.  No matter how carefully they communicate it seems that others misunderstand them. 

They are spending so much energy on trying to fit in or act ‘normal’ that they are exhausted at the end of the day (or maybe the beginning of it).  This leaves them with little time or energy for the things that are important to them. 

Their masking and loss of identity gets in the way of the life they want in so many ways. They aren’t able to be present they want to be. They feel like they’re failing at keeping up with everything they believe they are supposed to be doing. And their confidence in themselves is tanking.

Before they came to see me, they feared that they didn’t even know the person behind the mask. They worried that their needs couldn’t be accommodated. And they were pretty certain that they would always feel exhausted.  The effort to mask is preventing them from recognizing their own feelings and priorities.

Like my clients, you deserve to find people who understand you, and a community who accepts you as you are.

Having more energy for the things that are important to you is not out of your reach.

If you want to feel confident living as your autistic self.  I’d love to help you

get there.

Book a 15 minute consult now. You don’t have to suffer. I can help

Ananda Leininger Counseling

I am a licensed mental health counselor, providing individual counseling services for neurodivergent adults and teens in Washington state.

More about me here.