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Digital Seminar

Neurodiversity in Women: Therapeutic Strategies for Empowering Women with Autism or ADHD


Speaker:
Jennifer Gerlach, LCSW
Duration:
4 Hours 01 Minutes
Language:
Presented in EN, subtitles in EN and FR, handouts in EN and FR
Copyright:
Apr 15, 2025
Product Code:
POS150110
Media Type:
Digital Seminar - Also available: Live Webinar


Description

Autism and ADHD look different in pink.

Traditional views of autism and ADHD often miss the mark when it comes to women. Research shows that neurodivergence manifests differently in women, leading to widespread misdiagnoses and delayed support.

The impacts can be profound, with many women facing feelings of inadequacy, the strain of masking, disordered eating, cycles of unhealthy relationships, and more. These women are seeking help more now than ever before.

But providing the therapy neurodivergent women need requires a specialised skillset rather than reliance on outdated tools based on male norms.

In this groundbreaking course, join psychotherapist and neurodiversity specialist Jennifer Gerlach, who brings both professional expertise and personal insight as an autistic woman. You’ll gain critical tools to support neurodivergent women on their journey to self-understanding and empowerment, including:

  • Insightful diagnostic and intervention techniques rooted in the latest research on female neurodiversity
  • Targeted therapeutic approaches from ACT and CFT to cultivate self-compassion in autistic women
  • Powerful strategies for unmasking and fostering authenticity in relationships, workplaces, school settings, and beyond

Purchase now and become the clinician these women need!

 

Credit

Program Information

Planning Committee Disclosure - No relevant relationships

All members of the PESI, Inc. planning committee have provided disclosures of financial relationships with ineligible organizations and any relevant non-financial relationships prior to planning content for this activity. None of the committee members had relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies or other potentially biasing relationships to disclose to learners.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.



Canada Credit - *

NOTE: Tuition includes one free CE Certificate (participant will be able to print the certificate of completion after passing the online post-test (80% passing score) and completing the evaluation). Instructional methods will include PowerPoint, didactic lecture, and others.

Continuing Education Information:  Listed below are the continuing education credit(s) currently available for this non-interactive self-study package. Program content is reviewed periodically per accrediting board rules for currency and appropriateness for credit. Credit approvals are subject to change. Please note, your licensing board dictates whether self-study is an acceptable form of continuing education, as well as which credit types are acceptable for continuing education hours. Please refer to your licensing board's rules and regulations. If your profession is not listed, please contact your licensing board to determine your continuing education requirements and check for reciprocal approval. 
For other credit inquiries not specified below, please contact info@pesi.com or 800-844-8260 before purchase.

Materials that are included in this course may include interventions and modalities that are beyond the authorized practice of your profession.  As a licensed professional, you are responsible for reviewing the scope of practice, including activities that are defined in law as beyond the boundaries of practice in accordance with and in compliance with your profession's standards.  

For Planning Committee disclosures, please see the statement above.  For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.

 


Canada Credit - ---

Earn up to 4.0 CE hours. Please see below, for more details, as credit amounts vary by jurisdiction and profession. 


Canada Credit - Canadian Counsellors and Psychotherapists

PESI, Inc. is approved by the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy Association to offer continuing education for counsellors and psychotherapists. PESI, Inc. maintains responsibility for the program. This self-study activity is approved for 4.0 credit hours.


Canada Credit - Social Workers - National ASWB ACE

PESI, Inc., #1062, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: January 27, 2023 - January 27, 2026. Social workers completing this course receive 4.0 Clinical continuing education credits.

 

Course Level: Intermediate Format: Recorded asynchronous distance. Full attendance is required; no partial credits will be offered for partial attendance.

 

Canadian Social Workers: Canadian provinces may accept activities approved by the ASWB for ongoing professional development.


Canada Credit - Canadian Psychologists

PESI, Inc. is approved by the Canadian Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. PESI, Inc. maintains responsibility for the program. This program is approved for 4.0 self-study continuing education hours. Full credit statement at: www.pesi.com/cpa-statement


Canada Credit - Other Professions

This self-study activity qualifies for 4.0 continuing education clock hours as required by many national and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Save your activity advertisement and certificate of completion, and contact your own board or organization for specific requirements.


US National Boards - Addiction Counselors - NAADAC

This self-study course has been approved by PESI, Inc., as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits. NAADAC Provider #77553. PESI, Inc. is responsible for all aspects of their programming.

This self-study course offers 4.0 continuing education contact hours in the Counseling Services skill group. Full attendance is required; no partial credit will be awarded for partial attendance.


US National Boards - Nurses, Nurse Practitioners, and Clinical Nurse Specialists – ANCC

PESI, Inc. is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. Nurses completing these self-study materials will earn 4.0 contact hours. Expires: 01/13/2028.



Handouts

Speaker

Jennifer Gerlach, LCSW's Profile

Jennifer Gerlach, LCSW Related seminars and products


Jennifer Gerlach, LCSW, is a psychotherapist in private practice in southern Illinois specializing in the crossroads of mental health and neurodiversity. Jennifer is the author of The Psychosis and Mental Health Recovery Workbook: Tools for Young Adults from ACT, DBT and Recovery-Oriented CBT and writes a blog for Psychology Today entitled ‘Beyond Mental Health: Defying Stereotypes and False Limitations.’

An advocate for neurodiversity-affirming care, Jennifer has provided training to hundreds of clinicians nationwide on topics of neurodivergent youth, and empowering young adults living with mental illness, psychosis, and mental health recovery. She is an autistic person herself who offers a unique perspective infused with lived experience.

 

Speaker Disclosures:

Financial: Jennifer Gerlach maintains a private practice and receives royalties as a published author. She receives a speaking honorarium from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Jennifer Gerlach has no relevant non-financial relationships.

 

 


Additional Info

Program Information

Access for Self-Study (Non-Interactive)

Access never expires for this product.

For a more detailed outline that includes times or durations of time, if needed, please contact cepesi@pesi.com


Questions?

Visit our FAQ page at https://www.pesicanada.ca/faq or contact us at https://www.pesicanada.ca/contact-us.


Objectives

  1. Identify gender-specific diagnostic tools to accurately assess autism and ADHD in women.
  2. Utilise therapeutic approaches from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) to foster self-compassion and resilience in neurodivergent women.
  3. Determine intervention strategies that support neurodivergent women in unmasking to embrace their authentic selves across personal and professional environments.
  4. Choose trauma-informed interventions to build self-worth in neurodivergent women.

Outline

Neurodiversity: An Overview
  • Neurodiversity introduction
  • Autism and ADHD as processing styles
Autism and ADHD in Women
Neurodiversity Looks Different in Pink
  • The female phenotype of autism
  • Three common traits in the female presentations of autism and ADHD
  • Challenges neurodivergent women face: Self-harm, eating disorders, sexual assault, suicide
  • Common special interests in autistic females
  • Camouflage and other compensatory behaviours
  • Limitations of the research and potential risks
Overlooked, Undiagnosed, Misdiagnosed, and Diagnosed Late
Gender Differences in Diagnostic Patterns
  • Common misdiagnoses and effects
    • Borderline Personality Disorder
    • Bipolar disorder
    • Oppositional Defiant Disorder
    • ”Just” depression or anxiety
  • Achieve accuracy in assessment and diagnostics
    • Assessment instruments: Disproportionately normed on men
    • Quantitative instruments: Accurate diagnosis in females
    • Qualitative aspects of assessment: Look beyond diagnostic tools toward lived experience
  • Grief, relief, and other common reactions to late diagnosis
From Surviving to Thriving: Strength-Based Interventions
Masking and Unmasking
  • Pros and cons of ‘masking’
  • Masking and the sense of self
  • ACT-based strategies
    • Creation of ‘masks’ used in different scenarios
    • Map out masking behaviours and practice unmasking in safe spaces
  • CFT approaches:
    • Honour the function masking has played
    • A kind letter to self
    • Serenity box: Embrace strategies that may have been discouraged in the past
Build Self-Worth
  • Psychoeducation: The impact of neurodivergence on self-worth
  • ACT intervention: A self-valuing declaration
  • Trauma-informed interventions:
    • Create a timeline of critical life experiences
    • A letter to one’s younger self
    • ”What has changed” art experiential
    • Special considerations for the use of EDMR in neurodivergent women
Create Comfort
  • Build understanding of neurodivergent-specific needs
  • Assertiveness strategies for self-advocacy
  • Identify and meet sensory needs
  • Executive functioning and helpful interventions
  • Strategies for managing rejection-sensitive dysphoria
Special Considerations for Neurodivergent Girls and Young Women
  • Development of self-worth and interests
  • Social connection, exclusion, and bullying
    • School-based interventions
    • Community interventions
  • Role of social connection groups

Target Audience

  • Social Workers
  • Counsellors
  • Psychologists
  • Psychotherapists
  • Addiction Counsellors
  • Marriage & Family Therapists
  • Behavioural Health Nurses
  • Psychiatrists
  • Other Mental Health Professionals
  • Speech-language Pathologists

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