Ali Press

I am available online and in-person

Maybe you've spent years feeling different, overwhelmed, too sensitive, too much – or somehow never quite enough. You might be brilliant at complicated things, yet completely defeated by an email, a phone call or the everyday stuff of life.

I specialise in working with neurodivergent adults, particularly people with ADHD, autism and AuDHD. Many of my clients discovered their neurodivergence later in life and are making sense of what came before: masking, burnout, rejection sensitivity, difficult relationships, people-pleasing, perfectionism, shame, or years of wondering “Why am I like this?”

I also work with adult children of narcissistic, controlling or emotionally unavailable parents. You don't need to know whether your parent was actually a narcissist. You might simply know that you grew up walking on eggshells, being criticised or blamed, having your feelings dismissed, or learning that keeping everyone else happy was safer than having needs of your own.

I'm a queer and neurodivergent therapist and offer LGBTQ+ affirming therapy. You don't have to explain or defend who you are here, and your sexuality or gender doesn't have to be the reason you've come to therapy.

What is therapy with me like?

I'm warm, down-to-earth and collaborative. I won't sit silently while you wonder what I'm thinking. I'll ask questions, share what I'm noticing and help you make connections between what's happening now and the experiences that shaped you.

I'm an integrative counsellor, so I don't squeeze everyone into the same therapeutic model. Sometimes we'll explore the past; sometimes we'll focus on what's happening now. My coaching background means we can also be practical and work on what you'd like to change.

Most importantly, I don't believe you need fixing. Our work is about understanding yourself, letting go of some of the old shit you've been carrying, and finding ways of living that work better for you.

What can you expect from working with me?

I offer counselling and coaching online and in person in central London, working with clients across the UK and internationally.

Finding a therapist can feel daunting, particularly when you've already spent years feeling misunderstood. So before deciding whether you'd like to work with me, we can have a free 15-minute introductory call. It's a chance to meet, tell me a little about what you're looking for and, importantly, see whether I feel like the right therapist for you.

Sessions are 50 minutes. We usually start by agreeing to work together for six sessions and then review. Some people come with something specific they want to work through; others stay longer because they find having a regular space to understand themselves and what's happening in their lives valuable.

You don't need to know what to talk about. You don't need to prepare for therapy, arrive with clearly defined goals or be able to explain exactly what's wrong. “I don't know, but something isn't working” is a perfectly good place to start.

My counselling and coaching backgrounds mean our sessions can move between exploring and understanding what's happening and doing something practical about it. We might look at where a pattern came from, what keeps it going now, and what you could try differently – without turning therapy into a weekly homework assignment.

I work flexibly because different brains and different people need different things. We can talk, draw things out, map patterns, crack out some clipboards and make lists or draft messages, or just spend some time trying to untangle the enormous knot in your head.

There isn't a correct way to do therapy with me. If something isn't working for you, I want you to tell me. Therapy is something we do together, not something I do to you.

Your first session is a chance for us to start getting to know each other.

There's no assessment to pass and you don't need to prepare anything beforehand. I'll ask a little about what has brought you to therapy, what's happening in your life now and what you'd like to be different – but you don't need to have clear answers to any of those questions.

You can tell me as much or as little of your story as feels comfortable. There's no expectation that you tell me everything in the first session, and we don't need to dive straight into painful experiences before you're ready.

We'll also talk about what you need from me and what might make therapy work better for you. If you're neurodivergent, that might include things like how you process information, whether questions help you think, what happens when your mind goes blank, or whether you need a bit more structure.

Towards the end, we'll talk about whether working together feels right and what you'd like our sessions to focus on. You don't need to make therapy fit me – we'll work out how to make it work for you.

First sessions are 50 minutes and charged at my usual session rate.