Dr Olga Dobrushina

Counselling Psychologist  MD  PhD

Training for mental health professionals | Dr Olga Dobrushina

I teach neuroscience-informed, neurodiversity-affirming psychotherapy: therapy that puts the wellbeing of neurodivergent people themselves first, rather than trying to make them seem more ‘normal’ to others. My workshops help therapists adapt formulation, technique and the therapeutic relationship to the needs of autistic, ADHD and otherwise neurodivergent clients.

Next workshop · Online

Working Therapeutically with Neurodivergent Clients: Meeting the Needs

When
Thu 28 January 2027, 09:30–14:00 GMT
Where
Online, hosted by University of Strathclyde
Can't make it live?
Recording available after the workshop
Early bird£100, until Friday 18 December 2026
Standard£120
Reduced£60, for students, trainees, NHS Band 5 and below, and equivalent third-sector roles
Book your place Booking is handled by the University of Strathclyde online shop.

Why this workshop

Up to 20% of the population is neurodivergent. Neurodivergence often sits behind resistant depression, anxiety, PTSD, or what gets diagnosed as ‘personality disorders’, and neurodivergent clients, diagnosed or not, often fail to benefit from therapy that isn’t adjusted to their needs. The double empathy problem and limited training can strain the therapeutic relationship and worsen outcomes.

We will look at contemporary approaches to neurodiversity and the neuroscience behind clinical presentations, so you can build more accurate, neurodiversity-informed formulations and adapt your work to clients’ cognitive, sensory and communication needs.

You will be able to

  • Apply transdiagnostic and neurodiversity-affirming frameworks to clinical formulation
  • Identify the distinct mechanisms and needs behind mental health difficulties in neurodivergent people
  • Adjust psychotherapeutic techniques to cognitive, sensory and communication needs
  • Reduce misunderstanding and strengthen the therapeutic alliance across neurotypes

Who it’s for

Psychologists, counsellors, psychotherapists, medical professionals, social workers, occupational therapists, nurse therapists and other allied health practitioners, at any career stage.

Watch on demand

About me

I am a counselling psychologist (HCPC), an advanced accredited schema therapist (ISST), and Clinical Director of the Laboratory for Innovation in Autism at the University of Strathclyde. Neurodivergent myself, I have worked with autistic and ADHD clients for over ten years as a medical doctor, psychologist and team leader, and my research on how emotion regulation is grounded in the body shapes what I teach. More about my research.

Previous trainings

Over 1,000 professionals across the UK, Europe, North America and Australia have attended my training.

2026

  • Schema Therapy for Neurodivergent Individuals: Affirming Difference and Supporting Positive Change
    Three-day workshop, Instytut Terapii Schematu, Warsaw · also delivered in Perth, Australia
  • Neurodiversity and Mental Health: From Science to Psychotherapy
    Perth, Australia
  • Psychological Therapies for Neurodivergent Individuals: Bridging the Relationship
    One-day workshop, NHS Pennine, Greater Manchester
  • Neurodiversity and Psychotherapy: An Embodied Perspective
    One-day workshop, Adult Eating Disorder Unit, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde
  • Reparenting a Neurodivergent Client in Schema Therapy: From Needs to Relationship
    Webinar, Uczę się ACT, Poland

2025

  • Harnessing Imagery Rescripting for Neurodivergent Clients
    International webinar, International Society of Schema Therapy (ISST)
  • Working Therapeutically with Neurodivergent Clients: From Neuroscience to Therapy
    Three-day workshop, Schema Therapy Scotland

2024

  • Schema Therapy for Neurodivergent Clients: From Neuroscience to Techniques
    Three-day workshop, E-Schema, Poland
  • Meeting the Needs of Neurodivergent Clients in Psychotherapy
    Webinar, Schema Therapy Scotland

Earlier, 2016–2024: workshops on psychotherapy with neurodivergent clients, neurotechnology in mental healthcare, quantitative EEG, and rehabilitation for children with brain tumours.

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