The questions below are ones that come up often. If yours isn’t here, get in touch directly — I read everything and I’ll respond.
About the coaching
What is coaching, and how is it different from therapy or counselling?
Coaching is a forward-focused, client-led process. It supports self-understanding, identity integration, and the development of an accurate framework for your own experience. It is not therapy. It does not diagnose, treat, or manage mental health conditions.
The distinction matters practically. Therapy — counselling, psychology, psychiatric treatment — is a clinical service that addresses mental health conditions within a regulatory framework. Coaching works alongside or before clinical support, or independently of it, when what you need is understanding and integration rather than clinical treatment.
If you are unsure which kind of support is right for you, the introductory session is a good place to work that out. I will tell you honestly if I think what you’re carrying needs clinical support rather than coaching, and I will help you find the right person if so.
Is this coaching covered by Medicare or private health insurance?
No. Coaching is not a clinical service and is not covered by Medicare or private health insurance rebates. Sessions are paid privately at the agreed fee.
If you are looking for Medicare-rebated support, a GP can provide a Mental Health Treatment Plan, which allows rebated access to psychology sessions. That is a different kind of support from what this practice offers, and the two can run alongside each other if appropriate.
What does a session actually look like?
Sessions run for sixty minutes, online via video call, typically fortnightly. The structure is consistent every time: we settle and orient at the start, do the work in the middle, land what needs to land toward the end, and close cleanly. That consistency is deliberate — for this client group, knowing exactly what to expect reduces the cognitive load of arriving and leaves more energy for the actual work.
You don’t need to prepare anything or know what you’re going to say. Whatever is present when you arrive is enough to work with. You don’t need to perform okayness if you’re not okay. You don’t need to give me the edited version.
How many sessions will I need?
The initial engagement is twelve sessions, used as a guide rather than a fixed programme. Some clients move through the work relatively quickly. Some need more time in the early phases. The pace follows the actual work, not a predetermined timeline.
At around Session 10, we review together — whether to continue, conclude, or adjust the arrangement. There is no pressure in either direction. Some clients conclude at twelve sessions. Some continue beyond that. Some take a break and return later. All of those are legitimate.
What if I need to stop before the twelve sessions are done?
You can stop at any point, for any reason, without explanation. Coaching that isn’t entered into willingly can’t do what it’s here to do. If you decide it’s not the right fit, or the timing is wrong, or you simply want to stop — that decision is yours, and it requires no justification.
The door doesn’t close. If you want to come back later — in months or years — you’ll be received without judgment and without having to account for the gap.
Am I the right client for this practice?
Do I need a formal diagnosis to work with you?
No. This practice is for late-diagnosed women, self-identified women, and women who are still exploring — with or without a formal diagnosis. If you recognise yourself in the experience this practice describes, that recognition is sufficient. You don’t need a piece of paper to confirm that your experience is real.
That said, if you are uncertain whether what you’re experiencing is neurodivergence or something else, the introductory session is a good place to start that conversation. I won’t diagnose you — that’s not within the scope of coaching — but I can help you think through what the right next step is.
I’m not sure whether I’m neurodivergent. Can I still come?
Yes. ‘Exploring’ is one of the three descriptions in this practice’s name for a reason. Many women arrive somewhere in the middle of working out whether the correct explanation for themselves involves neurodivergence. That in-between place is a legitimate place to be, and it’s one this practice works with directly.
You don’t need certainty before the introductory session. Bring the question. That’s enough.
I’ve tried therapy and counselling before, and it hasn’t helped. Does that matter?
It’s one of the most common things I hear. And it makes complete sense, for reasons that are structural rather than personal. The frameworks most practitioners are trained in were not built for this particular experience. The result, consistently, is that women with this profile end up managing the practitioner rather than being helped by them.
This practice is built on a different foundation. I have lived what you’re describing. I understand it from the inside in a way that changes what is possible in the room. Whether that makes this the right fit for you is something the introductory session will tell us both.
You don’t need to explain your history with other practitioners before we meet. You don’t need to justify why you’re trying again. Just show up.
I’m in my fifties — or sixties, or older. Is it too late for this to be useful?
No. The women this practice serves most often are in their thirties, forties, fifties, and beyond. Late diagnosis is, by definition, late. The correct explanation arriving at sixty-five is not less valuable than it arriving at thirty-five. In some respects, it is more so — there is more history to reread, more accumulated cost to account for, and more of a life to live differently once the correct explanation is in place.
It is never too late for an accurate understanding of yourself. That is the whole premise of this practice.
I’m currently seeing a psychologist or therapist. Can I do coaching at the same time?
Yes, in most cases. Coaching and clinical support can run alongside each other — they are different kinds of work, and they don’t generally conflict. It’s worth letting your treating practitioner know you are considering coaching, and it’s worth mentioning at the introductory session that you are receiving clinical support so we can think together about how the two fit.
If your clinical situation is acute — if you are in active crisis or your treating practitioner has advised against additional engagement — please follow their guidance. Coaching can wait. Clinical stability comes first.
I’m in a difficult place right now. Is this the right time?
That depends on what ‘a difficult place’ means. If you are exhausted, depleted, struggling with daily functioning, but basically stable — that is exactly the kind of difficult place this practice works with. You don’t need to be doing well to start. You need to be safe enough to engage.
If you are in active crisis — if you are experiencing suicidal ideation, are in a situation that is immediately unsafe, or are in a mental health emergency — please contact crisis support rather than a coaching practice. In South Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14, Mental Health Emergency 13 14 65. Once you are safe and stable, coaching will still be here.
Practical questions
Where are you located? Do you offer in-person sessions?
I am based in Adelaide, South Australia. Sessions are delivered online via video call. You don’t need to download anything or create an account to join — a link is sent before each session, and you join through your browser.
Online delivery is intentional rather than a compromise. It removes geographical barriers, reduces the logistical load of attending sessions, and allows you to be in your own space — which for many clients in this practice is genuinely more comfortable than a formal office setting.
What are your fees?
If you’d like to see exactly how sessions are priced — single sessions, or packages with a discount for booking ahead — the Coaching Packages pages lay it all out for both personal and business coaching. No need to ask before you’re ready to.
What happens in the free introductory session?
The introductory session runs for forty-five minutes. The first twenty minutes are real coaching — you bring something and we work with it. Not a demonstration, not a preview. The actual thing. The remaining time covers how the practice works, what sessions involve, fees, and the practical arrangement.
You don’t need to decide anything on the day. You can take whatever time you need. If it’s not the right fit — for either of us — that will be said honestly. There is no failure in a match that isn’t right.
How do I book?
How do I book?
If you’re new here, book an introductory session — that’s the best starting point, and where the New Client Questionnaire is sent once it’s booked.
If you’re an existing client, book a paid session directly.
What is your cancellation policy?
Sessions cancelled with more than 48 hours’ notice are not charged. Sessions cancelled with less than 48 hours’ notice are charged at the full session rate, except where the reason is a genuine emergency or acute health event. If something comes up, let me know as soon as you can. I’d rather know than not.
What technology do I need for online sessions?
A device with a camera and microphone — a laptop, desktop, tablet, or phone — and a stable internet connection. Sessions are delivered via Microsoft Teams. You don’t need a Teams account or to download the app — you join through a link in your browser. A private space where you won’t be overheard is important for confidentiality and for your own comfort in the session.
Confidentiality and privacy
Is what I say confidential?
Yes. Everything you bring to sessions is confidential. I don’t discuss client material with anyone outside the specific exceptions that are explained before we begin. Those exceptions are: mandatory reporting obligations under South Australian law; situations where I have a genuine concern about immediate risk to your life or another person’s. Outside those exceptions, what you say in here is yours.
I’ve seen that you also write novels under a pen name. Is there any connection between that and the coaching practice?
I write the JD Series of young adult novels about neurodivergent nervous systems under the pen name Claudia Weaver. The pen name exists because I want to keep the writing life separate from my personal life — it’s not a separate professional identity, just the name on the books.
The coaching practice and the writing are the same work in two different forms, for the same audience at different moments of readiness. They are operationally separate. What happens between us in the coaching relationship is never source material for the writing, in any form. That commitment is absolute.
How is my personal information stored?
Your personal information is stored securely and used only for the purposes of the coaching relationship. It is not shared with third parties. Full details are in the Privacy Policy.
For parents and young people
My daughter is fifteen — does this practice work with young people?
Yes. This practice works with young women aged fifteen to seventeen, with the written consent of a parent or guardian. The approach is adapted for younger clients while remaining grounded in the same understanding of the neurodivergent experience that the adult practice is built on.
If you’d like to explore whether this is the right fit for your daughter, get in touch. An introductory session can be arranged that includes both of you at the start, with time for your daughter and me to work together directly.
Will you tell me what my daughter says in sessions?
No. The coaching relationship is with your daughter. Her confidentiality is held exactly as an adult client’s — what she brings to sessions stays there. You will be told only that sessions are occurring as scheduled.
This is not a limitation of the service — it is the condition of the service working. A young person who believes her sessions are being reported to her parents will not bring anything real. The boundary is the thing that makes the work possible.
The exceptions to confidentiality — mandatory reporting and immediate safety concerns — are the same as for adult clients and are explained in detail in the coaching agreement.
My daughter is unsure about trying this. Should I encourage her?
Gently, yes — if you believe it might help. But the decision needs to be hers. Coaching that isn’t entered into willingly can’t do what it’s here to do. If she is resistant, it’s worth exploring what the resistance is about rather than overriding it. Sometimes the resistance is about not being ready. Sometimes it’s about not yet trusting that this will be different from previous experiences with adults and practitioners. Both are worth understanding before starting.
Still have a question?
Get in touch. I read everything, and I respond personally. If you’re not sure whether this practice is the right fit, or whether coaching is the right kind of support, or whether now is the right time — those are exactly the kinds of questions worth asking before the introductory session, rather than instead of it.
