Experienced, trauma-skilled, creative support
£65 per session
Free intro & low income rate
Kia Ora, Ciamar a Tha? (Maori/Scots Gaelic greetings)
Welcome traveller, whether you do or don’t identify as queer or neurodivergent and even if you don’t meet with me, I hope you might find some small affirmation reading this site. The neuroqueer term gives my parts so much relief that those unchangeable aspects of my true self do not need to be ashamed or hidden. That ongoing hard fought journey might also be what gives me absolutely genuine understanding and non-judgement that are not from lofty ethics or something that needs to be tested out but just are the core of my offer. Neuroqueer theory is also an academic discipline that points us toward the idea of ‘decolonising’ ourselves and welcoming, perhaps even celebrating divergences that may have been hidden at key points or which we may have felt were ‘discouraged’ causing tragic and misplaced shame.
NQLab offers you a creative but safe and cooperative space where cultural assumptions can be paused, oppressions unpacked and any distressed parts met with curiosity, compassion & courage.
A healthy suspicion of what ‘normal’ brains and bodies are like is encouraged. This might mean moving away from considering only parts arising in response to family of origin and considering wider systemic, cultural, or even ancestral burdens and constraints.
The idea of ‘Self energy’ in Internal Family Systems includes qualities like the calm innate awareness of our connectedness with others and with nature and internal creativity. For me, this also evokes shamanic practices common to many indigenous cultures, including nature connection with symbolic meaning, seasonal observance and archetypal characters that hold our ‘wilder’ parts. If these threads resonate with you, I’m look forward to offering an empowering space for your growth.
Alistair Brown (he/him)
Advanced MH Practitioner, trained in Internal Family Systems & Cognitive Analytic approaches.
Reg Social Worker, PgHealthSci (Otago), PgAdvPrac (Edinburgh), Dip Interfaith (OneSpirit London)
From IFSW global definition; ‘…empowerment and liberation of people. Principles of social justice, human rights, collective responsibility and respect for diversities. Social Work Practice spans a range of activities including various forms of therapy and counselling, group work, and community work. From an emancipatory perspective, SW strategies are aimed at increasing people’s hope, self-esteem and creative potential to confront and challenge oppressive power dynamics & structural sources of injustice’…
Approach
Experimentation to promote acceptance, creativity & connection within your system
Internal Family Systems (IFS) somatic approach, safely grow, unburden and unmask
Gentle interaction with hidden parts e.g managers, protectors and young exiles
Cultural and interfaith creativity to avoid being confined to stuck stories
All the parts of you have purpose and need connection with the whole
Affirming, queer positive, with compassion for curious & radical parts
In IFS, neurodivergence + queerness are core aspects of Self, not a ‘disorder’ or a response to environment or trauma
Will it work for me?
I hope you’ll find relief from having to explain/translate neurodiverse, queer or minority experience.
Finding the right relational fit & therapeutic alliance is consistently found to be more influential than the perfect modality in repeated meta studies of talking therapy outcomes.
Vulnerability is the other side of creativity so this approach might feel comfortable to people who have already done some kind of personal work before or have a feel for the territory.
NQ Lab is NOT a service focusing on;
Assessment or diagnosis
Coaching & advice giving
Views on medical or holistic treatment
Rather it’s a safe, supportive space for advanced personal growth.
Supporting you to develop greater internal awareness, capacity and trust with negotiation and consent from all the parts (aspects/facets) of your system.
More about the Internal Family Systems (IFS) approach and free IFS Institute webinars
N.B. Conflict of Interests - If we have worked together previously or if you've been subject to measures under the
Mental Health (Care & Treatment) Scotland Act 2003, this may be a conflict of interest due to other roles, I may be able to refer you onward.