Donna Henderson, a licensed psychologist working with autistic people who have been misunderstood their whole lives, must create an equal and respectful relationship to quell their strong drive for autonomy, an otherwise overwhelming need that leads to exhausting meltdowns and obsessive behavior. “PDA is so much more than just avoiding demands. So let’s start by renaming it. So I love Tomlin Wilding’s reimagination of PDA as pervasive drive for autonomy. Because that’s really what this is. These people are not avoiding demands. They have just this unbelievably strong drive for autonomy.” Donna Henderson is a licensed psychologist and PDA expert in the greater Washington, DC area. She specializes in working with autistic people who camouflage and have been misunderstood throughout their lives. Donna Henderson is a licensed psychologist who specializes in working with autistic people who have been misunderstood and camouflaged in the non-autistic community. After learning about Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) and the six core features of the condition, she concluded that PDA is a subtype of autism and those affected have a strong need for autonomy. Donna realized that educating the adults in the PDA’s life, treating them with respect and monitoring communication to lower demands […]

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