BIO

Louis Weinstock is a psychotherapist, coach, and founder of the award-winning social impact charity Apart of Me. With over 20 years’ experience supporting vulnerable children and adults, his work bridges psychology, spirituality, and social change. Louis pioneered the world’s first therapeutic game for young people experiencing grief and trauma, earning a Points of Light Award from the UK Prime Minister.

His Substack newsletter and community The Heart of Being Human is for people seeking soulful, nuanced, and compassionate ways to navigate the chaos of modern life. His book, How The World Is Making Our Children Mad, And What To Do About It (Penguin Random House), won the Nautilus Gold Award and has inspired leaders, parents, and educators to rethink resilience and success.

Known for bringing a critical, compassionate lens to complex topics, Louis challenges the medicalisation of natural human difference while offering new, relational models. He helps individuals and organisations build ‘islands of sanity’ in an increasingly fast-paced, fragmented world, guiding them beyond labels toward authenticity, relational depth, and sustainable transformation.

Louis believes that in an age of rising polarisation and fragmentation, nuance, courage, and deep connection are our most needed medicine.

WORKSHOP OVERVIEW

Adaptive Sensitivity: Rethinking Neurodiversity in a Rapidly Changing World 

As the language of neurodiversity moves from the margins to the mainstream, we find ourselves at a cultural crossroads. Diagnosis rates are rising, self-identification is exploding, and many practitioners are being called to navigate complex, often polarised conversations. What do these trends reveal about our culture?  

In this interactive workshop, psychotherapist Louis Weinstock introduces adaptive sensitivity, a practical, compassionate framework for understanding difference as the evolving interplay of biology, context, culture, trauma, and meaning. Through guided inquiry and group dialogue, participants will explore how to hold neurodivergent experience with nuance, relational depth, and critical thinking. 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

1. Critically evaluate dominant narratives around neurodiversity and explore how these shape both individual identity and clinical practice. 
2. Describe the concept of adaptive sensitivity and apply it as a flexible framework for understanding neurodivergent experience in context. 
3. Reflect on the cultural and systemic factors (e.g. rising diagnosis rates, online self-identification) influencing how clients relate to labels and difference. 
4. Develop greater confidence in navigating complex conversations with clients and families around diagnosis, identity, and support needs. 
5. Integrate relational, reflective, and context-sensitive approaches into their work with neurodivergent adults and children, balancing validation with curiosity and growth.