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Tanya Hicks
AuDHD | ACA Level 2 Counsellor | CEO & Founder
I'm Tanya Hicks, Founder and CEO of Neurodivergent Empowered – an autism-specialised therapeutic provider on the Sunshine Coast delivering neurodivergent-affirming supports across multiple NDIS registration groups.
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I hold ACA Level 2 Counsellor registration, am completing my Master of Counselling at AIPC, and have accumulated over 2,100 clinical hours exclusively with autistic clients. My background spans trauma therapy, mindfulness, positive psychology, and leadership.
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As an autistic practitioner and solo parent to an AuDHD daughter, I bring both professional training and lived experience to this work. I understand what it means to navigate systems that weren't built for our brains and bodies and I've dedicated my career to building something different.
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My therapeutic approach centres on capacity architecture, not compliance. I don't believe willpower is the answer; I believe capacity can be expanded. Every service we deliver is grounded in nervous system safety, sensory accessibility, and the unwavering belief that neurodivergent people deserve to be supported - not fixed.
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Neurodivergent Empowered exists to create pathways where autistic individuals and families can thrive authentically, without masking, and with their sovereignty intact.
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Recognition:
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2024 & 2025 International Business and Women Awards
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International speaker on neurodiversity-affirming practice & capacity building
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Author of the forthcoming 8-book series Designed for More
Things I am currently passionate about / current interests
Providing a Neurodivergent-Affirming Life for My Daughter
At the core of my purpose is being mum to my favourite AuDHD human. I'm passionate about building a life where she feels emotionally and sensory safe, understood, celebrated, and free to grow into her most authentic self – without ever needing to mask.
Using Yoga and Movement to Nourish the Nervous System
Yoga isn't about poses - it's about presence. I'm passionate about adapting yoga to meet neurodivergent bodies and brains with gentleness, acceptance, and core strength. Through mindful movement, breathwork, and sensory awareness, I teach others how to reconnect with their bodies and build capacity from the inside out.
Supporting sensitive individuals to reclaim joy and identity
Through books, events, programs, and lived-experience leadership, I guide sensitive humans to better understand their brain and body, connect with their identity, and step into a life that honours their true nature – full of self-trust, pride, and unapologetic joy.
Why I am about passionate about the work I do for Neurodivergent Empowered:
I'm passionate about this work because I know what it feels like to grow up in a world that was never built for your brain or your body – and I never want another person to feel alone in that. Everything we create is driven by lived experience: not just mine, but the incredible humans I walk beside every day.
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This work matters because it's not theoretical – it's personal. It's my daughter's future, my own healing, and my vision for a world where neurodivergent people aren't just surviving but thriving. Where masking isn't necessary, where sensory and emotional safety are standard, and where we celebrate the brilliance that comes with different ways of being.
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I do this work to build pathways of joy, connection, and sovereignty. I do it to challenge outdated systems and create spaces where people feel safe to explore who they truly are. And I do it because I believe in the radical, world-changing power of neurodivergent people when we are fully supported, affirmed, and seen.
The Pokèmon character that best describes me is Mega Diancie
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Diancie is the mythical Rock/Fairy type who forms diamonds under pressure - quietly, internally, while the world sees only stone. But Mega Diancie is what happens when the exterior shatters and what was forming inside becomes fully visible.
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That's Neurodivergent Empowered. The container cracked open. The infrastructure is operational. And I'm not hiding behind it anymore – I am it.
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The rocky exterior has shattered. I spent years building capacity under pressure - clinical hours, qualifications, lived experience, trial and error. NE is what emerged. 13 registration groups. Over 2,100 clinical hours. A neurodivergent team. The Nest. This isn't forming anymore. It's crystallised.
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Harm gets reflected back. Mega Diancie's ability is Magic Bounce – status conditions and debuffs directed at her return to sender. That's the system I've built. Deficit-based frameworks, compliance-driven models, practices that deplete neurodivergent capacity – they don't land here. They get sent back. NE exists to challenge what damages our people.
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Speed and power, not just protection. Base Diancie holds and forms. Mega Diancie moves. I'm not waiting for permission or slowly proving the model anymore. We're delivering, advocating, expanding, and building pathways that didn't exist before we made them.
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Capacity architecture made visible. Everything NE delivers is grounded in one thesis: willpower runs out, but capacity can be expanded. Mega Diancie is that thesis operational - not as theory, but as infrastructure. Sensory-safe spaces. Neurodivergent-affirming practice. Sustainable systems that protect both clients and team.
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I'm not becoming something new. I'm fully expressed. Mega Evolution isn't replacement - it's the fullest version of what was always there. That's what I want for every person who walks through our doors. You were always Designed for More.
