Recording of ATMS Special Event: Neurodivergent Minds Symposium 2026

ATMS SPECIAL EVENT: Neurodivergent Minds Symposium 2026

Join ATMS for the Neurodivergent Minds Symposium, a practitioner‑focused event exploring contemporary, evidence‑informed perspectives on neurodiversity and how to better support neurodivergent individuals in clinical practice.

Hear from leading speakers and experienced practitioners as they examine inclusive, strengths‑based approaches to care, communication, and support. This symposium offers practical insights to deepen clinical understanding, enhance professional practice, and support improved outcomes for neurodivergent individuals and their families.

Program summary (Presenter bios and full topic outlines below):

• Hidden in Plain Sight: Why so many Autistic Women are missed in Clinical Practice – Dr Kathleen Schubert

• Breaking the Silence – Dr Genevieve Dharamaraj

• Compassionate Co-prescribing with ADHD medications – Diana Boot

• Becoming Neuroaffirming in Our Practice – Dr Michelle Garnett

• The Latest Updates in ADHD - New Horizons for Natural Health Practitioners – Jules Galloway

• The role of medicinal cannabis in neurodivergent care - Dr Byrce Joynson 

Where: Online - Registering for this event will give you access to the recordings, recordings can be watched at anytime.

CPE Points: 6 CPE points

Pricing:

ATMS Accredited Member – $320

ATMS Student Member – $200

Non-ATMS Member – $395

Non-ATMS Student – $225

Hidden in Plain Sight: Why so many Autistic Women are missed in Clinical Practice

Autism in women and adults is frequently overlooked in healthcare settings because diagnostic frameworks have historically focused on male presentations. As a result, many autistic women move through life, and through healthcare systems, without recognition of their neurodivergence. This keynote explores why autism in women often remains “hidden in plain sight,” drawing on current research, clinical insight, and lived experience. The session will help natural health practitioners recognise patterns of neurodivergence in clinical practice and develop more inclusive, neurodivergent-informed approaches to care.

Dr Kathleen Schubert

Kathleen brings over a decade of experience supporting thousands of clients worldwide and provided a mentoring role with other practitioners, but her most important insight came when she realised she had been hidden in plain sight.

A former functional and naturopathic practitioner, she now works as a keynote speaker, author, and autism advocate bringing both clinical insight and lived experience to the growing conversation around neurodivergence. Diagnosed with autism in midlife, Kathleen speaks candidly about the gender inequities that have led to widespread under-recognition, misdiagnosis, and missed diagnosis of autism in women. Her work challenges long-held assumptions within healthcare and highlights how neurodivergence can remain hidden in plain sight, often behind burnout, anxiety, and complex health presentations.

She is the author of multiple books, including U Don’t Seem Autistic, which explores the lived experience of late-diagnosed autistic women and offers insight into how autism can go unrecognised in clinical and professional environments. Through her writing, Kathleen brings together lived experience, clinical insight, and emerging perspectives to help professionals better understand the behavioural, emotional, and physiological patterns that may indicate underlying neurodivergence.

Her work also extends into neurodivergent storytelling for children, reflecting a commitment to early understanding and representation. Drawing on both her clinical background and lived experience, as well as advanced degrees in integrative medicine and anthropology, she delivers practical, evidence-informed insights into how neurodivergence presents in real-world settings and what professionals can do differently. Her keynotes equip audiences with strategies to improve communication, accessibility, and inclusive practice across industries.

As the founder and former director of Dr Kathleen & Team, she led a multidisciplinary integrative health practice, supporting thousands of clients globally, many navigating burnout, high performance, and the pressure to “hold it all together.”

Her work empowered people to feel strong, confident, and fully themselves, experiences that now deeply inform her understanding of how neurodivergence can be overlooked in capable, high-masking individuals. Kathleen’s advocacy extends beyond the stage into real-world change, from reshaping neurodivergent-inclusive communication and educational materials to championing accessibility initiatives, including service dog support in public spaces. And it starts with one critical shift: Because once you see what’s been hidden in plain sight, it becomes impossible to ignore, and impossible to practice the same way again.

Breaking the Silence

What if you could help a nonverbal child speak? Genevieve Dharamaraj delivers results that challenge what many believe is possible. As a functional neurologist and international speaker, she has helped over 40 nonverbal children develop speech by targeting the root neurological blocks that hold them back. In this session, you will see how retained primitive reflexes, brainstem dysfunction, and poor hemispheric integration directly impact communication. You will learn how to assess these patterns and apply targeted strategies that activate the brain pathways required for speech. Genevieve shares real clinical cases, including children who moved from silence to words within weeks. You will walk through the exact frameworks used in practice, combining developmental neurology, digital therapeutics, and multisensory coactivation. This is not theory. This is applied neurology with measurable outcomes. You will leave with tools you can use immediately in your clinic, school, or home to improve communication, regulation, and cognitive performance. If you work with children who are nonverbal, delayed, or struggling to communicate, this session will change how you approach care.

Genevieve Dharamaraj

Genevieve Dharamaraj is a functional neurologist and childhood neurodevelopment specialist known for helping nonverbal children develop speech and improving outcomes in complex neurological cases. She holds a Bachelor of Science, a Master of Chiropractic, and is certified in Childhood Neurodevelopmental Disorders (FIBFN-CND).

She is the founder of Nurturing Brain Potential, where she leads a results-focused team using developmental neurology, digital therapeutics, and advanced brain-based technologies. Her work targets functional gaps in the brain to improve communication, regulation, and cognitive performance.

Genevieve has helped over 30 nonverbal clients transition to verbal communication, with measurable improvements in behaviour, attention, and engagement. She is an international speaker, presenting across Australia, Europe, and the Middle East on functional neurology, autism, and neuroplasticity. She delivers practical frameworks clinicians can apply immediately in practice.

Genevieve co-authored a children’s book with Dr Robert Melillo and has trained alongside global leaders including Dr Kyle Daigle. She is also an endurance athlete and Ironman finisher, bringing discipline and resilience into her clinical work.

Genevieve speaks with clarity, delivers actionable strategies, and leaves audiences equipped to create real change in the lives of their clients

Compassionate Co-prescribing with ADHD medications

How can practitioners best support patients taking ADHD medications? From optimising response to managing side effects, natural medicine practitioners are ideally placed to work alongside prescribing medical doctors to improve patient outcomes. In this session, Diana Boot, Compounding Pharmacist and Naturopath, explores the pharmacology of ADHD medications so clinicians can co-prescribe with clarity, safety, and compassion. She will outline mechanisms of action, focusing on how medications modify neurotransmitter signalling in attention, impulse control, and emotional regulation. You’ll learn how side effects including appetite suppression, sleep disruption, anxiety activation and cardiovascular effects limit effectiveness, and how formulation choice influences outcomes. She will translate pharmacology into clinical support strategies that improve tolerability and adherence, with consideration given to key nutrient/herb/drug interactions.

Diana Boot

Diana is a compounding pharmacist and naturopath, with a focus on personalised medicines and appropriate deprescribing of prescription medicines. 

Diana and her husband founded Natural Script, a bespoke dispensary service empowering practitioners to create personalised medicines tailored to the specific needs of their patients. She supports practitioners to confidently prescribe high-quality bespoke compounds, including nutritional and pharmaceutical compounds, liquid herbs, herbal creams and pessaries, and practitioner only supplements.

Her clinical practice is focussed on helping patients reduce their reliance on pharmaceutical medicines for mood, gut and cardiometabolic conditions which can be managed effectively with more integrative approaches.

Becoming Neuroaffirming in Our Practice

Michelle will describe common clinical and daily life issues for autistic adults, how these can be magnified and maintained within the context of autism and/or ADHD, and considerations about how to provide support and therapy. The course builds on and extends practitioners’ discipline knowledge to allow the participant to be able to become neurodiversity-affirming in their practice and adapt therapy for a neurodivergent adult.

Michelle Garnett

Dr Michelle Garnett PhD is a clinical psychologist who has specialised in autism for more than 30 years as a clinician, clinic director, author, presenter and researcher. Alongside Prof Tony Attwood she co-founded Attwood & Garnett Events to enhance autism awareness globally. She has co-authored nine books on autism and many peer-reviewed journal articles. She has been an invited keynote speaker and conference presenter internationally for over two decades. Dr Garnett is autistic and ADHD, late diagnosed.

The Latest Updates in ADHD - New Horizons for Natural Health Practitioners

ADHD research is moving faster than ever before. Thanks to advancements like functional MRI imaging, an increase in popularity of the use of herbs and supplements, and (finally!) more emphasis being placed on adults and women/AFAB ADHDers, we're seeing new evidence being published all the time. So let's look at what it means for natural medicine practitioners.

In this session:

• Jules will take you through the latest neuroscience developments in ADHD

• Discover which studies have been game changers for our industry

• Look at new evidence for herbs, supplements, diet and lifestyle interventions

• Learn what's on the horizon for new ADHD medications... and how we can work alongside them

Come away with fresh ideas for your ADHDer clients. Whether you're creating drug-free treatment plans or collaborating within multi-modality teams, this session will give you the knowledge and confidence to create the best possible outcomes.

Jules Galloway

Jules Galloway is a straight-talking degree qualified naturopath, international speaker, mentor and podcaster. With over 20 years of industry experience, Jules has made it her mission to help her community recover from fatigue, anxiety and mental health issues. She has a special interest in neurodivergent wellbeing (with lived experience as an ADHDer) and is currently undertaking postgraduate studies in mental health and neuroscience.

Jules is the creator of “Adult ADHD for Practitioners” and the "Adult ADHD Naturally" membership. She also sees 1:1 clients via telehealth. She is passionate about guiding the next generation of practitioners to become confident, capable and successful clinicians... without burning out.

The role medicinal cannabis in neurodivergent care

This presentation will explore the role of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) in Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), providing attendees with an understanding of how the ECS may influence attention, executive function, emotional regulation, sensory processing, sleep, stress responses, and social functioning. The session will review emerging evidence of ECS dysregulation in neurodivergent populations and examine the biological rationale for cannabinoid-based therapies, including THC, CBD and CBG.

A key focus of the presentation will be understanding both the potential benefits and limitations of cannabinoid therapies in ADHD and ASD. The session will explore why some individuals with ADHD report improvements in focus, mental hyperactivity, emotional regulation, sleep, and sensory overwhelm with THC-containing products, while also highlighting the potential risks associated with regular use in a population already predisposed to impulsivity, novelty seeking, and addictive behaviours. Attendees will gain an appreciation of the complex relationship between the endocannabinoid system, dopamine signalling, reward pathways, and Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD), as well as the emerging role of CBD and other non-intoxicating cannabinoids in supporting emotional regulation, anxiety, sleep, sensory processing, and overall wellbeing.

The presentation will conclude with a practical framework for healthcare practitioners working within multidisciplinary neurodivergence care teams. This will include identifying patients who may benefit from cannabinoid therapies, recognising red flags for problematic use, understanding the potential interactions between cannabis and conventional treatments such as stimulant medications, and supporting safe, patient-centred care through collaborative practice. The aim is to provide attendees with a balanced, evidence-informed perspective on where medicinal cannabis may fit within a broader neuroaffirming model of care.

Dr Bryce Joynson

Dr Bryce Joynson is a neuro-affirming Specialist General Practitioner with extensive experience in the assessment and management of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and ADHD. He is an avid educator, author of Relationship Rules for Healthcare, and regularly teaches medical students, GP registrars and healthcare professionals across Australia.

Dr Bryce has a particular interest in innovative and evidence-informed approaches to neurodiversity, including medicinal cannabis therapy and neuroimaging.

He is one of Australia’s early paediatric medicinal cannabis authorised prescribers and is trained as a GP in NSW to diagnosise and treat ADHD. He has extensive experience supporting children and adults requiring specialised cannabis-based therapies.

His other areas of interest include hypermobility spectrum disorders and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, POTS, functional and nutritional medicine, and the gut-brain connection.

Dr Bryce is passionate about advancing understanding of neurodiversity and complex chronic conditions while integrating conventional medicine with emerging, evidence-informed therapies. He loves spending time on the weekends with his wife, 2 children and 2 dogs.

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