Empowering Strengths,
Celebrating Individuality
Hi, I’m Penny!
I’m a neuro-affirming psychologist based in Coffs Harbour and the founder of Sunflower Psychology Services. I specialise in autism, ADHD, and AuDHD (autism and ADHD). Neurodiversity is welcomed and valued here. I’m also a registered Medicare and NDIS provider.
My whole family is neurodivergent, including my three amazing children, so I understand the ups, downs, and everything in between — the advocacy, appointments, joy, confusion, and the worry that can come with it.
I use a strengths-based, evidence-informed approach, grounded in both lived experience and professional knowledge. My role is to support understanding of how each person’s brain works — including how they process emotions, sensory input, social experiences, and their environment.
Together, we explore patterns such as overwhelm, masking, shutdown, difficulty getting started, or sensitivity to rejection as meaningful nervous system responses. From there, we develop practical, personalised strategies to support regulation, reduce cognitive load, and build capacity in ways that align with each person’s strengths, needs, and goals.
I work with autistic, ADHD, and AuDHD teens (12–17 years) and adults, as well as parents and carers of neurodivergent children, and the educators and employers who support them. My focus is on creating supportive environments — not just within the individual, but around them — so they can engage, learn, and live more comfortably and authentically at home, school, work, and in the wider community.
I prioritise each person’s communication and comfort needs in every session. Sessions are adapted to suit preferred ways of communicating — including talking, writing, visuals, AAC, and more — so everyone can feel at ease and supported. Sensory needs are also considered, with adjustments to lighting, sound, and the environment where possible, creating a calm and welcoming space.
Find the information below that best fits where you’re at right now:
Welcome to Sunflower Psychology Services!
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Are you a parent experiencing…
Feeling unsure how to support your child’s big emotions or moments of overwhelm?
Feeling exhausted, stretched, or second-guessing yourself as a parent?
Noticing sensory or environmental sensitivities that impact your child’s day-to-day life?
Difficulty with transitions, routines, or unexpected changes?
Challenges with school, learning, or engagement?
Challenges in your child navigating social situations or differences in connecting with others?
Noticing your child is deeply impacted by perceived rejection or criticism?
Seeing your child mask or hide parts of themselves to fit in, and feeling the impact this has on their energy?
Feeling unsure how to respond to your child’s behaviours or what they might be communicating?
Wanting to better understand your child’s needs, but not knowing where to start?
If so, you’re not alone. Neurodivergent children experience and respond to the world in different ways, and their behaviours are often meaningful responses to their environment, sensory experiences, and nervous system.
I support parents to better understand their child’s unique brain and feel more confident in how to support them.
Together, we can explore:
Understanding your child’s neurodivergent profile and how their brain works
Making sense of behaviours and emotions through a nervous system lens
Recognising and supporting sensory and environmental needs
Understanding how your child communicates and connecting with others in ways that feel natural for them
Understanding sensitivity to rejection and supporting these emotional responses with care
Recognising masking patterns (e.g. copying others, holding in emotions, hiding discomfort) and supporting your child to feel safer being themselves
Creating environments that feel safe, predictable, and supportive
Supporting transitions, routines, and daily demands
Gentle, practical strategies to reduce overwhelm (for both you and your child)
Building connection and strengthening your relationship
Advocating for your child’s needs at school and in other settings
My aim is to support you with calm, confidence, and connection — so your child feels safe, understood, and better able to engage, learn, and navigate their world.
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Are you experiencing…
Feeling overwhelmed by everyday demands or big emotions?
Sensory or environmental sensitivities that make situations hard to manage?
Difficulty with change, transitions, or unexpected situations?
Challenges with time management, organisation, or getting started on tasks?
Feeling unsure or overwhelmed in conversations or social situations with friends, school, or work colleagues?
Strong emotional responses to perceived rejection, criticism, or feeling “not good enough”?
Noticing you often mask or hide parts of yourself to fit in, and feeling exhausted as a result?
If so, you’re not alone. Neurodivergent brains experience and respond to the world in different ways.
I support neurodivergent teens and adults to better understand their unique brain and what helps them feel more supported and at ease in everyday life.
Together, we can explore:
Understanding your nervous system and what helps you feel more settled
Making sense of emotions and how they show up for you
Your sensory needs and ways to support them day to day
Understanding how your environment impacts your energy and functioning
Finding approaches to tasks, routines, and time that work for your brain
Gentle, practical strategies to reduce overwhelm
Building self-understanding, self-compassion, and sustainable self-care
Feeling more confident in your communication and relationships
Understanding and responding to feelings of rejection with more care
Recognising masking patterns and finding safer ways to be more yourself
Making small, practical changes to your surroundings to better support your needs
Support is tailored to your strengths, your needs, and your goals — helping life feel more manageable and aligned with who you are at home, school, or work.
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I work with teachers, schools, and workplaces to provide practical, individualised strategies that support neurodivergent students and employees.
Supports may include:
Understanding the neurodivergent brain
Linking behaviours and emotions to a sense of safety and nervous system needs
Supporting the development of new skills
Understanding and working with individual preferred social communication styles
Addressing sensory needs and adjusting environments to reduce overwhelm
Reducing cognitive overwhelm and supporting capacity throughout the day
Establishing routines that support attention, organisation, and time management
Supporting transitions and change
Building on strengths and interests to support engagement and motivation
I also support educators and employers to feel confident creating inclusive, supportive environments where neurodivergent individuals can thrive.
I invite you to explore Sunflower Psychology Services and see how I can support you, your family, your students, or your workplace.
You don’t have to figure this out on your own — I’m here to offer support, guidance, and understanding along the way!
About Me
Hi, my name is Penelope, but please call me Penny!
My whole family is neurodivergent, and I have three amazing autistic and ADHD children. Every neurodivergent experience is unique, but I also know first-hand what it feels like to do your best while navigating systems, appointments, frustrations, and disappointments.
I know how grounding it can be to sit with someone who really gets it — someone who listens without judgement and understands both lived experience and professional knowledge. When my children were younger, I didn’t just need information — I needed reassurance, practical strategies, and someone to walk alongside our family. That’s the kind of care I once wished for, and it’s what I aim to offer now.
You don’t need to have everything figured out — wherever you’re at, you’re welcome to come as you are, and I’ll meet you there.
Services
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Parenting a neurodivergent child — whether autistic, ADHD, or AuDHD — often involves understanding how their brain works, what their behaviour is communicating, and what helps them feel safe, regulated, and able to engage.
I offer one-on-one parent consultations and practical workshops to build understanding and confidence. Together, we make sense of your child’s emotions, behaviours, sensory experiences, and responses to their environment, and explore ways to support everyday life at home, school, and in the community.
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Teaching neurodivergent students — including those who are autistic, ADHD, or AuDHD — involves understanding how they process information, experience emotions, and respond to their environment.
I offer individual consultations for educators and school staff to support inclusive, responsive classroom practices. This may include exploring the function of behaviour, supporting big emotions and regulation through a nervous system lens, recognising masking, understanding sensitivity to perceived criticism, and considering sensory profiles, environmental supports, and preferred communication and learning styles. It also includes reducing cognitive load and using scaffolding to support access to learning.
Workshops are available, offering evidence-informed strategies to support engagement and participation.
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I work with organisations through consultations and tailored workshops to build understanding of autism, ADHD, and AuDHD in the workplace.
Together, we explore how neurodivergent employees process information, experience emotions, and respond to their environment, and what supports enable them to work effectively. This may include sensory and environmental supports, preferred communication and work styles, cognitive supports (e.g. memory, attention, concentration, motivation), supporting regulation, recognising masking, and understanding sensitivity to perceived criticism — to strengthen inclusive team cultures and enhance supportive communication with colleagues and clients.
Workshops are available, offering evidence-informed strategies to support engagement and participation.
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I provide one-on-one support for neurodivergent teens (12–17 years) and adults, centring each person’s unique strengths, interests, and lived experience as an autistic, ADHD, or AuDHD individual.
Together, we explore how your brain processes information, emotions, and your environment, and what supports help you engage and function in ways that suit you. This may include sensory and environmental supports, preferred communication styles, understanding your cognitive profile (e.g. attention, memory, motivation), supporting regulation, recognising masking, and understanding sensitivity to perceived rejection.
The focus is on practical, personalised strategies that build confidence, reduce overwhelm, and support wellbeing and authentic thriving in everyday life.
My Office
My office is a calm, cosy space designed to feel safe, welcoming, and unhurried. It offers a private setting where all individuals can feel supported, heard, and free to explore their thoughts and experiences at their own pace. Creating a gentle, respectful environment is central to the work I do.
