Twice Translated

Introduction In this episode, we respond to listener questions in a curious conversation about autistic burnout, hormones, and why life can sometimes feel overwhelming. We explore themes that have come up again and again from listeners, including special interests, burnout, healthcare experiences, and navigating friendships and communication. Episode Overview We talk about special interests and wh...

In this episode, we explore big feelings, emotional intensity, and overwhelm, particularly in autism and neurodivergence. We talk about emotional experiences that arrive loudly, linger longer, and can feel overwhelming or confusing in a world that often struggles to make space for strong emotion. We talk about what big feelings are, why some people experience emotions more intensely than others, a...

In this episode, we share more of our personal and professional journeys with autism, and talk openly about imposter syndrome in the therapy room. Carolyn reflects on her experience of working with autism in therapy, and how she has been guided by Carl Rogers’ writing on empathy, particularly the idea of entering the private perceptual world of another and being at home in it. This way of working...

This episode follows on from our previous conversation about the diagnosis process. Here, we focus on what can come after an autism diagnosis. Catherine shares her personal experience of life after diagnosis, including the emotional, relational, and practical adjustments that can follow. She reflects on how understanding herself differently shaped her sense of identity, and how diagnosis was not a...

In this episode, we talk about the diagnosis process, focusing not on how to obtain an autism diagnosis, but on Catherine’s personal experience of going through one. Catherine speaks openly and vulnerably about her journey through assessment, including the emotional toll of answering questions about past experiences and long standing patterns. She reflects on how confronting some of the questions...

In this episode, we explore processing styles. The different ways our brains take in, organise, and make sense of the world. We talk about bottom up and top down processing, how they show up in everyday life, and why many autistic people experience the world through a detail first lens. We draw on the work of Pellicano and Burr (2012), which helps explain why autistic perception can feel vivid, in...

In this first episode, we talk about masking. The ways many autistic people adapt or hide parts of themselves to feel safe. We explore how masking has shown up in our personal and professional lives, the cost of long term masking, and what it can feel like to begin unmasking. Catherine mentions Brené Brown’s idea of shame gremlins, and how internalised messages shape the way we present ourselves....

Hello were Catherine and Carolyn, two friends, colleagues and psychotherapists who love a curious conversation. Twice translated is a safe space to gently explore trying to bridge the experiences of everyone. Season 1 explored autistic and non autistic experiences from masking, diagnosis, big feelings and how processing styles may differ between individuals. With curiosity, compassion and humour,...