We please. We rescue. We perform. We hold everything together - until sometimes we disappear or reach for escape.
But what if these familiar responses are not fixed identities? What if they are intelligent adaptations: ways we learned to secure safety, belonging, continuity or relief?
Following last week’s introduction to From Mask to Map, Ashley explores the Nine Adaptation Patterns at the heart of this developing body of work: the Pleaser, Rescuer, Performer, Chameleon, Strong One, Perfectionist, Controller, Vanisher and Escaper.
Moving through the different ways we reach towards belonging, attempt to hold ourselves and the world together, or create distance from overwhelming intensity, Ashley considers the protective purpose, genuine strengths and present-day costs carried within each pattern.
These are not diagnoses, personality types or nine new boxes in which to place ourselves. With careful attention to Neurodivergent Nuance, Ashley explores why the behaviour alone cannot reveal the whole pattern. Structure may be an essential accommodation rather than control. Solitude may be restoration rather than disappearance. Social fluency may be joyful expression rather than compulsory performance. What matters is the job the behaviour is performing, the freedom we have around it and the price we may now be paying.
Ashley also returns to the work of Jungian analyst Dr James Hollis and his question of what, beyond survival, may be seeking expression through us as meaning and purpose.
Through recollection, Shakespeare’s “ravelled sleave of care” and the image of the Weaver, the episode becomes an invitation to gather every thread of our experience without mistaking any single pattern for the whole design.
The episode closes with a brief guided practice, The Weaver and the Thread.
The complete guided exploration of the Nine Adaptation Patterns - including discovering your own configuration and mapping the way forward - will be exclusive to the founding From Mask to Map group coaching and hypnotherapy cohort beginning on 15 September. The programme is fully online, limited to ten people and available worldwide, with replays provided for those unable to attend live.
Spaces are still available. Visit integrativeiom.co.uk/from-mask-to-map for full details.
Our Sponsors:
🧘♀️ Ashley Dupuy – Integrative Coaching, Breathwork & Hypnotherapy
🤝 Sophie James - Neurodivergent Mentoring: sophiejamesndmentoring.com
🎧 The Neurodivergent Experience is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and all major platforms.
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🌐 Visit www.autisticculturepodcast.com
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