Individualized Neurodivergence and Health Support by Dr Kana Grace
1-to-1 Support
1. Basic Information
1.1. Who is this for?
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Neurodivergent individuals of all ages including those who are officially diagnosed, self-identified, in the process of getting a diagnosis.
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Neurodivergent people who are seeking someone who understands neurodivergence
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Neurodivergent people who want to understand their diagnoses
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Neurodivergent people who want to navigate their mental, physical, and social health
1.2. Examples of Support
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Pre- and post-diagnosis support
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Time management and planning
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Building a study routine
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Dealing with anxiety and/or stress
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Developing effective learning styles
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Successfully completing university degrees (e.g., undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctorate)
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Recovering from burnout
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Advocating for oneself (e.g., in school, the workplace, within family settings)
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Creating lifestyle that is suitable for oneself
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Guiding mental and physical health challenges to seek diagnoses and appropriate care (e.g., EDS/HSD, POTS, MS/CFS)
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Health coaching (e.g., eating, nutrition, lifestyle)
*We are not able to give you an assessment/diagnosis.
We previously referred to our support as Specialist Mentoring, but as we have broadened our areas of support to include health coaching, we now simply call it 1-to-1 support.
Specialist Mentoring is a standard practice in the UK higher education settings that is provided by qualified specialist mentors. Kana meets all the criteria and is able to support you in the same way.
1.3. Fees
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10,000 JPY/hour (approx. 70 USD, 50 GBP*)
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5,000 JPY/30 minutes (approx. 34 USD, 25 GBP*)
Here are the options available for those planning to see Dr Kana Grace over an extended period:
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90,000 JPY/10 hours (approx. 620USD, 470 GBP*)
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47,500 JPY/5 hours (approx. 330USD, 250GBP*)
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Payable via PayPal
*This is subject to change depending on the exchange rate at the time of payment
1.4. Sessions
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We offer the sessions on a weekly basis at the same time each week. If you prefer to meet on a one-off basis, it is okay, too. However, we recommend regular meetings to see benefits from sessions.
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Sessions can be attended on a short-term basis (e.g. 5/10/15 sessions) or on a long-term basis for more in-depth work
1.5 Mode of communication
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We arrange meetings on Zoom.
1.6 How Our 1-to-1 Support Works
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Reach Out: Contact us at valtameri.grace@outlook.com to express your interest in our support services. Please include your name and reason for contacting us.
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Scheduling: We will respond to your inquiry to arrange a time and date for our initial session. At this time, we'll request the email address associated with your PayPal account to send you an invoice, unless you're scheduling a free 15-minute consultation. A free 15-minute Zoom conversation is available as an option for those who find it helpful to meet me first before regular sessions (e.g., 60 minutes). Prior to our first regular session, I will email you an informed consent form which outlines the important details regarding the 1-to-1 support at Valtameri. You’ll have the opportunity to review it, sign it, and return it to me.
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Payment and Confirmation: Once your payment is confirmed on PayPal, we will send you a Zoom link the day before your session. We send the Zoom link a day before our session to serve as a reminder!
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Initial Session: Our first meeting will take place on Zoom.
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Next Steps: After the initial session, you can decide how you'd like to proceed—whether that means scheduling weekly meetings with Kana or seeking support from another practitioner. Our priority is to ensure the best outcome for you.
2. Client Reviews
It was such a rich experience working with Kana. I bought a five session pack to help me process my autism diagnosis, and we have covered so much - many things that I would have felt really exposed unpacking with a conventional neurotypical therapist. She has helped me uncover more layers to my neurodivergence that are really helping me to make sense of myself, and that I am looking forward to exploring further. Our explorations have included the effects of hormonal cycles on the expression of different traits, and Kana has helped me explore accommodations and supports I can make in my life. One of the things I will treasure is her reflections on what my life is - if you are working in a very demanding job and are plagued by rejection sensitivity or perfectionism it can be hard to fully acknowledge all that is good in yourself, and Kana has helped me to appreciate different qualities in myself. I'm leaving the sessions confident in a strategy to better accommodate my needs at work and at home, and I'm looking forward to catching up with Kana in the future.
Female charity executive, UK
Kana understood very well what I was struggling with, particularly issues related to autism. She is a very calming and kind person who has been very supportive and encouraged me a lot. I felt very motivated and confident at the end of the sessions. The mentoring sessions were always happening at the same time on the same day on a weekly basis. It provided a frame and helped me organise my studying hours during the week. Kana guided me to come up with a plan and set realistic goals to finish my coursework in time. I developed studying skills and strategies to cope with anxiety. Mentoring with Kana was very helpful to deal with personal and academic issues especially during the lockdown. She provided me with emotional support and motivated me a lot during difficult times.
Neurodivergent (ND) individual, university student, UK
I am a mother of an autitstic son. I asked for Kana's support to better understand my son. Kana is a gentle person and easy to talk to. I felt relaxed talking with her. She did not only listened to me well but also provided me with helpful information. Every time after talking with her, I feel hope and see some progress. With an academic background, she has experiences of living in Japan, USA, and UK, so it has been very helpful to hear about autism from such diverse perspectives. Similarly to autistic people, families of autistic children also sometimes feel lonely. Kana was the first autistic person for me to talk with, and conversation with her felt right to me. I feel someone like Kana we can rely on is invaluable: someone who has an expertise in autism and supports autistic people and their families.
Mother of a ND child, UK
During the sessions we had together, Kana helped me to identify effective learning strategies (which improved my productivity) and gave me tips on coping with and addressing my mental health conditions (which improved my general wellbeing). She is easy to talk to, compassionate, and flexible in terms of communication channels — some weeks, we talked via text-chat rather than video calling (as per my request).
ND individual, postgraduate student, UK
The fact that I am very functional in some aspects makes most people disbelieve my concerns about doing certain things. Talking with Kana was one of the first times I've felt that someone fully understood some of the difficulties I was having. Talking with her has helped me clarify many things about my capabilities, fears, and how I should think about them, and made me feel much less alone.
ND individual, postgraduate student, US
I would highly recommend Kana as a mentor to anyone looking to explore their neurodiversity.
I met with Kana more than 10 times on zoom over several months in 2023 and it has been a wonderful experience. As someone who recently sought an Autism assessment, it was the perfect opportunity to process common themes and concepts around late diagnosis.
It was also lovely to know that she is working to support autistic people through her research. I enjoyed finding out more of the latest studies and it was interesting to discuss all manner of topics such as alexithymia, aphantasia, and pathological demand avoidance.
She has a calm and open approach, which was perfect for me, and shares gentle advice and thoughtful impressions.
It was wonderful to chat with someone who has lived experience of Autism and who can normalise experiences not shared by the majority. If anyone wants to know if they are 'normal', or who feels alone in their experience of the world, I hope you can consider reaching out to Kana to see if she is a good fit!
ND individual, Health professional, Australia
Thank you for always listening with empathy and providing emotional support.
I used to think that my overflowing tasks and ideas were due to my own laziness, but realizing they are characteristics of being neurodivergent has allowed me to think positively about how to leverage these traits rather than trying to "fix" them.
Personally, learning from Kana's extensive knowledge and experience about Japan's position in global neurodiversity and the initiatives in other countries has been incredibly helpful as I explore my career plans.
I have experienced many services such as coaching and counseling, but I have never encountered another service that truly empathizes with the feelings of neurodivergent individuals and provides support ranging from everyday life hacks to career and life planning.
As specialist mentoring like this does not exist in Japan, I strongly hope that many other neurodivergent individuals and their families will learn about Kana’s support.
ND individual, IT Company, Japan
Some paraphrased reflections from clients about our sessions, as shared with me verbally:
"Our teenage daughter had reached a point where she no longer wanted to speak with any therapists, counselors, or psychologists. However, after each session with you, she expresses a desire to talk with you again. As parents, we are truly amazed that she feels comfortable enough to continue these conversations."
"You’ve been able to get my 8 year-old son to open up in ways I never thought possible. Through your questions, he shares experiences that I, as his father, would never have discovered without your help."
"I’m so grateful to have met you!"
"I’ve stopped looking for additional support for my son because we’ve built a trusted and ongoing relationship with you. Your personal understanding of autism brings a unique and invaluable perspective to your work."
3. Where Our Clients Are From

Note: The pins roughly indicate where our clients are from but
do not represent their numbers.
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4. My Heart Towards the Supporting Neurodivergent Individuals and Their Families
I serve as the middle person between you and your psychiatrist or other doctors (e.g., rheumatologist). Based on my personal experiences with medical doctors for my autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, Tourette, and hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (along with many symptoms I still struggle to describe), I know how difficult and challenging it can be to navigate psychiatric or medical appointments. I wanted someone I could regularly talk to—someone who truly understood me and could support me in navigating my life. My hope is to be that person for you, your go-to person for health-related concerns regarding neurodivergence.
Over the years, I encountered many clinicians—most experiences were negative, but a few were positive. During my PhD at UCL, when I was on the verge of giving up on receiving any form of support, I decided to try Specialist Autism Mentoring offered through UCL. My mentors turned out to be some of the most understanding practitioners I had ever met, and I am still in touch with them to this day. While Specialist Mentoring is limited to students at UK-based universities, I wanted to extend this unique form of support to neurodivergent individuals of all ages, beyond the confines of academia. This led me to begin supporting other neurodivergent individuals in a similar way around the same time I established the first-ever Autistic Peer Group at UCL.
As an Autism and Neurodivergence Psychologist and Lifestyle Medicine Professional, I am dedicated to lifelong learning and evidence-based practice. With experience in both Psychology and Medicine, I’ve built a network that includes psychologists, physicians, and other healthcare professionals.
For each individual I work with, I spend 60–90 minutes preparing for and summarizing sessions. If you’re my client, I securely maintain a file with your name on it, documenting summaries and plans for each session we’ve had together. I also track each client’s progress in a separate document. I strive to make our time meaningful and well spent, and I consider it a great honor to support every client.
I work with children, teens, and adults. About half of my clients tend to be children and teens, and the other half tend to be adults. You can read more about this in the FAQs.
Please note that I don’t work with every client who approaches me for support. If I believe that seeking assistance from other professionals would be more beneficial, I encourage them to do so.
5. FAQs
What kind of support do you offer?
Please refer to the “Examples of Support” section above for more details, as well as my profile on the “Our Team” page for information about my qualifications and background. My profile also includes links that provide additional details.
Can you talk to my teachers, employers, or university professors?
If you have been working with me for a while (at least five sessions or more), I can, upon request, write a supporting letter to your school, employer, or university. This letter will advocate on your behalf and clearly communicate your needs, often to request reasonable adjustments. Please note that writing a letter is considered and charged as one session.
Requesting reasonable accommodations is not a sign of weakness—it simply ensures a level playing field with everyone else. If accommodations are poorly received, it is the environment (and those within it) that need to change, not you. They need to better understand neurodiversity and create spaces that accommodate neurodivergent individuals more effectively.
Do you work with children or teens?
Yes, I wholeheartedly enjoy working with children and teens, and about half of my clients fall into this group. It’s a tremendous honor to be a part of a young person’s life and support them on their journey.
During my undergraduate years in Boston, while preparing to apply for a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling, I worked as an assistant social worker in the pediatric chemotherapy and oncology unit at Tufts Medical Center. I was there every Friday, including on Christmas Day. It was a deeply meaningful experience that continues to inspire my work today.
Can I (parent/caretaker) join the sessions with my children/teens?
Yes. You are welcome to join the sessions as long as you and your children are in agreement with the arrangement.
How is your support different from many other therapists, counselors, or psychologists?
I bring a unique combination of personal, academic, and professional experience with neurodivergence, particularly autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, Tourette, and hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.
In addition to one-to-one support, I am actively involved in research, public speaking, and education. Some of my roles include:
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Honorary Postdoctoral Research Fellow at University College London
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Guest Lecturer in the Postgraduate Certification in Autism course at Sheffield Hallam University/National Autistic Society
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Advisor for SEDSConnective
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Peer Reviewer for journals such as Autism in Adulthood and the Journal of Autism
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Research partner with Autism Spectrum Australia
You can find more about my background and experiences on the “Our Team” page, which also includes links to further details.
Beyond my expertise in neurodivergence, I have a broader understanding of human health. I am board-certified in Lifestyle Medicine by the International Board of Lifestyle Medicine. In short, this means that I have a comprehensive understanding of evidence-based approaches to improve health and well-being. (For more details, please refer to the Lifestyle Medicine page.)
Additionally, I hold a certification in Nutritional Medicine from the University of Winchester.
These combined experiences and qualifications enable me to offer whole-person, individualized support that is grounded in both lived and professional expertise.
In what languages, do you offer your support?
I currently provide support exclusively in English. However, you are welcome to email me initially in English, Japanese, or French.