Peer support · lived experience · training
Mental Matriarch
Hello, I’m Cassandra. I offer peer support to people who are neurodivergent, and to people living with addiction, mental health difficulties or trauma. It comes from two places: raising five children with a wide range of needs, and the training I’ve gathered along the way — alongside a long habit of asking services to do better.
What I work with
Over the years my life and my work have covered a lot of ground. Rather than list it all at once, here it is in plain terms.
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Neurodivergence
Autism, ADHD, and PDA in particular — my son has a confirmed PDA profile obtained through NHS assessment, and I’ve written and campaigned on PDA specifically.
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Mental health
Including distressing voices, which I’ve trained in at three levels, and long family experience of Bipolar Disorder and schizophrenia-spectrum experiences.
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Addiction & recovery
Trained in harm reduction, safer injecting, overdose prevention, relapse prevention and motivational interviewing.
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Trauma
Offered as peer support and a steady, unhurried presence — never as therapy or treatment.
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Families & parents
I’m a mum of five now-adult children with a wide range of needs, so the parent’s side of all this is very familiar ground.
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Services & systems
Advising services on their practice, consultation submissions, campaigning, and a national campaign I ran with other parents.
There’s more detail on my training, experience and publications if that’s useful to you.
Where to go next
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About me
Who I am, and the training and experience behind all this.
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Services
Consultations, one-to-one and group peer support, held online.
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Book a consultation
An introductory conversation, £55 for the hour, to see if peer support is a fit — or a one-off consult.
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Resources
Guides in the making, plus free signposting to other organisations and to NHS services.
A word about what this is
What I offer is peer support, built on lived experience and training. It isn’t therapy, counselling, treatment or diagnosis, I’m not a clinician, and this isn’t a crisis service. It sits alongside NHS care rather than replacing it.
If you need urgent help right now, the free crisis lines are listed here — they’re free to contact and nothing to do with me.