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Romaine Desclos
About
I’m a California-licensed psychologist with over a decade in mental health and recovery, working across forensic psychology, healthcare, private practice, advocacy, and coaching. I earned my doctorate in Forensic Psychology from Alliant International University, and my roots are in San Diego.But beyond the credentials, I’m deeply curious about people. I love the brain, I love nature, and I’m fascinated by how differently we can experience the world.That’s a big part of what draws me to neurodiversity-affirming work. My experience includes ADHD and autism assessment, as well as supporting people and families through trauma, recovery, relationships, and major life transitions.I’m not here to tell people who they’re supposed to be. I’m here to get curious with them.I believe people shouldn’t have to spend their lives trying to become more acceptable versions of themselves. I want to help people understand their experiences, recognize their strengths, and find more compassion and power in who they already are.And after more than a decade doing this work, I’m still curious about one thing: How are you really experiencing this process?
My interest in working with autistic and neurodivergent clients comes from both my clinical experience and a deep curiosity about how people experience the world.Through my work with ADHD and autism assessment, I’ve seen how often people spend years wondering why certain things feel harder for them, or believing they need to change who they are to fit expectations that were never designed with them in mind.I’m passionate about helping people understand themselves through a strengths-based, neurodiversity-affirming lens. I want clients to feel seen beyond a diagnosis, to make sense of their experiences, recognize the ways they’ve already adapted and survived, and discover what actually works for their brain and their life.I’m not here to tell someone who they’re supposed to be. I’m here to get curious with them, help them feel understood, and support them in finding more freedom, self-compassion, and confidence in who they already are.
I bring a curious, compassionate, and strengths-based lens to my work. I don’t see neurodivergence as something that needs to be fixed. I see it as part of the whole person, and I want to understand how that person experiences and moves through the world.I focus on helping clients recognize the strengths, adaptations, interests, and ways of thinking that already exist within them, and then build from there. Sometimes what has been labeled a “challenge” is also connected to a strength, a need, or a way of coping that once served an important purpose.As a woman of color and queer provider, I also understand how identity and the expectations of the world around us can shape how safe we feel being fully ourselves. I strive to create a space where clients can show up authentically, without having to perform or explain away who they are.My goal is for clients to leave our work not feeling like they need to become someone different, but feeling more equipped, understood, and connected to the person they already are.
