Thriving Wellness Center New York
Neurodiversity-Affirming Mental Health Services in Midtown East, New York
Personalized therapy, evaluations and practical support for teens, adults and couples navigating ADHD, autism, anxiety, emotional regulation, executive functioning and neurodiverse relationships. Meet with our clinical team in Midtown East or access secure telehealth services across New York.
New York mental health services
Support that starts with understanding how your mind works
You may already have a diagnosis, be exploring whether ADHD or autism explains long-standing patterns, or simply know that your current strategies are no longer working. Our role is not to force you into a standard mold. We help you understand your needs, reduce shame and build practical ways forward.
This New York clinic is part of Thriving Wellness Center’s broader approach to autism and ADHD evaluations and therapy, connecting specialized assessment, neurodiversity-affirming mental health care and practical support for clients in New York and New Jersey.
Attention, regulation and daily life
ADHD Therapy in New York
ADHD can affect far more than concentration. Therapy can help with task initiation, emotional intensity, time management, rejection sensitivity, self-esteem, relationships and the exhausting cycle of knowing what to do but struggling to begin.
A formal ADHD diagnosis is not required to start therapy. Sessions are adapted to your priorities rather than built around generic productivity advice.
Explore ADHD therapy for teens and adultsIdentity, sensory needs and sustainable living
Autism Therapy in New York
Neurodiversity-affirming autism therapy is not about teaching you to appear less autistic. It can provide space to understand masking, sensory overwhelm, burnout, communication differences, emotional regulation and what a more authentic, sustainable life could look like.
Support is available for teens and adults, including people who were diagnosed later in life or are still making sense of their autistic identity.
Learn about autism therapy in New YorkClarity, context and next steps
Autism and ADHD Evaluations
A comprehensive evaluation can help clarify patterns that may have been overlooked, masked or explained in other ways. The goal is not simply to receive a label, but to better understand your strengths, challenges, support needs and options for moving forward.
Evaluation format and location depend on the service and your circumstances. After you contact us, we will send a tailored email explaining the relevant evaluation format and whether it may be completed virtually or in person.
Practical systems without shame
Executive Function Coaching
Coaching focuses on concrete skills such as planning, prioritizing, organizing, estimating time, beginning tasks and following through. Together, you can create systems that fit your actual brain, responsibilities and environment.
Coaching may be a strong fit when your primary goal is hands-on support with routines and implementation rather than deeper emotional or relationship-focused therapy.
See how executive function coaching worksOverwhelm, anxiety and emotional intensity
Anxiety and DBT-Informed Therapy
Anxiety may show up as constant overthinking, avoidance, perfectionism, physical tension or fear of disappointing others. DBT-informed care can also support distress tolerance, emotional regulation, boundaries and more effective communication.
Treatment is personalized to the person behind the symptoms, including the ways ADHD, autism, trauma or sensory stress may shape the experience.
Connection across different communication styles
Neurodiverse Couples Therapy
When partners process information, emotions and communication differently, the same conflict can repeat even when both people care deeply about the relationship. Therapy can help identify the pattern beneath the argument and replace blame with clearer understanding.
Sessions may address mixed-neurotype relationships, ADHD-related conflict, autistic communication differences, intimacy, shared responsibilities and repair after misunderstandings.
Explore neurodiverse couples counselingWho we help
Care for the parts of life that rarely fit into a checklist
Many people reach out after years of working harder than others realize. You may appear capable at work or school while privately struggling with exhaustion, inconsistency, sensory overload or the feeling that everyday demands require too much effort.
- Late-diagnosed and questioning adults Looking back on lifelong patterns of masking, social confusion, burnout, distractibility or feeling different without knowing why.
- Teens navigating school and identity Managing academic demands, emotional regulation, friendships, independence and the pressure to meet expectations.
- High-achieving professionals Coping with executive dysfunction, perfectionism, interview anxiety, workplace communication and burnout beneath strong external performance.
- People experiencing autistic burnout Feeling depleted by masking, sensory demands or chronic overextension and needing a more sustainable approach to daily life.
- Adults with both autism and ADHD traits Navigating the push and pull between routine and novelty, deep focus and distraction, sensory seeking and sensory avoidance.
- Neurodiverse couples and partners Working through recurring misunderstandings, uneven responsibilities, emotional disconnection or different needs for structure and communication.
Our approach
Neurodiversity-affirming care with practical direction
Good care should make your experience easier to understand—not reduce you to a diagnosis. Depending on your goals, sessions may draw from approaches such as CBT, ACT, DBT, mindfulness, executive function skill-building and relationship-focused work while remaining responsive to your sensory, communication and processing needs.
Start by contacting us
Use the Contact Us page to tell us what has been difficult, what you hope will change and whether you are considering therapy, coaching or an evaluation.
Meet the right clinician
We consider your goals, age, location, scheduling needs and the type of clinical experience that would best support you.
Build a personalized plan
Care is shaped around your real life, with clear goals, collaborative adjustments and strategies you can use beyond the session.
Midtown East location
Mental health care in the part of Manhattan where life already happens
Our New York clinic is located at 220 East 54th Street between Second and Third Avenues. The Midtown East setting is convenient for people who live, work or study around Turtle Bay, Sutton Place, East Midtown, the Upper East Side and nearby Manhattan neighborhoods.
The Lexington Avenue–53rd Street station serving the E and M lines is close to the clinic. The 6 train at 51st Street and Grand Central connections are also accessible from Midtown East.
The clinic is near 601 Lexington Avenue, Greenacre Park and the Midtown corridor leading toward St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Rockefeller Center and Grand Central Terminal.
When traveling into Manhattan is not practical, secure virtual appointments may allow eligible New York clients to receive care from home.
About Thriving Wellness Center
Specialized care from a team that understands neurodivergent lives
Thriving Wellness Center is a founder-led private practice providing autism and ADHD evaluations, therapy and support for teens, adults and couples. The practice was founded by Leila Ostad, LCSW, MBS, ADHD-CCSP, whose work focuses on autism, ADHD, late diagnosis and complex presentations.
Our clinicians bring experience in neurodiversity-affirming therapy, executive functioning, emotional regulation, anxiety, relationship dynamics and evidence-based approaches. Just as importantly, care is collaborative: we listen to how a challenge functions in your life and work with you to develop strategies that are realistic, respectful and specific.
Resources from our clinical team
Understand the patterns behind overwhelm, burnout and disconnection
These articles explore experiences that often bring New Yorkers to therapy or evaluation, including the interaction between autism and ADHD, high-masking burnout and task paralysis.
Autism + ADHD
AuDHD in Adults: What It Looks Like in Daily Life
Learn how routine and novelty, hyperfocus and distraction, or sensory seeking and avoidance can create an internal tug-of-war.
Read about AuDHD in adultsMasking and exhaustion
Autistic Burnout in High-Achieving Women
Explore how chronic masking, sensory demands and sustained performance can affect energy, functioning and emotional regulation.
Understand autistic burnoutExecutive functioning
Why Tasks Can Feel Impossible: The Wall of Awful
Understand why emotional history and executive dysfunction can turn an ordinary task into something that feels impossible to begin.
Read about the Wall of AwfulPeople also ask
Common questions about ADHD, autism and therapy in New York
These questions reflect common searches people make before choosing therapy or an evaluation. The answers below are based on the services, policies and clinical approach described by Thriving Wellness Center.
What type of therapy is best for adults with ADHD?
There is no single approach that is best for every adult with ADHD. At Thriving Wellness Center, ADHD therapy is personalized and neurodiversity-affirming. Sessions may address emotional regulation, self-esteem, rejection sensitivity, relationships, task initiation and patterns that affect work or daily life. Depending on your goals, care may draw from approaches such as CBT, ACT, DBT-informed therapy, mindfulness and executive function skill-building.
Can ADHD be treated without medication?
Medication is a personal choice, and therapy can be used with or without it. Thriving Wellness Center helps teens and adults build new coping strategies, emotional regulation skills and more workable patterns for daily life. The practice does not present medication as a requirement for beginning therapy.
Do I need an ADHD diagnosis before starting therapy?
No. A formal ADHD diagnosis is not required to begin therapy at Thriving Wellness Center. You can seek support for executive dysfunction, emotional regulation, overwhelm or related concerns while you are still deciding whether a diagnostic evaluation would be useful.
Can adults be evaluated for autism in New York?
Yes. Thriving Wellness Center provides comprehensive autism evaluations for teens and adults, including people exploring a late diagnosis or a history of masking. Evaluations are available through the New York clinic and through secure telehealth when the virtual format is appropriate.
Can autism and ADHD evaluations be completed virtually?
Yes. Thriving Wellness Center offers virtual autism and ADHD evaluations through secure telehealth, as well as in-person options. The team uses a comprehensive clinical process and can explain which format may be appropriate for your circumstances in a tailored email after you contact the practice.
How long does an adult autism evaluation take?
Thriving Wellness Center states that its comprehensive autism evaluations for teens and adults typically last approximately two to two and a half hours. Intake documentation, interpretation of the results and any follow-up recommendations are also part of the broader evaluation process.
What is neurodiversity-affirming therapy?
Neurodiversity-affirming therapy does not treat autism or ADHD as something that must be hidden or corrected. At Thriving Wellness Center, the focus is on understanding how your brain works, recognizing strengths and support needs, reducing unnecessary distress and developing strategies that are realistic for your life.
What is the difference between ADHD therapy and executive function coaching?
ADHD therapy focuses more broadly on mental health and emotional experiences, including self-esteem, anxiety, relationships, frustration and past patterns. Executive function coaching is more directly focused on practical implementation, such as planning, organization, time management, task initiation and follow-through. Some clients may benefit from one service or a combination of both.
Does Thriving Wellness Center accept insurance?
Thriving Wellness Center is an out-of-network practice and does not bill insurance companies directly. The practice can provide a superbill that you may submit to your insurer for possible reimbursement. Coverage depends on your specific out-of-network mental health and telehealth benefits.
What happens after I contact Thriving Wellness Center?
Start by submitting an inquiry through the Contact Us page. You will receive an email tailored to the specific service you are asking about, and you are welcome to ask any follow-up questions by email. If you still feel that speaking directly would be helpful after that exchange, the possibility of scheduling a brief consultation can be discussed.
You do not have to keep working harder without understanding why
Begin by contacting us through the website and sharing what you are looking for. We will send a tailored email about the most relevant service, answer your questions by email and discuss a brief consultation only if you still feel one would be helpful.