About Me

Hi! My name is Heather Zak. I grew up as an undiagnosed autistic person struggling to navigate the neurotypical world. I was told I was just a little shy, anxious, sensitive, and quirky. Nobody thought I could be autistic because I got good grades, behaved in class, and had friends.

This didn’t come naturally to me though. I spent so much time trying to “fit in” and mask all of my differences. My nervous system eventually reached its breaking point, and the stress began to manifest as physical symptoms, including weekly migraines, daily persistent headache, chronic fatigue, muscle soreness, exercise intolerance, weight gain, and painful periods.

After discovering I’m autistic at age 19, everything started to make sense. I realized there was a reason why I was struggling, and it wasn’t because I was lazy or bad at life or not good enough or not trying hard enough. My brain just works differently – and that’s okay. I found accommodations to make my life so much easier, and my symptoms began to disappear.

While awareness of neurodiversity is growing, the reality is that most wellness resources still aren’t built with neurodivergent people in mind. Finding practices that actually work for my brain has been a long, frustrating process of trial and error. I’ve had to sort through advice that was never meant for me, advocate for myself in spaces that didn’t understand my needs, and slowly unlearn all of the ableist beliefs I had internalized.

That’s exactly why I do what I do – to make wellness more inclusive, affirming, and accessible for neurodivergent people like me. Because we all deserve support that honors who we truly are, not just who the world expects us to be.