Support

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.  

Autistic university student (UK)

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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 an autistic child (UK)

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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). 

Autistic postgraduate student (UK) 

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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.

Autistic postgraduate student (US) 

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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!

Health professional, Australia