I’m Nicole Zimbler, founder of Neurodevelopmental Yoga Therapy (NDYT), with over 30 years of experience supporting autistic, ADHD, and neurodivergent individuals across therapeutic, educational, and social care settings.

My journey began at sixteen, working alongside profoundly autistic young adults and families of children with complex needs. Early roles in social care, supporting individuals with Autism and Cerebral Palsy, and in remedial education as a specialist learning support practitioner shaped my understanding of developmental difference and the importance of looking beneath behaviour.

At twenty, I travelled to India to complete my yoga teacher training. Returning newly qualified, I was invited to teach within a protected adolescent mental health unit and to lead community classes for adults attending outpatient mental health services — something rare at the time. That experience confirmed what I instinctively felt: yoga was not simply physical; it was deeply therapeutic. From that moment, my work has centred within therapeutic settings.

Alongside my yoga training, I completed a Level 3 Diploma in Holistic Therapy and trained as a Baby Massage Instructor, Reiki Practitioner, and Doula. Supporting families from pregnancy and birth deepened my understanding of attachment, early nervous system development, and the foundational role of regulation in lifelong wellbeing.

Over the years, my professional development has expanded to include specialist study with The Special Yoga Centre and Sonia Sumar’s Special Child programme, advanced Neurodevelopmental Therapy and Retained Reflex Integration (RMTi), and a Diploma in Trauma and Mental Health in Schools and Communities through IATE. I also trained as a Young Persons Counsellor with Terapia and spent many years as UK Manager for Sensory Activation Solutions, specialising in therapeutic listening interventions and designing individualised programmes to support sensory processing, speech and language development. Seeking deeper embodied clinical understanding, I undertook six years of training in Biodynamic Body Psychotherapy and am currently completing clinical hours as a Trainee Body Psychotherapist.

Alongside professional training, my lived experience within a neurodivergent family — including raising a daughter with ADHD — continues to shape my work. It strengthened my commitment to approaches that prioritise regulation, dignity, and meaningful participation.

All of this experience led to the creation of NDYT — a neurodiversity-affirming methodology integrating nervous system regulation, reflex integration, embodied psychotherapy, therapeutic listening, and yoga-based practice.

From prenatal support and birth work through childhood, adolescence, and adulthood, my work spans the developmental journey. I remain committed to making therapeutic support accessible, grounded in safety, and responsive to the real lives of the individuals and families I serve.

Accessible therapy should not be exceptional. It should be the standard.