Understanding Autism: Visibility and Valuing Difference

About our guests: 

Porscia Lam is a Melbourne-based lawyer and writer. After taking a career break in 2021 to care for her two young children, including one diagnosed with autism, she was inspired by her family’s experience to write The Unlocking: An Autism Story.

Shortlisted for the 2024 Hawkeye Manuscript Development Prize and awarded a Kirkus Star in 2025, The Unlocking is an atypical memoir spanning five transformative years. It is by turns agonising, hilarious and triumphant. The book offers solace and hope to families while challenging perceptions of autism and ableism through an honest, deeply human story.

Holly Pretorius (she/her) is a registered Educational and Developmental Psychologist with a Master’s degree from Monash University. She works with children, adolescents and adults, supporting a range of concerns including anxiety, depression, interpersonal challenges, identity exploration, school avoidance and self-esteem issues. Holly has a special interest in working with neurodivergent and LGBTQIAP+ adolescents. She is proudly queer and autistic, and her lived experience informs an authentic, empathetic and client-centred approach.

An important part of Holly's practice is her co-therapist, Cashew, a certified Therapy Dog whose calming presence provides comfort, co-regulation and social connection for clients.