The Instinctual Woman

What people are saying...

"Layla is an impactful speaker that gets an audience thinking differently. She has a unique way of sharing her real life experiences to challenge systems that are no longer working and inspires us to explore new perspectives and innovative solutions." - Makaylah Rogers, Mental Health Advocate & Keynote Speaker, Co-founder Frankie D’s Donuts

"Layla Messner is a powerful advocate for the intersection of topics including poverty, neurodiversity, and mental health. She speaks with honesty and is able to help others understand different perspectives that need to be heard." - Mich Lam, Graphic Designer/Queer Advocate

"A great learning experience for frontline workers and others interested in neurodiversity."
- Cheryl Parnell, Program Manager

"I would encourage people to attend this talk as it provides a new and thoughtful perspective on the brain and environment."
- Tarik Drummond, Support Worker

"This was a new topic. People don’t know much about this subject, and it was really informative."
- Harmeen, Sr. Business Services Associate

My Speaking Topics:
- Mental Health Awareness
- Neurodiversity
- High-masking Autism
- Invisible Disability
- Trauma and Resilience
- Women's Empowerment
- Wilderness Preservation

Signature Talks:

1. The Brain is Part of its Environment
The relationship between the brain and its environment affects such diverse social issues as mental health, trauma, neurodiversity, invisible disability, and poverty. This talk can be adapted to explore different facets of intersectionality through the lived experience of an autistic trauma survivor with multiple invisible disabilities.

2. This is What Invisible Disability Looks Like
I may “look fine” but without financial support from my family, I would be dead. From stigma, to pressure to harm ourselves, to denial of supports, discrimination impacts the lives of invisibly disabled people every single day. Discover why health is an invisible form of privilege and how you can stand against ableism, through stories from a late-diagnosed autistic woman with invisible disabilities.

3. YOU Are a Wild Animal
We talk about nature as if it’s a destination, something separate from us. We even call it “outside.” But humans are animals. We are as much a part of nature as wildlife is. As an autistic artist who grew up in the wilderness, I’ll share why I believe going outside to connect with nature is backward…and why the first step to wilderness preservation is connecting WITHIN.

Custom topics available upon request.

Neurodivergent speaker. Please minimize external noise; avoid beeping or loud sounds, no background music during performance. Thank you!