Meet Carlie walls
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Carlie Walls - Founder and Unmasking Mentor
Carlie Walls (she/her) is the founder of Women Unmasked and she serves as a mentor, educator, and advocate for late-diagnosed Autistic and ADHD women. Drawing on her own lived experience and trauma-informed insights, Carlie helps women unmask, heal, and reconnect with their authentic selves.
Her work centers around the complexities of masking, identity, and the intersection of trauma and neurodivergence—particularly for women who have long felt out of place without understanding why. Women Unmasked provides validation, language, and a sense of community for those discovering their neurodivergent identity, often for the first time.
Carlie is deeply passionate about shifting the narrative around adult neurodivergence. Her goal is to replace pathologizing views with one grounded in belonging, self-acceptance, and empowerment. Through Women Unmasked, she creates spaces for shared healing, where women can feel less alone—and realize they were never broken.
Carlie's Story
"I spent years hiding myself from the world because I felt so much shame when someone didn't understand my intensity. I have suffered from crippling sensory issues since I was a young girl. Sounds and sensations always provided a deep discomfort for me. I have sat through many situations where my skin was crawling and I felt rage in my soul - because I thought I had to. I didn't have the vocabulary or the understanding to express how I felt and ask for accommodations.
I have begged to fit in with my peers since I was in middle school. For 30 years I was obsessed with building a mask that would protect me from being 'exposed' as my messy self. Truthfully, I didn't know what I was doing or how it was going to drain the life from me, but I subconsciously believed that if I didn't fit in, I wasn't worthy of existing. I felt obligated to control the way people saw me. My need for attention outweighed my moral compass at times. My need to FIT IN outweighed my need to be authentic.
Starting in my late twenties, I began to find that the mask was unsustainable. The cracks were forming. The person I wanted people to see wasn't someone I recognized in the mirror. While the mask protected me for decades, it was staring to be more effort to maintain than I could keep up with. I was exhausted and burnt out. My spare time was spent sleeping, resting and dissociating. I was suffering with anxiety, depression, an eating disorder, substance abuse, body image issues, anger, rage and confusion."
Carlie's Story Continued
"While trying to keep my mask on, I lost myself. I also lost my job, my home, and almost my husband. At my lowest, I reached out for help. I advocated for a diagnosis and found a coach and a support system that LIT MY SOUL ON FIRE.
I surrendered my life to the universe. I began to trust that there was a path for me in this world, but I knew I had to live authentically if I wanted to find it. I left the corporate world and dove into a deep healing process. I learned how to take the mask off and embody this weird, confident, strong, bad-ass women who was waiting to fill the world with her light and unique medicine.
Within months I was learning to regulate my nervous system, diving into my traumas, getting help for my sensory issues and healing my marriage. One day at a time.
Today I write this with a smile on my face and a confidence in my heart. It is possible to live life without the shame and guilt that is weighing you down. You deserve to take up space - and I want to help. Community is important in your journey. Join me in getting to know yourself. No bullshit. Just healing and support."