Understanding Neurodivergence: A Starting Guide
What does it mean to be neurodivergent?
The term neurodivergent can be broken down very easily: neuro = the way your brain works, and divergent = differing from the norm. So to be neurodivergent is to have a brain that works different to what is commonly considered the “norm.” Some feel the term itself implies negativity, as though the way someone’s brain works is abnormal and therefore a problem, so some folks have begun using the term neurodiverse in its place.
Neurodiverse as a term recognizes that there is diversity amongst all brains, doesn’t place a hierarchy of what is “normal” and actually asks us all to remember that we exist on a spectrum of neurodiversity.
You may also have heard of the term neurotypical–while within the framework of neurodiversity, we know there is not one single way a brain functions, we can also recognize the way in which our world has been structured and designed around one type of brain functioning. This is what the term neurotypical means–it is not saying that a common type of brian functioning is ideal, just that it is typical to encounter and is already baked into how we navigate daily life.
How does neurodiversity show up?
There are many types of neurodiverse experiences and conditions including:
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
Obsessive compulsive disorder
Autism
Dyslexia
Neurodiversity is a huge umbrella term, encompassing a world of different experiences. To get started understanding some of those experiences–and to dispel myths about them you may have heard, you can read more from the following blogs:
5 Myths to Unpack About Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
Obsessions in OCD are the repetitive, distressing, and unwelcome thoughts and fears. Compulsions are the actions taken to help relieve the distress of obsessions. Sometimes a person with OCD will experience obsessions more strongly than compulsions or vice versa.
Compulsions can help relieve the distress and anxiety that the person is experiencing, but usually not for long. When the distress returns, the cycle begins again. Eventually, the compulsions that are used to relieve distress become a habit, and they can often get in the way of everyday life.
7 Lesser Known Signs of ADHD
It’s common for ADHD to be diagnosed in school-age children, but adults can be diagnosed with it as well, and sometimes the symptoms present differently in adults than in children. It’s also important to note that women and minorities are often underdiagnosed with ADHD, whereas white men are typically diagnosed according to the popular criteria. The way that ADHD presents in adults, women, and minorities might not be the “classic” ADHD symptoms that we’re familiar with, so it’s important to understand lesser known signs of ADHD.
How ADHD Presents In Adult Women
Did you know that women experience ADHD at the same rates as men? The mainstream understanding of Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is that it makes you hyper and unable to focus. However, that’s not the only way that ADHD manifests. Part of the reason that women are underdiagnosed with ADHD is that they typically experience symptoms in a less noticeable way. We also tend to think that ADHD is only diagnosed in kids because that’s what is the most common. It’s actually possible for someone of any age to be diagnosed with ADHD. Adults, women, and minorities might not have the “classic” type of ADHD so it’s not as obvious when it comes time to diagnose what is going on.
There are many ways to be neurodiverse, and many ways to experience the ways in which neurodiversity stands out in a world designed for a neurotypical brain. However one common experience many neurodiverse folks have is the experience of “masking.”
Masking: What It Is and How It Shows Up
While masking can make it look like folks are adapting to the expectations of different settings, all that is really happening is certain people are learning to suppress parts of themselves. It’s motivated by fear and shame and a desire to avoid isolation. Because of this, folks on the spectrum can start to feel as though they are the issue, rather than our culture’s unwillingness to make space for them. It can start to feel as though people are overly burdened by your own natural and soothing behaviors, which causes you to suppress them, to feel shame about them, and consequently to feel shame about yourself. Folks who mask experience higher levels of stress, increased anxiety, increased depression, and have higher rates of suicidal thoughts than they’re neurotypical peers. There is also significant emotional burnout that comes from masking, leaving little to no energy for anything other than trying to be “normal.”
Here at Hope +Wellness we test all people but one of our specialties is in testing girls and women. We are here to help you with this — many of the individuals we test are women who have experienced many years of symptoms going unrecognized, undiagnosed, untreated, and all the associated emotional impacts — looking for answers and relief.