The Reality of Being Neurodivergent

Summary

 

Being neurodivergent doesn’t have to have a negative effect. Every neurodivergent person experiences their own neurodivergence differently.

 

Being diagnosed later in life could have a huge impact on how a neurodivergent person sees themselves. They often feel isolated or misunderstood. 

 

Here are some of my pro and cons

Pros

• See the world a lot differently
• Good at planning
• Fab imagination
• Connect with animals easier
• Seeing details others find hard to see
• Good at problem solving
• Experience the world different
• Watching the same tv shows over and over
• Having “special interests” 

 

Cons

• Takes a while for my brain to process what’s been asked or said
• Can feel overpowered
• Sensory overload
• Last minute changes can be very stressful
• Find it hard to form strong connections with new people 
• Don’t understand self emotions or other people’s emotions 
• Don’t understand jokes and sarcasm
• Find it hard to keep plans (This could be because of hyper focusing)
• Not understanding clear instructions 
• Not able to try new foods
• Find it hard to maintain friendships (unless have things in common)

 

Pro/Cons

• Hyper focus (this can be be a pro or con depends if I need to do something)
• Being organised (can cause headaches)
• Think outside the box (this can lead to overthinking).
• Burnout (this can lead to practising self care)
• Change in sensory needs (this can change due to mood)

Anonymous- Female Adult

 

Being neurodivergent means that I view and interact with the world differently to those who are neurotypical. 

 

Pros

I embrace the fact that I am unique. I have the unconditional support and acceptance from my family and friends who encourage me to love and accept myself for who I am.

 

I have skills and talents that I maybe would not have possessed if I was neurotypical, such as having a powerful memory and the ability to recall dates of past events. For as long as I can remember, my family have relied on my recall of dates for their own information such as when they purchased a household item to know when it needs replacing. I use this skill myself when giving information to others about myself and my family.

 

Having identified as neurodivergent from early childhood, I have been able to use my personal experiences to help others. For example, in coming to terms with the diagnosis of one of my children, and also  helping a friend when they were coming to terms with their own diagnosis.

 

Cons

I struggle with anxiety and social awkwardness in public and when interacting with others as I find it hard to read social situations.

 

Sometimes I do not know when it is my turn to speak in a group situation and take it the wrong way if people tell me not to speak because someone else has something to say. This can make me feel like my contribution is not valued.

 

Whilst I have supportive family and friends who love and accept me unconditionally, there have been times when people have exploited the fact I am neurodivergent by bullying me, taking advantage of my vulnerability or pushing me aside in favour of others. Sometimes people have been embarrassed or frustrated by my reactions and behaviours, which have alienated them from me.

 

Anonymous- Female Adult

 

To me it’s my brain wired differently to others. There are loads of pros and cons.

 

Pros 

I call my super powers as I can see things in my head. I can always find things. I’ve been told I make things simpler to do.

 

Cons

I get very frustrated as I’m dyslexic with reading, etc. It is bad no one really knows how it is to be dyslexic unless they have it. I got very bad anxiety. It took me years to start to talk to people. I still hate it most of the time. I can’t get information out and it’s frustrating and I miss loads of information and my big hate is people always saying you can’t do it, you are not smart enough.

 

Anonymous- Male Adult

 

Pros

It’s a unique mindset to the individual, which can offer some brilliant skills and abilities. To achieve tasks a lot of neurotypical people may struggle with.

 

Cons

It can make us feel isolated, unwanted on occasions, as though we don’t ‘fit in’ with society, or makes us feel weird.

A majority of people can’t understand how it feels to be this way and think there is something just wrong with us.

 

It can be contradictory, wanting to get out more and do stuff, interact etc. But don’t feel the confidence and ability to see the activity through. Or is this so we don’t feel totally humiliated and out of our ‘comfort zone’.

 

Pro / Con

Questionable depending on activity / situation. But repetitions, the same activity we feel comfortable with, again and again, as we know how it is likely to go. And doing this so much is sometimes brilliant, but other times, tiresome and boring.

 

Generally activities seem more ‘black and white’, you undertake them or avoid them. It can be a very daunting choice for a new activity / challenge. Occasions we can thrive at any new challenges and think, what held us back from doing this before?

 

Anonymous- Non-Binary Adult

Pros 

• Highly empathetic 
• Understanding all sides to situations 
• Able to make a well informed decision once given all information Seeing/processing things in different ways, often seeing things people miss 
• More able to be self without shame 

 

Cons

• Struggles with social aspect (friends, communication for things like medical professionals, etc) 
• Struggles with interception 
• Shutdown 
• Meltdown 
• Burnout 
• Gaslighting in the medical/educational community 
• Threats to ND parents, especially if their kids are ND or medical conditions

 

Hyperfocus:

It’s a pro because… I can learn and do a lot when in hyper focus

It’s a con because when in hyper focus, I completely lose the ability to handle all my body functions. Eating, drinking, toileting. I just like stop “needing” them all

And then that often leads me to meltdowns and then autoimmune flare up and then burnout. 

 

Anonymous- Trans Male Adult

 

The pros are that if I’m interested in a topic I’m fantastic at researching every last detail about it. When I decide I’m going to do something I’m passionate about I always find a way of making it happen. I see myself as caring and empathetic towards everyone and I always have a desire to help others. 

 

The cons are that I am a people pleaser and often ignore my own needs in favour of meeting the needs of others. I take things to heart and overthink every interaction. I see myself as a bad person so I spend my whole life pleasing others in an attempt to prove to myself and others that I’m not bad. And I am also prone to making impulsive decisions at times of stress without fully considering the consequences.