The neurodivergence paradox

How we are all diverse

The neurodiversity paradigm argues that each of us is different, not disordered. But at the same time, the neurodiversity movement sees many common difficulties as signs of disorders like ADHD and autism. This drive to diagnose normal human behaviour, writes Lucy Johnstone, is contradictory. It assumes a group of perfect neurotypical people, and promotes inclusion while putting people in boxes. We should ditch the “neuro” prefix and find other ways to value our diversity.  

 

The term ‘neurodiversity’ was coined in 1997 by Australian sociologist Judy Singer. In her words:

‘As a word, “neurodiversity” describes the whole of humanity. But the neurodiversity movement is a political movement for people who want their human rights.’  

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Paula Alencar 28 September 2024

I had to stop reading at “until, if the trend continues, everyone will be neurodivergent, and we will be back to square one” .i doubt this supposed clinician has real experience with people who are neurodivergent. But in a way she is probably right in that we are pathologist people when we shouldn’t, we should probably all understand that the language of mental health diagnostic criteria is not scientific,and it is highly subjective- ie, made up by a bunch of so called experts within a historical and social context. Furthermore, perhaps the issue is not the individual and their supposedly disordered brains and or behaviours as the clinician would call it, but the highly disordered and highly toxic societies in which these individuals exist, our societies are indeed toxic and so is the psychiatric culture so in the context of being provided with accommodations to issues that are otherwise invisible labels and diagnosis are indeed important so that people can thrive and be respected and understood. The fact that this woman poo pops sensory hypersensitivity in neurodivergent peoples says a lot about her lack of expertise in this field