I see Neurodiversity simply as neurological variation. All brains respond to the world differently. There are no good brains or bad brains. There are no bad diagnoses or good diagnoses. Some folks think neurodiversity or being neurodivergent means a diagnosis is involved. Others think neurodiversity only refers to autistic people. These ideas are inaccurate! Neurodiversity can mean anything under the umbrellas of depression, PTSD, anxiety, ADHD, learning disabilities, autism, etc. Diagnoses aren’t necessary to be neurodivergent! I just like to think of them as loose guidelines that point to a variety of inner experiences.

Neurodivergence refers to the experience a person has when their brain and body respond to information differently than the social norm. For some, this term may seem loosey-goosey. For others, this term may seem highly academic or elitist. To me, it is neither of these. Neurodiversity is a term that comes from community member, neurodivergent activist, and autistic writer, Kassianne Sibley. Reflecting on being a part of the Neurodiversity movement for the last decade, neurodivergent community members and grassroots scholars continue to push for equity and inclusion. So many of us work for the world in which we want to live: one in which access is not seen as “special”; access for education and mental health of all people are ESSENTIAL. Our world is not quite there yet though it is my joy to be able to develop this side-by-side with my clients. Together, we can make our ideal world.

With gratitude,

Lindsey