10/15/2024
I often use the term 'NeuroDivergent' to describe myself—my blog is named 'NeuroDivergent Rebel,' after all. This term is deeply personal to me, and while I use it often, I sometimes take for granted how many people are new here and that not everyone knows what NeuroDivergent (or NeuroDivergence) means.
Instead of attempting to redefine 'NeuroDivergent,' I believe it's crucial to share its original meaning as intended by its creator, Kassiane Asasumasu. This will provide a deeper understanding of the term and its original intent, a knowledge that is often overlooked or misunderstood.
The term Neurodivergent was coined by the multiply Neurodivergent activist Kassiane Asasumasu of Radical Neurodivergence Speaking. Kassiane has stated that "Neurodivergent refers to neurologically divergent from typical, which includes Autistic people, ADHD people, People with learning disabilities, Epileptic people, People with mental illnesses, People with MS or Parkinsons, or apraxia or cerebral palsy or dyspraxia or no specific diagnosis but wonky lateralization or something. Neurodivergent is not another … tool of exclusion. It is specifically a tool of inclusion."
To expand on this point, NeuroDivergent people's differences come from the brain and nervous system (and may be invisible). These differences can impact how we interpret and engage with the world, process emotions, information, sensory input, and interact and communicate. Some NeuroDivergent people also experience neurological differences in how they experience and express movement.
Many forms of NeuroDivergence are life-long, and many people are born NeuroDivergent, but there are also types of NeuroDivergence that can be acquired through circumstances or events in life.
Full post: https://neurodivergentrebel.substack.com/p/neurodivergence-includes-lifelong
