#the neurodivergent experience

[dragonflavoredcake]

I don't know how many parents are on here, but

Please, I am begging you, if you think your child might be neurodivergent, tell them.

Sit them down, ask them a few questions about symptoms of whatever condition you think they might have, and listen to what they have to say.

Mull it over. See how their answers measure up to professional diagnostic criteria and the childhood experiences of other neurodivergent people.

If you see things aligning, tell your kid what's going on and take them to see a reputable professional (if they're younger) or ask them if they want to talk to a pro about getting a diagnosis (if they're older).

Please, don't try to hide their neurodivergence from them. I went through school not understanding why I had such a hard time connecting with people. I grew up with a "not like other girls" complex because I genuinely was not like them. I grew up thinking that everyone hated certain textures, that everyone found buffet lines stressful, that my social struggles were just introversion. When I had to secure my own accommodations, I told people that I occasionally had sensory overloads. 

When my mother told me that she'd known for years that I probably had ADHD and autism, I was an adult, and I resented her for that decision. After the lightbulb moment faded, I demanded to know why she hadn't told me before, and she said that I hadn't been struggling.

But I had been struggling. I had assumed that my struggles were normal and I'd been bent on "fixing" myself in a way that couldn't and shouldn't be done.

Had I been given that vocabulary, I could've explained why I became so obsessed with my interests.

I could've given a better explanation than "I have sensory overloads sometimes" when I had to wear noise-canceling headphones in high school (and I probably wouldn't have gotten those accommodations if I hadn't had a reputation as a good student). I could've told my teachers that it was because I was autistic, instead of relying on a term that I learned from Spider-Man fanfiction.

I could've researched ways to work around my ADHD so I didn't drown under a mountain of late work.

If you hide your child's neurodivergence from them, you are refusing to give them the right tools to understand themselves.

#adhd #autism #actually autistic #the neurodivergent experience #neurodivergent #short essays #parenting #childcare #this has been a psa #blog psa

[jasperscringepit]

the neurodivergent experience of staving the urge to send your friends a message apologising for being weird during your hangout and that you love them a lot because you analysed every interaction you had that day and are now convinced everyone hates you.

ah

#ahahahahaha #haaaa #I'm fine #just thinking about this a lot today #the neurodivergent experience #autism

[thediamondarcher]

wdym not everyone feels this way?!?! I thought y'all were just speaking figuratively

#aroace #aromantic #aroacespec #asexual spectrum #aphantasia #neurodiversity #neurodivergent #this can apply to anything really #anxiety #intrusive thoughts #the neurodivergent experience

[dcookechild]

percy saying "there's something wrong with my brain" i cried a lot actually

#percy jackson #the neurodivergent experience

[aibidil]

So kids—especially neurodivergent kids—do this thing where they will talk your ear off about their special interest with absolutely NO care about whether you seem to be enjoying or participating in the discussion. They will literally interrupt two other people talk about something unrelated and, as if they're taking part in the convo, start talking about Minecraft. A few years ago, an internet dad introduced me to the technical term for this: Pokémonolouge (n., v.) A Pokémonolouge can be about any topic, not just Pokémon.

I have never seen such an accurate representation of Pokémonolouging in media as baby Colin Robinson in s4e3

#wwdits #wwdits s4 #colin robinson #baby colin robinson #laszlo cravensworth #😂 😂 😂 😂 #the neurodivergent experience #also this is my life

[memorygirls]

My first crush I can remember having as a child was on Rik Mayall in Drop Dead Fred & I can’t explain it but I feel like this has impacted/ is important information in my life in some way

#drop dead fred #rik mayall daddy issues #the neurodivergent experience #??? #rik mayall

[ashencreations]

Executive dysfunction is like a ticket checker at a toll booth

You point the other way, yell "OH MY GOD IS THAT A UNICORN", and jump the lil bar thing while they're distracted

#soren rambles #you gotta bamboozle it #executive dysfunction #the neurodivergent experience #the NT people dont gotta pay #why do we #trick question; we don't #evade reglated fines #capitalism is the great plague #im not going to let it hijack my stupid brain juice

[anthony-ant-14]

TW: Mentions of ableism

I hate making posts on Tumblr only to feel existencial dread and anxiety about other people seeing my posts even though obviously other people will see them because this a public forum

I don’t know I hope other people can relate to this because I feel goofy as shit talking about my interests sometimes (the neurodivergent phase in life when your made fun of or given weird looks for having interests in “weird” things coming back to bite me)

Even though the “weird” things are just literally anything and neurotypical people will jump at a chance to make fun of “weird” kids even though we weren’t weird we were just neurodivergent and god forbid someone is different from someone else

I know this specific topic has been talked about by every neurodivergent person ever and it’s been dragged to hell and back but I feel like that really says something I could probably fill an entire library with books and posts about neurodivergent kids being bullied in school and that’s horrible to anyone who has experienced this or is experiencing this you deserve or deserved better and I really am sorry because that wasn’t your fault at all

As a PSA as long as your not hurting yourself or others you should be able to enjoy what you enjoy and I hope that if this post actually has people who relate that your much happier now and can love what you love without anxiety or just general fear good luck out there

#neurodivergent struggles #i hope people understand this #i hate anxiety #fuck ableists #adhd problems #quit bullying neurodivergent kids #you’re not cool for that you’re just a jackass #public service announcement #this is a psa #i was a weird kid #except I wasn’t weird I was just a kid like everyone else #the people I was around thought I was weird for having non conventional interests and I hate them for that #anxienty #the neurodivergent experience #heavily /neg

[pink-carnelian]

When devi mccallion said “I just wanna be nice” yeah

#devi mccallion #the black dresses #girls rituals #ada rook #peaceful as hell #the neurodivergent experience #cj

[lakecityquietme]

now why doesn't my brain shut up about this specific interest when we've already been through all of it

we rewatched the entire thing, read all of the fanfic, listened to all the songs daily

WHAT ELSE IS THERE TO DO

i AM INSANE

#absolutely unprecedented #the neurodivergent experience #this is about steven universe btw #i can't stop thinking about it #i want more of it and yet #there is nothing more to be had

[raroteatro]

Once again with the “not watching a specific media during its hype but actually getting invested once I give it a try.”

#young sheldon #ash news #it’s a nice lighthearted show to get your mind off things #comedic as well i can see why people like it #i’ll be binging all 6 seasons unless the writing progressively takes a turn or some major change happens #the neurodivergent experience #esp with sheldon man there were a lot of times i resonated #I wonder what other sitcoms are worthy of my gaze

[frogmanfae]

These are the the real friends

#the neurodivergent experience #not to blorbo tag my own post but #racetrack higgins

[liviastrum]

i dont think im ever gonna emotionally recover from this mashup actually

#the neurodivergent experience #adhd #taylor swift #the archer #labyrinth #boygenius #not strong enough #always an angel never a god #they see right through me

[flershnork]

I'm slowly getting into more and more niche communities.

Move aside Splatoon, the Terraria Calamity mod brainrot is setting in.

#splatoon #terraria #terraria calamity #the neurodivergent experience #onyx original

[justsomeectoplasm]

What no drinking anything throughout the day does to a mf. (Headaches)

#I ramble #The neurodivergent experience #getting a horrible headache and wondering why #(I have not drunk any water or liquid for 5 hours during a summer day)

[aibidil]

One of the strangest things about being a parent with ADHD (and that’s actually a parenting superpower) is that you end up having hyperfixations about things you don’t want to care about

And because ADHD parents often have neurodivergent kids with a particular set of needs that require research/learning to meet, we often end up hyperfixating on those things with legitimate passion because we love our kids and want to do the best we can for them as we together face the mismatch between our brains and our environment

Which means I’ve had hyperfixations on things like: constipation/encopresis, dyslexia and mainstream reading instruction, gut health, sensory processing disorder, handwriting, ADHD itself, unconditional/noncoercive parenting, pros/cons of different types of education, how to deal with school/teachers

And at some point you look at yourself like, how did this happen? I don't want to care about any of these things, but I do? What happened to all my hyperfixations? And instead, I've become a person who hears another parent talking to the preschool teacher about naptime accidents and, because somehow THIS is one of my special interests, I insert myself into their conversation to info dump about constipation?!

I'm just saying. It's a bit of an identity mindfuck

#parenting with adhd #adhd #the neurodivergent experience #parenting