Neurodivergent individuals often experience differences in mental function, learning styles, sensory processing, communication styles and behaviors. They may struggle with soft skills such as emotional intelligence, social interactions or the ability to work effectively in a group.
There are many different ways someone can be considered neurodivergent. This includes symptoms such as challenges with concentration, compromised motor functions, and barriers in communication – all of which are commonly linked to neurodivergent conditions such as ADHD, autism spectrum disorders, dyslexia, etc.
Neurodiversity refers to the many different types of neurological differences in people with dyslexia, dyspraxia, autism, and ADHD among others, where people quite literally think differently.
ADHD, Autism, Dyspraxia, Dyslexia, Dyscalculia, Dysgraphia, and Tourette's syndrome are all examples of neurodiverse conditions. They're diagnostic labels used to explain the diverse ways of thinking, learning, processing and behaving.
Among adults, dyslexia is the most common type of neurodivergent condition. Approximately 10% of adults are diagnosed with dyslexia. Around 4-5% of the population has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). A further 1-2% of people has an autism spectrum disorder (ASD).
Is anxiety neurodivergent? Living with anxiety can make a person feel like their experience of the world around them is different from their peers. They may think and act in ways that set them apart from others. For this reason, some individuals that regularly experience anxiety choose to identify as neurodivergent.
You absolutely are neurodivergent if you have been diagnosed with a developmental or learning disorder, such as autism, ADHD, dyslexia, or Tourette's syndrome. You may decide to consider yourself neurodivergent if you have no diagnosis but think, behave, or interact in ways that are outside the norm.
It is important that managers and colleagues are aware of the differences in communication styles for those who are neurodivergent. For example, they may appear to be 'blunt' when talking, they may talk to themselves, or they may unintentionally invade other people's personal space.
Neuroscientists believe this "mirroring" is the neural mechanism by which the actions, intentions and emotions of other people can be automatically understood. Individuals with autism can't rely on this system to read the minds of other people.
Some people include traumatic brain injury (TBI) and mental illnesses like anxiety, depression and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) in discussions of neurodiversity because of the way these conditions can alter brain functioning.
While neurodivergence is common, many people do not realize they are neurodivergent until they reach adulthood. This can create challenges as people find ways to adapt to the differences in how they think and process information, but it can also be helpful.
The vast majority of neurodivergent adults are self-diagnosed in the first instance: in other words, we figure things out for ourselves, do the research and then go looking for a professional to confirm it.
People whose brain works differently often experience sounds, including music, in unique ways. As a neurodivergent person, I experience sound differently than other people. I was born with hyperacusis. Sounds that are at a normal volume to most people sometimes seem extremely loud and distorted to me.
Neurodivergent is a non-medical term for when someone's brain processes, learns or behaves differently from what is considered “typical.” Neurodiverse people think, process thoughts and experiences, and interact with the world around us in a unique way.
Neurodivergent people tend to have high affective empathy and low cognitive empathy. The inverse is true for neurotypicals. (Some people have a high degree of both types of empathy, because they have practiced and learned the type that does not come as naturally to them.)
Typical elements of conversation and communication can be tricky for people with ADHD or other neurodivergent individuals; they may interrupt or speak too quickly, space out unintentionally and miss key elements of a conversation, have difficulty processing information, or feel insecure about what they have to say.
This term can be used to describe an individual whose brain functions differently to what we consider “normal”. This includes people with autism, ADHD, Tourette's, dyslexia and a range of other neurodiverse conditions.
Many people who are neurodivergent have higher-than-average abilities—for example in pattern recognition, visual-spatial thinking, memory, or mathematics.
The same goes for mental health professionals and researchers. Their opinions vary on whether mental illness in and of itself constitutes neurodivergence. That being said, some people with mental health conditions such as depression or anxiety consider themselves to be neurodivergent, while others don't.
PTSD Overview
However, the majority of people who experience a traumatic event do not go on to develop PTSD. PTSD is also considered a form of neurodivergence. However, this is an acquired neurodivergence (meaning it is situational and can be resolved through treatment).
Neurodivergence refers to brain variation outside what society considers the norm. Examples of neurodivergence include autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), bipolar disorder, dyslexia, and Tourette syndrome.
There are many different ways neurodivergence can manifest. As there are no medical criteria or definitions of what it means to be neurodivergent, many conditions can fall under the category of neurodivergent – and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is one of them.
One phrase that is often associated with ASD is “high-functioning,” which refers to an individual who experiences the social and emotional difficulties and stereotyped behaviors or interests that are associated with autism, but does not have any significant delay in intellectual or verbal development.
It is thought that up to 15% of the population are thought to be neurodiverse.