this post was submitted on 15 Mar 2026
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Autism

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I personally dislike calling myself neurodivergent (lemmy.ca)
submitted 20 hours ago by floralmortal@lemmy.ca to c/autism@lemmy.world
30 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

I have several disorders which are located inside of the brain (which obviously includes autism, hence me posting here). I dislike calling myself "neurodivergent" for many reasons. For one, people use this term as a replacement word for autism, and I have many conditions besides autism.

For example, I'll see posts saying, "neurodivergent people sre more likely to do XYZ." There are so many disorders which fall under the neurodivergent umbrella that it isn't humanly possible for neurodivergent people to be more likely to say or do something than other folks; just say autistic in this context.

I also find that my personal experience gets watered down by calling myself neurodivergent; it feels like a modern version of being called special. I have several conditions which fall under different categories; psychiatric, neurological, and neurodevelopmental. To call all of that just neurodivergent is not very specific and doesn't tell a person what my needs are (plus, they'll just assume I'm autistic).

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[–] DacoTaco@lemmy.world 10 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 18 hours ago) (2 children)

I can relate, a bit. Personally i dont care nor mind. I always come in from a "im like this" angle, never from a "i have x" angle, which means labels like autism or adhd dont do much for me. I am how i am, and i know how to deal with it to make it easier for me, or others, and if i cant or dont want to and you cant? Thats a you issue, bugger off.

Also, how do you feel about being called neurospicy? :')

[–] Coelacanth@feddit.nu 8 points 17 hours ago

Not the OP but me personally I despise the term neurospicy. Reeks of TikTokers trying to quirkify their bio and downplays the often crippling nature of the very real problems people with these diagnoses suffer from every day.

[–] floralmortal@lemmy.ca 9 points 19 hours ago

I'm personally not a fan of being called neurospicy. As a joke, it's okay tho; I usually call myself disabled or neurodisabled.