Neurodivergence is not an excuse.
It’s not an identity.
It’s not a diagnosis.
On its own, out of context, it’s even a poor explanation.
The Facts
Neurodivergence was coined in the early nineties for the purposes of advocacy for individuals diagnosed with and navigating the autism spectrum. It was meant to build bridges of understanding. To work, these bridges need to go both ways.
Neurodivergence now encompasses and attempts to describe a set of developmental conditions; the most well documented are Autism Spectrum Condition and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Condition. I use condition rather than disorder to keep the focus on support and functioning rather than defect. Both conditions are neurodevelopmental, meaning they arise from the way the brain builds itself during early gestation and childhood. Included in this nebula of conditions are basic functions and skills typically supported by prefrontal–parietal control networks: the ability to plan, organize, shift attention, and regulate emotions. These may include dyslexia, conditions that may affect learning, as well as some that appear as persistent behavioral challenges.
There are well-developed and continually improving ways of diagnosing these conditions, especially now in what appears to be an age of neural awareness. Many reading the basic symptoms that a diagnosis of any of these conditions attempts to measure may recognize themselves. This is simply because of a few facts:
- No one develops into adulthood perfectly, and many people will recognize some of these symptoms, especially under stress.
- Diagnosis is not based on symptoms being present, but on their intensity and persistence over time.
- Diagnosis is typically pursued when those symptoms impair daily functioning enough to warrant clinical support and accommodations, not as a way to define identity.
Using it to self-diagnose is tricky. In the case of these particular conditions, it requires informed, careful observation over time at the very least.
Diagnosis, especially in these cases of neurodevelopmental conditions, is a form of triage. That means its purpose is to signal immediate action to stabilize a patient. In the clinical setting, diagnosis treats impairment as something to address. It is rightly a very serious and useful tool.
The Responsibility
If the condition is impairing daily functioning, causing notable challenges to baseline quality of life, or even blocking you from goals, then the diagnosis helps rally intervention in the form of pharmacology and therapy for stabilizing your experience of the condition. From there the real work begins: developing and deploying strategies that support a sustainable baseline of wellbeing for you and your community. The term neurodivergence is then a tool for strategically building collaborations for both individual and collective wellbeing and growth. Obviously, claiming neurodivergence as a self-diagnosis is therefore a call to action for oneself.
Without taking that action, claiming the term alone is at least self-defeating if not worse. It’s counterproductive to the intention of the term being coined in the first place. First of all, it’s an umbrella term and alone can signify many diverse conditions. So using it without doing the work of understanding what it means specifically in your case, how to deploy strategies for your own stability, and getting the clinical help you need is unhelpful and can be an abdication of responsibility by treating the label as an endpoint.
The intention of the term neurodivergence was to shift awareness of the specific conditions it describes from “brokenness” to “natural variation.” So it does not absolve the person with the condition of responsibility. Just the opposite. As much as possible, the individual now has the beginning of a framework to work on their own practice of their health first.
Some people are genuinely blocked from assessment and care by cost, waitlists, or geography; my critique is aimed at treating the label as a substitute for the work of support and strategy, not at those navigating access barriers.
The Opportunity
The real work mentioned above is actually the work of every individual (specifically developing executive-function skills deliberately). However, if neurodivergence describes a natural variation and not a brokenness, then it also may present the individual with developmental opportunities. The individual, through understanding their specific neural infrastructure, may be able to hone the experience of it for great benefit similar to the way an athlete trains their body for a particular sport.
For a (non-scientific) example, consider any X-Men film. A mutation that later in the narrative becomes a “superpower” tends to start off as a liability. It is only through hard work, support from a knowledgeable community, and some tech/pharmacology (as well as outfits – fashion as a tool for mental health) that the capacity stabilizes and then can be recruited for great benefit.
For everyone, regardless of diagnosis, the deliberate stabilization work many neurodivergent people must do is broadly relevant. Many conditions gathered under the umbrella involve persistent challenges with attention, planning, regulation, and other executive functions, so wellbeing often depends on strategies that make those capacities reliable in practice. This frequently means “externalizing the brain”: using environment, cues, routines, and supportive relationships to offload demands that cannot be consistently carried internally. Because this work has to be explicit rather than assumed, it makes the underlying skills visible for everyone (reflecting the intent of the term neurodivergence). These strategies are not merely accommodations; they are durable practices of human functioning that everyone benefits from learning consciously over a lifetime.
The Bottom Line
Neurodivergence is a helpful call to action first to the person it describes. It can facilitate the sometimes hard but essential work to develop sustainable, quality lives for themselves and their communities. As a neurodivergent individual pursues the practical and sustainable work of their own wellbeing, the term can be used to help build bridges of understanding and even solicit strategic action for shared benefit.
For some, the impairment is far more serious, comprehensive and consistent. Their participation in society is substantially undermined, if not entirely blocked. Additionally, their conditions may be combined with others that are as severe. These individuals deserve our respect and care. For them the term can be a form of grace and part of a support structure they absolutely need. Another reason to use it sparingly.
Neurodivergence is not brokenness. But using the term without pursuing appropriate support and strategies can inadvertently re-install a narrative of brokenness, shifting the practical costs of that inaction onto the people around you. The term neurodivergence must exist in a larger, actionable framework so that it actually achieves the wellbeing and collaboration it intended. It should signal agency and at least possibility to stabilize and grow, not a free pass.
Above all, neurodivergence signals a serious, wonderful, and important opportunity.
The Caveats
Treatment
Obviously, treatment, especially in countries where healthcare is a commodity not a basic human right, can be difficult. There are however numerous resources available online and IRL that can help. This critique is directed at those who irresponsibly use the term. It should be used strategically with awareness, humility, and respect as those responses are what it is intended to build.
Pharmacology & Strategies
Pharmacology in this sphere cures little to nothing. A neurodevelopmental condition is similar to a physical condition. It is unlikely you can grow back what was pruned, never grew, or grew differently in the first place. However, the right pharmacology with the right observant, objective specialist can be incredibly helpful towards creating a baseline of wellbeing. The pharmacology works best when paired with strategies that become habits and resources for stability and growth. There is no magic pill.
Pharmacological responses are serious. They tend to come with side-effects that also must be managed strategically. You may choose not to take them. Whatever you do, do it with calm awareness, not fear. In any case, changing diet, creating helpful routines, and other strategies are essential as well as belonging to a tight community of awareness and humility respectfully dedicated to the wellbeing of each individual. The point is that there will always be rewarding work involved.
Social Norms and Processes
I wrote above how a diagnosis is triage, intended to stabilize a patient experiencing notable impairment of wellbeing in regular functions. The very definitions of impairment and function are dependent on what society in general determines they are. In the right circumstances a person with notable neurodivergence may not experience impaired wellbeing and even excel.
Our present problem is that we’ve dismantled real community in our modern lives and expect humans to live as operationally self-contained individuals. A community is a role-differentiated coordination system with reliable handoffs and shared norms. In a healthy community, roles are flexible and evolve with people and circumstances. As individuals grow, they develop a distinctive way of making meaning that shapes which roles they fit and how their particular constraints and strengths can contribute to the whole. Diversity is biological: Just as biodiversity is necessary for an ecosystem, cognitive diversity is a natural part of the human genome. Ignoring diversity undermines daily baseline functioning and dismisses developmental opportunity on both the individual and collective level (see DIVERGENTE).
Additionally, we presently live in a global social situation (distraction economy, communication systems full of noise, a social contract that requires outsized productivity, and more) that exacerbates the conditions encompassed by the term neurodivergence. The result is that everyone is displaying symptoms and experiencing a baseline of anxiety that is not helpful. Again, on the individual level the strategies mentioned to develop the executive-function skills are crucial to all. On the social level, we are in need of transformation across domains that demonstrates coherent stewardship of human society and living, not extraction and short term gain for a few (see Cultivating Our Cognitive Advantage).
At ARTESIAN we are dedicated to human development and wellbeing. Specifically for those navigating a diagnosis within the neurodivergent umbrella we have developed various tools and processes. You can check them out here: The Neurodivergent Protocol.
If you have any questions or wish to know more about our work and opportunities for collaboration, email us at driven @ artesian.life.