Diagnoses and perception of neurodivergence.
So, something happened in the past year that has recently really gotten me thinking about how neurodivergence is perceived and the culture around getting diagnosed.
starting from the beginning, about a year ago I was diagnosed with ocd (tho i didnt know till a few months later my mom forgot to tell me lol) and a couple other miscellaneous things, it seemed really important because it would mean i could get better supports in school for what i need (i was already diagnosed autistic and had had accommodations for awhile).
But when we had a meeting with the school later in the year to discuss and update those accommodations, the school psychologist (one of two, she’s supposed to be the one who focuses more on diagnosis), whom I have never actually talked to in my life, decided to completely deny me having ocd, even with an official diagnosis, from a good psychologist who i spent hours with for her to figure out my brain.
The whole situation was just really strange in general, but i was thinking about it recently and it made me think: whatever diagnosis or experience you have isn’t what’s important to other people, it’s how THEY perceive both you and neurodivergence in general. You can have whatever diagnosis there is, but ableist people are still going to deny it due to their own perceptions.
it’s the classic stereotypes they believe like “you’re not energetic, you don’t have adhd, you’re just lazy”, “you’re not a genius or obsessed with trains like my little cousin, you can’t be autistic”, or in this case it seems “you’re too unorganized to have ocd, you’re just trying to get another excuse”
i realize this seems a tad depressing, so i would like to add the more positive side of these things; perception not caring about diagnosis can actually be a really good thing within neurodivergent spaces, when people don’t have the diagnosis or ability to get it there is always a community out there that will support them either way, and accept self diagnosis (me included, im always here for my undiagnosed pals)
And when it comes to diagnosis, it truly can help a lot, even when ableist people don’t care, getting diagnosed can help with getting more access to accommodations, and help you understand yourself alot better, it would taken me way longer to figure out my ocd if not for that diagnosis, and it helped me find the right resources for problems i didnt previously know how to name or talk about.
all that’s to say, a diagnosis doesn’t make anyone any more or less valid, and it shouldn’t be perceived that way. It can help with alot of things, and it can be very important, but it is never going to fix everything, there will still be ableism, there will still be blaming, but maybe you will find the space to help yourself, and other neurodivergent people in making the world just a little big better for us.
and every tiny thing you do for that, is important.
-a proud neurodivergent teenager, and occasional activist
(Sry abt the shitty grammar im tired as shit but had to write this down now before it all left me)
