I collect neurodivergent pride pins.
I wear them to work each day. One of the things I have grown to like about wearing them is the conversations they spark. A mix of comments (mostly positive), and a lot of curiosity. The curious ones often start something like this:
Why do you wear those?
I usually answer that I wear them because I have diagnoses of autism and ADHD.
Really? I would never have guessed.
This response is a common one. Common, because I don’t fit the picture of autism and ADHD most people carry in mind. Reasons for that might be:
Autistic, ADHD representation in media is based on stereotypes that I don’t match.
I don’t seem like the autistic or ADHDer individuals they already know.
People think the autism spectrum is like a line, with me at the “just a tiny bit autistic” end, leading them to question whether I truly am autistic at all!
As Bradshaw et al discussed in this 2021 Australian Journal of General Practice article, the autism spectrum is not a simple line. It is more like the circular diagram above.
Autistic features appear in many different neurological domains. Autistic people can have major strengths in one domain, while having major difficulties in another domain. This is also called “a spiky profile” of cognition. Neurotypical people do not have spiky profiles. They do have strengths and weaknesses, but the differences are only slight compared to those of autistic people.
Working to an autistic person's strengths is so important, because the areas of challenge are not due to lack of effort. I use my strong memory, pattern recognition, persistence, creative problem solving and empathy to be great at my job. But I can't significantly change my areas of weakness, because they are part of my brain structure. I work around them, instead of changing them.
The spiky profile is also a good reason to presume all autistic people have the capacity to understand and make choices. Some autistic spiky profiles include big challenges in motor movements called dyspraxia, and motor disinihibition. If you are very dyspraxic, you are not able to match your actual body movements to your ideas of movement. This includes the motor ability to speak and respond to instructions. You may know exactly what you want to say, but your mouth and voice structures won’t speak it. You may wish to return a wave hello, but your hand won’t do it, or it might do something that isn’t a wave.
Disinhibition means the inhibition or “stop” part of your brain isn’t working. You may be unable to stop motor actions from happening. Did you know, when people with typical brains see an object, but they don't want to use it, their “stop” brain automatically kicks in without them even knowing? If you catch sight of a door handle as you walk past a door, your stop brain knows “that is a door handle, you don't need or want to touch it so I am automatically preventing that action”. If your “stop” brain isn’t working, you may be unable to stop yourself from grabbing the door handle and opening it.
This is why communication methods for dyspraxic autistics need to include very structured support and teaching for motor control. There are strategies for working around these challenges. It’s also incredibly important for first responders - police, paramedics, firefighters – to know autistic people may be unable to speak, and may be unable to follow orders to move or not move. Especially when they are distressed.
I have dyspraxia myself. Especially for gross motor movements. I am rubbish at sports. I bump into things often. I cannot run down a flight of stairs. Fine motor control is better, but I still have terrible handwriting, drop things, and am likely to injure myself with sharp items. Outwardly I seem really different to a nonspeaking autistic person. But what I've learned in the autistic community is the commonalities we share bring us great kinship.
Neurokin is the word for this. Brain. Family. We feel like family, because we share the same neurotype.