Yesterday, I grew so overwhelmed with what is happening in Israel and Gaza — children in both regions being kidnapped and killed, specifically — that I could feel old fears creeping back up in my chest. I took a shower to calm myself down, then sat down to put up some stories on Instagram.
I couldn’t do it anymore. The simplistic, shouting thinking of people leaving comments on every post — and it’s nearly every post right now — was making me despair. This is such a nuanced situation, far more complex than anyone making a comment on Instagram could reach with emojis. Everything there was overwhelming to me. So I listened to my gut and put up some stories, saying why I was taking a break for a while, until I could figure out how to be there with this going on.
That instinct? I knew it was right.
However, I do have these extraordinary 8-week classes on your heroic journey launching next week. Going off Instagram the week before they begin?
Maybe not the best business instinct.
Hello, ADHD.
All four of us in our family have ADHD minds. I’ve had complex PTSD all my life. (It has been lifting this year, thanks to EMDR.) My daughter has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, which we knew years ago, but it took 2 ½ years on a waitlist to see a doctor. The appointment my husband missed today was the final diagnostic session to get him diagnosed on the spectrum. And my youngest has ADHD, OCD, and possibly a sub-type of autism called PDA. It is widely recognized in the UK, Europe, and Australia, but is not diagnosable here in the US. (Of course.)
I’m not complaining. I love my people. And I love their brains.
You see, the way my brain works and my people’s brains work? They’ve always been labeled as problems, disorders, or illnesses.
But what I know now, after diving deeply into the research and understanding the way my people’s minds work?
We’re superheroes.
There’s nothing wrong with a brain that functions differently than the neurotypical. In fact, I’m now convinced that if we’re going to change this culture for the better, that revolution is going to be led by the neurodiverse.
We do things differently. Sometimes we have a hard time understanding what people want from us, because it’s not intrinsically interesting to us. My people don’t understand traditional social cues, so they don’t perceive the importance of fitting in with what the group demands.
That also means we care less about fitting in and more about creating our own way.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to Our Kind Kitchen to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.