What Does It Mean to be “Neurodivergent?”
Simply put, someone who is neurodivergent has a thinking style that is different from the thinking styles of the general population (Walker, 2025). It’s common to see neurotypes such as autism and ADHD often associated with neurodivergence, but there’s actually a much longer list of conditions that make someone neurodivergent! Their neurodivergence may have been present at birth (congenital), even if it was not discovered until later as with those diagnosed with autism or ADHD, or their neurodivergence may have been acquired at some point in their lives, such as a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Long COVID cognitive effects, or psychiatric conditions (Green, 2025). With neurodiversity including everyone, including neurotypicals, I created an infographic below that helps to understand this, and the various subtypes of neurodivergence:
Green, D. (2025, March 31). Types of neurodiversity and neurodivergent examples. Medvidi. https://medvidi.com/blog/types-of-neurodiversity
Walker, N. (2025). Neurodiversity: Some basic terms and definitions. Neuroqueer: The writings of Dr. Nick Walker. https://neuroqueer.com/neurodiversity-terms-and-definitions/