#neurodivergent education

[dysgeographica]

dysgeographica is not rare — it’s just rarely discussed.

dysgeographica, sometimes referred to as developmental topographical disorientation, is a neurodevelopmental disability that primarily affects a person’s sense of direction and ability to navigate.

a 2022 study of italian young adults found that 3% of their sample met their criteria for having dysgeographica.

while this is a statistic from one study of one population and there aren’t very many other studies out there that we can compare it with to gauge its overall accuracy, it does give us some idea. so, let’s assume for now that that is accurate and approximately 3% of all people are dysgeographic.

it might sound small, but do you know how much 3% of the population actually is?

3% of the population is…

more than people with red hair.

more than people with green eyes.

roughly equal to autistic people.

one person in a group of 33 people.

six people in a 200 seat lecture hall.

190 students at the average college.

over 25,000 people in new york city.

almost 10 million people in the US.

over 47 million people in the whole world. that’s more than the total amount of people in kenya, the 26th largest country in the world. there are enough of us to have our own country!

to be classified as rare in the US, something has to affect a maximum of 200,000 people in the entire country. the (estimated) number of dysgeographics is 50 times that.

so no — as far as current studies can tell, dysgeographica is not rare!

if it’s not rare, then, why have you probably never heard of it? why are there so few people who know they’re dysgeographic?

because it’s just not being talked about, and it hasn’t been recognized by influential medical organizations or given a place in their official diagnostic guides.

that leaves the vast majority of dysgeographics not knowing why they can’t get around the way other people can or that there’s a name for the way their brains work. some may come up with their own explanations for the things they struggle with, but others will simply assume the people who judged them were right — that they’re just not “smart enough” or not trying hard enough to get it right.

and even those of us who do know we’re dysgeographic will have a hard time finding other people like us or getting access to any of the accommodations or other resources and support we might need.

i, for one, think that’s far too many people being left in the dark about their own neurotype, so let’s talk about it more.

[neuroticboyfriend]

once again thinking about how fucked up it is that special ed used me and other disabled children as unpaid, coerced labor. i worked enough to be making $100 a week. i was "paid" in fake money redeemable only at the school cafeteria, which i worked at, and was forced to do things that distressed me. they gave us $1 a week, if they remembered to give it to us at all.

this was while i would sometimes go the entire day without eating because i didn't have the money to buy food and the free food was not sensory safe. we also worked outside the community - grocery stores, warehouses, shoe stores security tagging items. all under the guise of job skill development, we did $100 of labor a week without ever getting paid. and we were demeaned while we did it. and we were just teens.

so no, i don't want to hear about how special education is good. not with the way me and my peers were treated and taken advantage of. death to institutionalization, in all forms.

[spectralsnoot]

Y’all self diagnosing as low support autistic, you are valid. But let’s not pretend like high support need individuals don’t exist. Autism isn’t trendy, it isn’t “quirky”, it’s not a brag to be put on your profile to say “I think I might be autistic” for clout on the internet. Autism comes in many forms, and high support individuals probably don’t see their autism as a brag. Being nonspeaking, having a lack of control over your own motor function, needing assistance in most every aspect of your life, being stripped of your independence because otherwise you may be unsafe to yourself or others, being looked down upon by a society who views you as “retarded”….low support autism is valid and deserving of the same supports as high support autism, but to those of you that romanticize autism, whether you are autistic or not, please stop. Autistic individuals are beautiful, amazing, and so worthy of love no matter where they fall on the spectrum. But autistic individuals will always face challenges because of their neurodivergence by a society that as a majority is uneducated and lacking empathy. If you suspect you may be autistic, please pursue your truth. Maybe you became good at masking without knowing you were doing it, maybe you are “quirky”, etc. Be true to yourself.

However…

Romanticizing autism ignores the reality of the many many high support individuals who do not have that luxury. Love yourself but do not trivialize or erase the reality of our high support brothers and sisters.

[unveilandresist]

I was a delightfully funny and kind and outgoing lovely weirdo audhd child and it's amazing how that was abused out of me from my peers and adults in my life, how I was isolated and didn't know how to make friends in a way that wasn't clumsy and direct. I could never be "cool" about things.

Now that I'm 30 and have some distance from my childhood I'm just so mad at how we treat kids who don't produce and conform in exactly the way we want them to on command. I deserved better. All the weirdo kids treated like they are 'too much' deserve better.

[lastwave]

yall love autistic kids until they're autistic. fuckin. "homeschool kids are so weird" "the neighbors kid:" "wolf girls" "horse girls" "sword boys" its all just rebranded making fun of autistic traits. "well i was autistic and wasn't like that" ok good for you. a lot of us were. there are kids that are. that see those jokes . once it became unacceptable to just outright say you were making fun of SpEd kids yall invented new ways to say the same shit.

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

Understanding The Spectrum (updated)

I CAN Network Ltd

[mxmorbidmidnight]

You know those teachers who would have posters in their classrooms like “weird is a superpower” and “in a world where you can be anything, be kind” then would proceed to scream at a neurodivergent child until they cried.

[vivianseda]

Thank you to Our Sensory Life

“I spent to many years thinking it was normal to be trapped like this and I was just 'lazy'.

If you relate to this, please hear me, you're not lazy. I know how bad it feels.”

Photo credit: Dani Donovan

[chronicsymptomsyndrome]

Clinical studies be like

1 billion random boys were tested. results show that 0% of girls are autistic* 👍

1 billion autistic males were tested. results show that 0% of autistics are female* 👍

1 billion minors were tested. results show ADHD stops at age 18, often to be replaced by plain laziness* 👍

*certified😎 totally credible source✨ we are pros🤓 with coats🥼

[iamdarthbader]

Call me crazy but I don’t think higher education should only be available to those who can study for 6+ hours a day

[dysgeographica]

there’s nothing wrong with needing to use gps directions to get everywhere.

it doesn’t mean you’re “stupid”, it doesn’t mean you’re not trying hard enough or not paying enough attention. it doesn’t mean you’re doing something wrong or taking the easy way out. it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be allowed to be independent.

yes, even if you need it to get somewhere you’ve been a million times before. even if you need it to get around the town you’ve lived in your entire life. even if other people think you should be able to go without it.

if you wouldn’t judge another disabled person for using certain tools that let them live more independently, don’t judge yourself for doing the same.

and never ever let someone else shame you into going out into the world without the tools that allow you to feel safe.

these tools exist to be used, so use them if you need them. there’s no shame in needing help.

[newtsoda]

When school is torture...

A comic about autism and “school avoidance”.

------------------

Commence Alt Text:

[PAGE 1]

Title: 'It's Not School Avoidance – Trauma, Burnout and PTSD in the Education System'. The first panel shows a woman, her face veiled in shadow and surrounded by a thicket of thorns. She looks alien, with pointed ears and cat-like eyes. The second panel shows her drowning, her hand grasping at the air. The next panel shows ghost-like arms twisting around her. The speech bubbles read: When I was a kid, school was the stuff of nightmares. An intense and overwhelming environment, overstimulating and demanding, and entirely unforgiving. It's where I learned to mask and how to lie about all manner of things. I faked so many illnesses just so I could have the break I couldn't ask for. All so that I could somehow stay afloat in a system that did not recognise my needs. Neurotypicals don't understand just how much school is not designed for people who are not like them. Nor do they understand what it's like when you have to return to the place that is hurting you, day after day after day.

[Page 2]

The woman lies with her head on a pillow, staring wide-eyed at the reader. Thorns creep around the edges of the frame. The text reads: It's nearly twenty years later, and I still have the nightmares. Not the same vague dreams about not doing my homework everyone gets, but vivid night terrors that revolve around school and the things it made me feel. I've been told it's a symptom of CPTSD. The second panel shows a dagger with thorns wrapped around it as it is slowly dragged into their midst. The text reads: Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder develops over a series of prolonged traumatic events. A disturbingly high number of autistic adults go on to develop it and can trace the root of their trauma back to the torturous experiences of their school years. So, I guess it's safe to say I'm not alone. But what's worse: It's still happening today.

[Page 3]

A girl is at the centre of the page, tears streaming down her face as scissors cut through her wings. Blood drips down the page. Thorns creep towards her. Another panel shows the woman's back with the shredded remnants of her own cut wings. The text reads:  Autistic children are being dragged through a grim education system that does not get their needs, quietly suffering. Parents are denied support if their child makes good grades or is quiet in class, because all is well. But the school doesn't see the tears and fights getting to the gates in the morning. Or the meltdowns/shutdowns as soon as the child gets home. It doesn't matter what's happening to their mental health. That a bubbly, happy child who loved to learn has turned into a despondent, empty shell of their former self. Above all else, school emphasises attendance rates. As long as that child is still showing up every day, it's seen as a success, no matter the cost—and the cost, sadly, is often steep for people like us.

[Page 4]

The girl and the woman are wrapped in a towering mass of thorns. Swords jut from the wounded woman's chest while she looks down at the girl who reaches for a hand trying to rescue her from her plight. The text reads: “Your child just needs to develop more resilience.” An infamous line that keeps rearing its ugly head. It comes from a place of ignorance, from people who have no idea how resilient these young people already are from living in a world not designed for their neurotype. But what can parents do? They're witnessing the damage forced classroom time is doing to their children, seeing it destroy them, but feel powerless to help. Keeping them home for recovery results in fines, warnings, and intimidation tactics. Seeing no other way out, some parents are forced to take their child out of school for good, opting for home schooling instead. They report needing years to repair the damage done to their child's mental health.

[Page 5]

The woman is seen healing the girl's back. Tiny wings sprout where hers were cut. The text reads: Homeschooling can allow parents to slowly build their children back up, coaxing them back to their former selves. But not everybody has the means to homeschool, and while it should always be a choice, it should never be one forced by desperation. The next panel shows the woman's own shredded wings. The final one shows her defending her child. Text: This whole thing is excruciating for autistic parents who experienced it all themselves while growing up and know exactly the damage that is being done, yet find themselves unable to protect their child from suffering the same fate. I want to be a parent one day, but the thought of school already fills me with dread. I want my child to benefit from a well-rounded education without paying the steep mental health price I had to pay. It shouldn't be too much to ask! And yet, I've fully prepared myself for the battles I'll have to fight.

[Page 6]

The page shows the woman twirling the girl around while she holds her hands and the girl flies with her new, full-grown wings. The woman's wings are still shredded, but she smiles knowing that she was able to help her daughter. The text reads: I want to raise the next generation of autistic people unburdened by school trauma or CPTSD. We need more autistic-friendly options, and lockdown and the pandemic showed that it's possible!  We need flexible schooling, less classroom time, more opportunities to do schoolwork from home, and low intensity classrooms for children who don't have parents who can support learning from home. Allow for recovery time and stop penalising low attendance rates! We want the education system to recognise the damage it's doing to young people and believe parents when they plead for support. There is more than one way to achieve learning outcomes, and we deserve a system that works for us.

[snakeautistic]

As overplayed as the undiagnosed gifted kid to burned out neurodivergent narrative is, I fall into it perfectly. I have complicated feelings on being labeled as ‘gifted’ and placed into various advanced classes as a kid. Being “smart” was (and still, is, honestly) a deep rooted part of my identity. Any turn of events that makes me feel unintelligent deeply shakes my self esteem.

I think this is particularly potent for ND people because we think in behave in such divergent ways that our differences are considered an extension of our giftedness. In our minds being intelligent is the one good thing we have. We’re often mocked or looked down upon for not fitting in, so our only security is academic achievement.

I’d think admittedly very nasty things about the classmates that would ostracize me as a child. “It doesn’t matter what they think, because I’m so much smarter than them, and they’ll end up failing at life while I succeed” It hurt a lot to be excluded and at times laughed at. Basically little me was just coping extremely hard.

It’s dangerous to attribute success, whether academically or monetarily, to worth, but it’s something almost everyone is prone to. And in a society not designed for neurodivergent people, it’s much harder to meet that definition of success.

So you fail. And then what? Those around you have been sending the you the same messaging all your life- the one part of you that is worth anything at all is not enough.

[itsaspectrumcomic]

hiya, i have a doubt. i was diagnosed as neurodivergent but not autistic or adhd. i have primary complex motor steryotypy, sensory, and understanding other peoples feelings issues. i really relate to what u say on here even tho im not on autistic spectrum. is it ok for neurodivergent allistic people to we-blog?

Hi! Yes of course, anyone can reblog my posts, whether you relate or just want to spread awareness :) Being autistic or neurodivergent is not a requirement!

[clownrecess]

My AAC device is not a toy, it isnt here for you "try out".

It is my voice. Do not touch it without asking. Do not search through it's folders without asking.

It is not here for you to make it say weird things. It is not here for you to spam my message window with random words. It is not here for you to play with. It is not here for you to "try out".

It is my voice. It is not funny, or a toy.

Please stop treating it like one.

You have no right to grab it, to pull my hands away from it so you can make it say things I don't want it to say, or to slam your hands down onto buttons without warning.

Please stop.

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

Hyperlexia

Mrs Speechie P