Do NeuroTypical People REALLY Exist? - Preview from My Upcoming Book
"If no normal brain exists"... "do NeuroTypical People exist?" Maybe, but not in the way many people think they do.
One key concept of the NeuroDiversity paradigm is the recognition of the diverse ways in which individuals experience and interact with the world around them. NeuroDiversity also claims that no singular 'correct way' of engaging with the world exists, and “no normal brain" exists, which poses the question, "If no normal brain exists”... “do NeuroTypical People exist?"
I firmly believe that the term 'NeuroTypical' does not represent humanity's default state but rather a median or average that our society has been structured to accommodate (at the expense of those of us who are outliers).
Expanding on this, it's important to understand that the normative average, often termed as NeuroTypical, is a social construct and, therefore, is not a fixed entity but rather an idea influenced by the ever-changing dynamics of time, space, and various other societal norms and hierarchies. This means our very definition of what is "typical," "acceptable," and "desirable" is fluid and ever-changing, making it problematic to classify individual people as "average" without examining them in the context of comparison to the communities they currently find themselves in.
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An Autistic Island
What would happen if a bunch of Autistic People founded their own island where only Autistics were allowed to take up residence? What would "typical" look like within a few generations within that particular community?
I imagine it would be similar to when I used to travel to speak at conferences that mostly had Autistic attendees but on a larger scale.
When I used to fly out to speak at Autism conferences regularly, I was always amazed by a phenomenon that often occurred when you put a group of Autistic People together with only one or two non-autistic people.
It was fascinating to witness a non-autistic person becoming "the awkward ones" once ranked as a minority in a space, especially considering how Autism is frequently diagnosed based on assumptions that Autistic People are awkward in our engagements with non-autistic people.
Though this "Autistic Island" may sound like a paradise to some (and might be a nice place to visit and an interesting social experiment), being segregated long term is contradictory to the ideals and spirit of NeuroDiversity and Neuro-Inclusion (which encourages those of various brain and NeuroTypes to work together to support and uplift one another so that our vast tapestry of strengths and weaknesses will help to boost humanity as a whole).
Segregated systems—one system for "normal" or "typical" people and separate pipelines for the "others" and those who "aren't normal"—do us all a massive disservice by isolating and excluding people simply because "they're not average." This is highly ironic, considering how people are praised (and even worshiped) in our society for "not being average" if they can do something their peers consider useful, desirable, or entertaining. In short, many view being atypical as "okay" (and even preferred) if that person has skills that can be exploited.
Typical is Relative
What was considered ordinary and "socially acceptable" 500 (or even 100) years ago differed vastly from today's standards. Even in our modern globalized world, social expectations frequently vary significantly based on cultural context. It's crucial to recognize and respect these differences.
For instance, while avoiding eye contact, a behavior often associated with Autistic People, is frowned upon in Eurocentric cultures, many other cultures do not prioritize eye contact (and may even perceive it as aggressive or disrespectful).
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Additionally, though a person may be born (or assumed to be born) neurotypically average, any of us can become NeuroDivergent after birth (due to numerous factors, such as trauma, abuse, injuries, and other life events).
NOTE: While a "Neuro-Average" person may "become NeuroDivergent" if their brain develops or is pushed to evolve in an "atypical" way, many of those who are born NeuroDivergent (such as those who are Autistic, ADHD, Dyslexic, etc.) will not grow up to become neurotypically average. Furthermore, pressuring someone with a lifelong neurodevelopmental difference to ignore their neurology in favor of acting in a neuro-average way that is unnatural to them (also known as NeuroDivergent masking or camouflaging) can cause that person significant physical and mental harm (similar to what is seen in Queer conversion therapy survivors).
We May Not Know We are NeuroDivergent
Also, because most of us have been raised without NeuroDiversity as a frame of reference for describing the human experience, there are many NeuroDivergent People in the world today who do not know they are NeuroDivergent (because they haven't been given a language to describe their experiences). This doesn't mean these un-named NeuroDivergent People aren't struggling in life or don't know they are different.
I, for example, went the first twenty-nine years of my life not knowing I was Autistic, and my ADHD (though much less of a surprise) wouldn't be officially diagnosed until a few years later when I was in my mid-thirties.
Up until my Autism diagnosis, a few months shy of my thirtieth birthday, I (though struggling with fitting in and constantly feeling like an alien amongst humans) assumed I was and always had been "typical" (as many unidentified NeuroDivergent People do) until my psychologist informed me I wasn't.
I knew I was different (because people treated me differently, mocking and scolding me for all the ways I stood out from them).
I also knew I was different because I struggled with many things my peers seemed to pick up quickly, like bike riding, socializing, shoe tying, sitting still, and being quiet in class (while also being very skilled in areas my peers weren't like art, reading, vocabulary, and computers).
While I knew I was "different," not having the NeuroDiversity paradigm as a lens through which to view those differences meant I believed there was "one right way" to be, and I was falling short (because anything outside of that was flawed).
Viewing "NeuroTypical" or "Neuro-Average" as the "default state" of humanity plays into this same flawed social hierarchy that others and stigmatizes NeuroDivergent people and those within the Neuro-Minority (a term originally coined by Dr. Nick Walker).
Viewing humanity through the lens of NeuroDiversity means recognizing that "typical" is a social construct dependent on time, space, and social hierarchies. This means NeuroTypical isn't "a type of person." Neurotypical is simply a descriptor for someone who happens to be more neurotypically privileged because of being in the Neuro-Majority (also coined by Dr. Nick Walker).
So.... Do NeuroTypical People exist?
Maybe, but not in the way many people think they do.
This post is an excerpt from my upcoming book (title coming soon).
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