It’s been a thing near the front of my brain after reading the comments on a ds9 episode review of all things. It was for the episode where Bashir meets the other genetically altered people and the reviewer calls them ‘autism coded’, and the comments rightfully point out that not all neurodivergence is autism and when the term neurodivergent is used people tend to immediately associate with autism and that can be shitty for neurodiverse people who aren’t autistic. They also point out the characters in the episode all kinda have their own thing but their behavior is closer to people who have been abused and shut away from society because of their mental differences cause well, early 90s writers experience with neurodiverse people probably tended to have some of that going on since they’re all ivy league grads from the 70s and 80s.
That’s certainly fair. I was trying to use it more broadly, as people with ADHD or dyslexia can still hyperfocus on trains, boats and plains too.
But I did just outright forget that OCD can be considered neurodivergence instead of mental illness, in part because I’ve seen many people with OCD in my work who are on the mental illness end, the “I can’t sleep because I need to flip switches in a certain pattern or else my family will die” situations.
Edit: Of course how much of mental illness is neurodivergence and how much is a separate thing I understand is also a contentious debate. Is it all? none? Specific things like bipolar or schizophrenia? Personality disorders? Etc
It’s been a thing near the front of my brain after reading the comments on a ds9 episode review of all things. It was for the episode where Bashir meets the other genetically altered people and the reviewer calls them ‘autism coded’, and the comments rightfully point out that not all neurodivergence is autism and when the term neurodivergent is used people tend to immediately associate with autism and that can be shitty for neurodiverse people who aren’t autistic. They also point out the characters in the episode all kinda have their own thing but their behavior is closer to people who have been abused and shut away from society because of their mental differences cause well, early 90s writers experience with neurodiverse people probably tended to have some of that going on since they’re all ivy league grads from the 70s and 80s.
That’s certainly fair. I was trying to use it more broadly, as people with ADHD or dyslexia can still hyperfocus on trains, boats and plains too.
But I did just outright forget that OCD can be considered neurodivergence instead of mental illness, in part because I’ve seen many people with OCD in my work who are on the mental illness end, the “I can’t sleep because I need to flip switches in a certain pattern or else my family will die” situations.
Edit: Of course how much of mental illness is neurodivergence and how much is a separate thing I understand is also a contentious debate. Is it all? none? Specific things like bipolar or schizophrenia? Personality disorders? Etc