top of page
Beautiful Landscape
Search

What is the Neurodiversity Paradigm Shift?


Plate 72 from Ernst Haeckel’s Kunstformen der Natur (1904), depicting a grove of mosses (referred to by Haeckel as “Muscinae”, a label now obsolete)
Plate 72 from Ernst Haeckel’s Kunstformen der Natur (1904), depicting a grove of mosses (referred to by Haeckel as “Muscinae”, a label now obsolete)

It’s my Sunday morning and everyone is in bed. I’m wondering what I’d like to do downstairs on my own in the peace and quiet and decide that, oh yes, what would be a great idea would be to listen to a video where autistic advocate Kieran Rose is talking about how autism doesn’t exist. I spotted it the other day and have been meaning to listen to it for a while. I’m intrigued and want to expand my learning further.


So, in my very own autistic way, I settle down on the sofa with a cup of tea and my notebook, and proceed to write down most of the words that are said in the video! Attention to detail, monotropic hyperfocus, processing thoughts through writing and listening at the same time. That feels autistic to me.


Any way. The next part of this hyperfocus is to want to share what I learned this morning. And this is why writing blogposts is another autistic thing. I use this form of writing to further embed the learning, by sharing it with an audience.


So thank you for reading. I mean, there may not be anyone out there reading at all, but that doesn’t matter as I can pretend and that’s good enough!!


Here are my reflections after watching the video, and here are two of my favourite verbatim quotes from Kieran in the video:

 

“Autism is a medical construct based on historical observational behaviours, therefore, there is no such thing as autism.”
“When you’re an autistic person, every aspect of you as a human being is up for some level of correction of patholagisation; the way that we play, the way that we think, the way that we learn, the food that we put in our mouths, the way that we sleep; everything we do is up for correction in some way. And that’s a real load to take on – what that messaging does to us internally.”


So the video talks about how historically (and sadly, even now), rigid ideas have developed regarding the "right" and "wrong" way to be human. The neurodiversity paradigm is about these fixed ideas finally starting to change! We're moving towards understanding that there are natural variants in people.


The truth is, autism isn't really a "thing" at all! It's basically just a medical construct that people came up with by watching others and making lists of what they thought was "different." But being autistic? That's completely real and totally different for each person.


Let me break this down a bit more...


Ernst Haeckel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Ernst Haeckel, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The whole medical model we've been using (the DSM being at the heart of it) is actually pretty problematic. It basically says there's one "right" way to be human - and the ‘norm’ or perfect human being we are comparing against is mainly a white, middle-class, Western male.  Everyone else gets compared to this super narrow definition of "normal" and gets labeled as having "deficits" if they don't match up. It's pretty ridiculous really when you really think about it!


And here's what really gets me - when you're an autistic person, literally EVERYTHING about you becomes something to fix. It suddenly "wrong" somehow. Can you imagine what that does to someone internally? It's such a heavy load to carry around, constantly being told that everything about you needs correcting. I've seen this impact so many people, and it's heart-breaking.



That's exactly why we need this massive shift in thinking! Because being autistic isn't about having some condition - it's just part of who someone is as a human being. That's why lots of us prefer identity-first language (saying "autistic person" rather than "person with autism"). We're saying "Hey, recognise me as an autistic human being, not as someone with some made-up construct that says I'm broken!"


Oh, and this is really important - there's no such thing as "just" an autistic person. There are over 75 conditions that can go along with being autistic? (Kieran mentions this in the video). Plus all the other stuff that makes us who we are - where we grew up, our family dynamics, education, beliefs, culture, gender identity... everything! The medical model doesn't consider any of that intersectionality.

Let me give you an example - when we talk about autistic experience, we might be talking about someone who's non-speaking, or someone who has co-occurring physical disabilities, or someone who's dealing with sensory processing differences. We might be talking about someone who masks so well you'd never guess they're autistic, or someone who stims openly. All of these experiences are valid, and they're all influenced by so many different factors in that person's life.


What we really need to do, if we could do this, is start from fresh. Chuck the old medical construct in the bin and start asking a much simpler question: "Who is this person in front of me, and what are their unique needs?" It really is that simple - just see us as human beings!


For professionals working with autistic people, this means doing some serious self-reflection. We need to be constantly asking ourselves: "What don't I know about this? What assumptions am I making? What privileges and biases might be influencing my perspective?" And PLEASE, please talk to autistic people about their lived experience! Collaborative practice isn't just a nice bonus - it's absolutely essential for informed practice.


The barriers autistic people face aren't inherent to being autistic - they're created by a society that isn't set up for diversity. That's what the social model of disability is all about, and it's so important to understand this! When we shift our focus from "fixing" people to removing barriers and creating accessible spaces, everything changes.


What do you think about this shift in thinking? Have you noticed these changes happening in your own experience? I'd love to hear your thoughts!


Kommentare


BACP Logo - 386848.png

STAY IN THE KNOW

bottom of page