From Mother to Daughter: Embracing Neurodiversity this Mother's Day

Mar 17 2024 • 49 mins

Sarah's mum was diagnosed with Dyslexia and Dyspraxia at University. Although she no longer pays much attention to it post-retirement, she has noticed she procrastinates more which she is learning may be part of her neurodiversity.

The stigma of neurodiversity has been present since the younger years of Sarah's mum and is still there now. Although people choose to respond differently to this, Sarah believes it is crucial to see neurodiversity as a disability in order to admit that help is needed.
Notably, not all neurodiversity can be diagnosed by a general practitioner and this makes it cumbersome. Dyslexia often has to be diagnosed by an Educational psychologist, unlike ADHD which can be more easily diagnosed with medications prescribed to manage it. Because of this, a lot of people may be struggling through life because of their neurodiversity, completely unaware of it. This is also the reason why after getting a diagnosis, the tools must be available as quickly as possible, especially at work. Employers should be equipped with knowledge and resources to work with neurodivergent professionals. The lack of these tools greatly impedes the ability to perform. Despite retirement, Sarah's mum still finds resources useful to help accomplish tasks.

The increasing level of awareness of neurodiversity has brought more hope to retirees struggling with it. However, it will come with much effort. There are also a number of good neurodiversity charities available to people. Sarah offers her help too through her group Neuro Enigma which promotes mental well-being among other business resources for neurodiverse professionals. One of these is an upcoming mastermind tagged "How to scale your business and look for funding". Another one coming on the 20th of March is "How to Understand your Dyslexia".

Previous episode -https://open.spotify.com/episode/7qae5G9RINeA6HvK9m1OL3?si=qwSV4s0uTDyAOW9MAfZ57Q

Three negative aspects of neurodiversity include frustration, procrastination, and difficulty spelling. Sarah recommends the "NeuroBoost Double Bodying" method on her website for people struggling with procrastination. The positives are the resourcefulness, and friendliness of neurodiverse people.