• Contact Now Schedule an Appointment

    3881 Ten Oaks Rd, Ste 2A | Glenelg, MD 21737
    jpiffath.lcpc@gmail.com | (443) 520-1005

  • Jim Piffath

    Counseling for Individuals, Couples & Families

    • Home
    • Bio
    • Areas of Focus
      • Depression
      • Anxiety
      • Family Counseling
      • Counseling for Trauma
      • Grief & Bereavement Counseling
      • CBT Therapy
      • Common Thought Distortions
    • Getting Started
      • FAQs
      • Rates and Insurance
      • Client Forms
      • Confidentiality & Privacy Policy
      • Appointment Request
    • Resources
      • Recent News
      • Mental Health Links
      • Physical Health Links
    • Contact
    • Blog

    What is Neurodiversity?

    March 6, 2023

    Neurodiversity is a concept given life back in the 1990s by an Australian sociologist named Judy Singer. The term is used to represent the different ways people think, behave, communicate, and more. 

    Neurodiversity is often associated with challenges an individual may face. For instance, people with neurodiverse traits may be diagnosed with conditions such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHA) dyslexia, or autism. But the concept turns the traditional diagnoses on their heads. Instead of thinking something is “wrong” with the person, the new science is suggesting that within the human genome, there is a diversity we’ve yet to fully grasp. Conditions aren’t necessarily faults in the brain but rather a unique expression. 

    Neurodiversity and Mental Health

    Extensive data points to the fact that there are greater rates of depression and anxiety co-occurring in individuals with diagnoses of autism, ADHD, and dyspraxia. Autism alone has been linked to higher rates of anxiety, eating disorders, mood disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and more. Much of this may stem from the fact that individuals with autism have typically been found to have low levels of dopamine, a “feel good” neurotransmitter greatly responsible for elevated moods.

    But what about those individuals whose levels of dopamine are in the normal range? And for that matter, what about depression and anxiety in people who have not been diagnosed with any other cognitive condition?

    For years, psychologists, psychiatrists, and neurologists have tried to understand the profound links between body, brain, and life experiences. And what we have learned is that narrow diagnostic categorization doesn’t allow us to recognize all of the diverse ways cognitive conditions express themselves in the human race. 

    Neurodiversity helps solve this. It embraces the complexity of the interconnectedness of the brain, body and life to help us get better patient outcomes. As clinicians, we need to move away from crude labeling and diagnoses and begin to focus on personalized interventions and treatment plans to better serve our clients.

    SOURCES:

    • https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/my-life-aspergers/201310/what-is-neurodiversity
    • https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/pathways-progress/202108/is-there-link-between-neurodiversity-and-mental-health
    • https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/neurodiverse-age/201907/mental-disorder-within-the-neurodiversity-paradigm
    • https://neurodiversityassociation.com/what-is-neurodiversity/

    Share this:

    • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
    • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)

    Filed Under: Uncategorized

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *



    3881 Ten Oaks Rd, Ste 2A
    Glenelg, MD 21737

    (443) 520-1005
    jpiffath.lcpc@gmail.com

    Convenient to Glenelg, Columbia,
    Ellicott City, & Western Howard County

    Contact Today

    By submitting this form via this web portal, you acknowledge and accept the risks of communicating your health information via this unencrypted email and electronic messaging and wish to continue despite those risks. By clicking "Yes, I want to submit this form" you agree to hold Brighter Vision harmless for unauthorized use, disclosure, or access of your protected health information sent via this electronic means.

    Jim Piffath, LCPC
    jpiffath.lcpc@gmail.com | (443) 520-1005

    Counseling services in Glenelg, Columbia,
    Ellicott City, and Western Howard County

    A Website by Brighter Vision | Privacy Policy

    • Facebook
    • LinkedIn