Neurodiversity.

As a proud ADHD-er and mom of an autistic child, I was excited to create and share this episode (available on Apple, Spotify, iHeartRadio, here on our website, and other places where podcasts abound).

Some quick background. After living most of my life not knowing I was neurodivergent, getting my diagnosis and that of my daughter was the beginning of a real awakening. And the start of moving from fear and worry to pride and purpose.

I host a LinkedIn group for Neurodivergent Creatives, and with fellow writer and advocate Bernard Grant, I will be presenting on April 14th at the FREE, virtual 2023 City University of New York (CUNY) Neurodiversity Conference, "The Art of Neurodiversity: Learning from Neurodivergent Creativity."

In this latest podcast episode, I talk about what neurodiversity means to me, why it's valuable, and the challenges associated with being neurodivergent. Dara makes what I think is an absolutely vital connection on the topic of masking and the extra energy it takes to translate socially and linguistically.

Dara also shares a powerful story about a recent incident, in which she learned to meet someone where they were--she credits my knowledge dropping but Dara truly has a gift for connecting with people. She explains being amazed with how uplifting and rewarding it felt to be able to recognize the difference, support a person which really opened her eyes to neurodiversity. Because she's the best.

I hope this episode opens your eyes or at least makes you think. Please share your thoughts with us at howdowedeal@gmail.com. Thank you for listening. It truly means the world to us!