lokroma reviewed Divergent Mind by Jenara Nerenberg
Review of 'Divergent Mind' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
A very accessible exploration of neurodivergence. Journalist and founder of the Neurodiversity Project, Jenara Nuremberg looks at autism, ADHD, Aspergers, synesthesia, and people who are highly sensitive from a non pathologizing perspective. She stresses the importance of understanding that there are many ways our brains can process sensory information; and that rather than label and diagnose, it would be to our benefit to take advantage of the special abilities of highly sensitive people.
Nerenberg places special emphasis on high achieving women who have been diagnosed with "conditions" like autism and Aspergers. Several scientists are included, among them a woman at MIT with Aspergers who thrives at a school where there are many others like her. She says that when she started working at the college she finally found a place where she felt at home.
Fewer women than men have historically been identified as being neurodivergent. Women have often been …
A very accessible exploration of neurodivergence. Journalist and founder of the Neurodiversity Project, Jenara Nuremberg looks at autism, ADHD, Aspergers, synesthesia, and people who are highly sensitive from a non pathologizing perspective. She stresses the importance of understanding that there are many ways our brains can process sensory information; and that rather than label and diagnose, it would be to our benefit to take advantage of the special abilities of highly sensitive people.
Nerenberg places special emphasis on high achieving women who have been diagnosed with "conditions" like autism and Aspergers. Several scientists are included, among them a woman at MIT with Aspergers who thrives at a school where there are many others like her. She says that when she started working at the college she finally found a place where she felt at home.
Fewer women than men have historically been identified as being neurodivergent. Women have often been dismissed as "too sensitive" or hysterical, but with highly sensitive men researchers have searched for underlying causes. Now women are starting to recognize that they too can have high sensitivity, and they can finally stop beating themselves up because they think there is something wrong with themselves.
There is an enormous amount of research being conducted in this area, in animals as well as humans, with implications for the workplace, for families, for social interactions -- essentially for all areas. The trick is acknowledging that people process information in many different ways, and that utilizing their sensitivity can benefit all of us.
