Living in a World Not Designed for Your Brain: The Neurodivergent Experience.

Ever feel like you’re trying to fit a square peg into a round hole, except the peg is your brain, and the hole is the world around you? If you’re neurodivergent, living in a world that wasn’t designed with your unique wiring in mind can be downright exhausting. It’s like being handed a map written in a language you don’t quite speak.

Let’s be honest: the little things can pile up. Have you ever had to explain why you need headphones in the supermarket? No, it’s not because you’re trying to tune out your shopping list or pretend you’re in a music video. It’s because the fluorescent lights, the constant hum of freezers, the chatter of other shoppers and sensing emotions around you. It all combines into a sensory cocktail that can overwhelm your brain faster than a neurotypical can understand. Don’t get me started on deadlines. When the clock is ticking, and everyone else seems to thrive under pressure, your brain might just decide to hit the emergency shutdown button instead. It’s not laziness or procrastination, it’s your system saying, “Whoa, too much, too fast.”

Here’s the truth: the neurodivergent experience isn’t about “trying harder” or “just pushing through.” It’s about recognising that your brain operates on a different system, like having a unique software that processes the world in ways others might not understand. That’s not a flaw; it’s a feature. A brilliant, sometimes quirky, often misunderstood feature.

In my therapy space, your unique wiring isn’t something to fix or hide. It’s something to celebrate. There’s no judgment here, no “you should be more like everyone else” nonsense. Instead, there’s genuine curiosity about how your brain works best. Maybe you need to fidget, pace, or take frequent breaks. Maybe you think in pictures, or need to talk things out loud to process your thoughts. Maybe deadlines feel like a looming thunderstorm that sends your brain into lockdown mode. All of this is valid. All of this is part of your brilliance.

And let’s be clear: your differences aren’t deficits. They’re just… different. Different ways of seeing, feeling, and interacting with the world. Sometimes, those differences are downright bloody brilliant. They can lead to creativity, innovation, empathy, and perspectives that others might never consider. Neurodivergence brings richness to the tapestry of human experience.

But living in a world that often doesn’t get this can be lonely. You might feel like you’re constantly explaining yourself, defending your needs, or masking who you really are just to get by. That’s exhausting, too. I feel that when others don't see the value in your values, or way of being. Of course, you begin to think you're the problem.

So if you’ve ever felt like you’re swimming upstream in a river that’s rushing the other way, know this: you’re not alone. Your brain is not broken. It’s beautifully complex, wired in a way that deserves respect and understanding. And sometimes, it just needs a little extra care and compassion.

Another common problem I notice is emotional regulation, this makes executive function, memory and other challenges so much harder. Which is why I find its extremely valuable to reconect with the body, especially if youre neurodivergent. The constant thinking can be connected to your nervous system and although you may still think more than the average person, this can slow down significantly with regulation and safety. Which I find is often the missing piece for those of us that overprocess, are self aware and understand our problems pretty deeply. I used to look at therapists with a sense of concern and confusion when they'd ask about my body, thinking it was 'woowoo'. However, through my own journey, I have naturally been led to my body, which has made it trustable. I have also seen the impact in clients when we recconect. Afterall the body is not just an accessory to the mind, its an essential feeling part of your whole self. Every experience, sensation and emotion is processed through this constant two-way connection.

The body and brain are like the roots and branches of a living tree.

The branches (brain/mind) reach out, sense the world, and grow, but they are always connected to the roots (body), which anchor, nourish, and support the whole tree. You can’t have healthy branches without healthy roots, and everything that happens in one part is felt throughout the entire tree.