Open Society

"And as pride month comes to a close, and as it does every year, I am left with the same question that haunts me every year. Am I queer enough? Will I ever be queer enough?"

This article was Co-Authored by David Gray-Hammond, Katie Munday, and Tanya Adkin The emergence and popularisation of Neuroqueer theory in the contemporary disability rights discourse and Autistic rights movement represents a significant step forward. Not only does it encourage pride in ones true self, but it emancipates the Neurologically Queer from the normative attitudes that

The other day I live recorded a podcast episode about neurodivergence and queerness. In it, we discussed the fact that Autistic and otherwise neurodivergent people are more likely to be Queer/2SLGBTQIA+. The discussion was very good, and we really got into some of our experiences. It's no secret that Queerness is a significant intersection with

What does it take to support Autistic people in a professional context? David and Tanya explore the concept of neurodivergence competency and invite you to join in the conversation.

A look at gestalt learning in hyperlexia and what it means to be a gestalt learner

Listen to this episode from David's Divergent Discussions on Spotify. In this episode, David Gray-Hammond invites Tanya Adkin and Charlie Hart (AKA Ausome Charlie) to speak about neurodivergence and Queerness.

This radical movement makes space for people with mental health and other challenges to study (and celebrate) themselves

In the literature on autism, there is less written on repetitive and ritualistic behaviours than on the social and communication aspects of autism. What is written on the subject is often rather negatively construed in the sense that such behaviour is viewed as negative and interventions have been designed to reduce or stop such behaviours. In this chapter, the authors take a different view and suggest that often behaviours such as lining up, checking the order of things or playing computer games have a positive effect on a person’s physical and psychological state and give a sense of achievement. They argue that such activities may help to achieve a flow state, as defined by Csikszentmihalyi (1990), where a person is so immersed in an activity that nothing else seems to matter. Against this, they point out that some repetitive activities may cause distress and that staff and parents need to ask how the person seems when engaged in the activity (eg how do they appear when engaged in the activity? Are they calmer after the activity?). This chapter is likely to lead parents and staff to develop a different perspective on repetitive and ritualistic behaviour, and so also to build different responses to these.

Exploring neurodiversity and counselling via a walk in the woods

Comments are turned off on this. If I want to hear from you, you know how to contact me anyway. With apologies/thanks to Beth of Love Exp...

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It is difficult to get a public procurement officer to understand something, when a vendor’s salary depends on his not understanding it.

The American right is returning to its homophobic roots.

So, it's possible that while you were reading last Wednesday's post on the difference between being transgender and having a mental illness, you stopped for a second and thought "but wait a minute! I'm transgender and I do struggle with a mental illness! How do I fit into this equation?" Or perhaps you're not trans yourself, but you have a friend who has recently come out to you as transgender, and who has struggled with a mental illness in the past, and you wonder if the two may be connected. Maybe you're a parent, worried about your transgender child who deals with anxiety, or depression, or an eating disorder, and you're not sure which issue to address first. While it's true that gender dysphoria itself is not a mental illness, we do need to recognize that, unfortunately, many trans folks do live with anxiety, depression, and/or eating disorders. Sometimes these issues are a direct result of the way trans folks are treated in their day-to-day life, and sometimes they're the mind's way of dealing with gender dysphoria prior to coming out and transitioning. Social anxiety is possibly the most prevalent disorder found among transgender folks, with studies in 2005 and 2010 showing that 55% of transgender people experience high levels of anxiety, compared to only 6.8% of the cisgender population. The American Psychiatric Association's 2012 recommendation for access to care for transgender people helps us understand this huge disparity: “Being transgender or gender variant implies no impairment in judgment, stability, reliability, or general social or vocational capabilities; however, these individuals often experience discrimination due to a lack of civil rights protections for their gender identity or expression. Transgender and gender variant persons are frequently harassed and discriminated against when seeking housing or applying to jobs or schools, are often victims of violent hate crimes, and face challenges in marriage, adoption and parenting rights. Discrimination and lack of equal civil rights is damaging to the mental health of transgender and gender variant individuals.” Transgender people may find themselves living in constant fear of verbal or physical harassment. While a healthy mind can deal with this kind of pressure for short periods, over time this perpetual sense of danger is likely to develop into a debilitating form of social anxiety. Depending on personality and genetics, some people are more prone to depression than anxiety, or may suffer from a combination of the two. A 2015 study from the Harvard School of Public Health found that, of transgender people between the ages of twelve and twenty-nine, 50.6% were diagnosed with depression and 17.2% had attempted suicide. As we come to understand depression in the transgender community more accurately, it's become clear that the major cause is what's referred to as "minority stress;" that is, "stressors induced by a hostile, homophobic culture, which often results in a lifetime of harassment, maltreatment, discrimination and victimization." The good news, then, is that as social relations and culture change over time, negative attitudes toward transgender people may be reduced, which will then reduce the stressors which trigger anxiety and depression. Another fairly common disorder found in the transgender community revolves around food. Though, as we've already seen, gender dysphoria and body dysmorphia related to eating disorders are very different, it is possible to suffer from both at the same time. In a 2015 study of students at 223 different universities, it was found that "Transgender students were more than four times as likely to report an eating disorder diagnosis as cisgender heterosexual women," who are generally the focus of eating disorder studies. The reasoning behind this discrepancy is fairly straightforward--transgender women feel the same pressure to stay thin that cisgender women feel, while transgender men often realize that keeping a low body weight represses secondary sex characteristics and menstruation. For many trans teens who aren't allowed to transition, it may feel like disordered eating and excessive exercise are the only ways to make their body more masculine or feminine.  It's not surprising, then, that alongside trans-inclusive mental healthcare, the ability to physically transition has had the most positive effect on trans folks suffering from anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. Study after study has confirmed that access to hormone therapy has had a positive effect on the mental health of transgender patients. One 2012 study looked at a sample population wherein about two thirds had undergone hormone therapy, while the remaining third had not, and found that individuals who had not begun hormones experienced approximately 30% higher levels of anxiety and depression. Two more recent studies, one from 2013 and one from 2014, looked at a representative population of transgender people before hormone therapy, at one year on hormones, and then after any desired gender confirmation surgery. The results found an even greater reduction in disordered symptoms, especially in symptoms of anxiety, after the start of hormone therapy, and what's more, after twelve months on a hormone regimen, transgender patient's scores on symptom checklists resembled the scores of the general population! Additional studies focusing on levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, found that prior to hormone therapy trans people experienced higher perceived stress, while after twelve months of cross-sex hormones their cortisol levels came down and fell within the normal range. So while it is true that the transgender community suffers from mental illness at a higher rate than their cisgender peers, we can take comfort from the knowledge that these disorders are understood, treatable, and above all, that they do not undermine our gender identities. Just because you may deal with depression does not mean your dysphoria is a moot point; just because you struggle with anxiety doesn't mean that your fear of harassment isn't real; just because you're recovering from an eating disorder doesn't mean you're not allowed to ask for help when it comes to gendered expectations surrounding body image. If we take nothing else from these studies--if we ignore the positive effects of trans-inclusive mental healthcare and access to hormone therapy--we must at least recognize that our mental illnesses don't render our gender identities insignificant. Let's hope that as more research is done we'll see positive advances in trans-inclusive treatment in the medical community, and continued movement towards legislation to protect LGBT folks from the social stigma that triggers these disorders.

Author(s): Loy-Ashe, Tarah | Abstract: Recently, the field of research exploring the links between neurodivergence and the LGBTQ+ community has grown. Many queer adults who were not diagnosed as children are just now receiving neurodivergent diagnoses. Nick Walker coined the term “neuroqueer” in 2015 to describe the intersection of being both neurodivergent and queer. “Neuroqueering” refers to the embodying and expressing of one’s neurodivergence in ways that also queer one’s performance of gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and/or other aspects of one’s identity (Walker 2021). Considering the increase of queer representation in the outdoors, it is necessary to also address neuroqueering and its implications for the outdoor community. This conceptual article will address the connection between neurodivergence and the LGBTQ+ community, implications for the queer outdoors, and ways to include neuroqueer recreationalists and outdoor advocates in efforts to make the outdoors more equitable.

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders - There is increased mental-health adversity among individuals with autism spectrum disorder. At the same time, sexual and gender minority groups...

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders - Despite research exploring autism in gender-diverse adolescents, no studies have elicited these individuals’ perspectives. In-depth interviews...

Background Research has shown high rates of suicidality in autism spectrum conditions (ASC), but there is lack of research into why this is the case. Many common experiences of autistic adults, such as depression or unemployment, overlap with known risk markers for suicide in the general population. However, it is unknown whether there are risk markers unique to ASC that require new tailored suicide prevention strategies. Methods Through consultation with a steering group of autistic adults, a survey was developed aiming to identify unique risk markers for suicidality in this group. The survey measured suicidality (SBQ-R), non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI-AT), mental health problems, unmet support needs, employment, satisfaction with living arrangements, self-reported autistic traits (AQ), delay in ASC diagnosis, and ‘camouflaging’ ASC. One hundred sixty-four autistic adults (65 male, 99 female) and 169 general population adults (54 males, 115 females) completed the survey online. Results A majority of autistic adults (72%) scored above the recommended psychiatric cut-off for suicide risk on the SBQ-R; significantly higher than general population (GP) adults (33%). After statistically controlling for a range of demographics and diagnoses, ASC diagnosis and self-reported autistic traits in the general population significantly predicted suicidality. In autistic adults, non-suicidal self-injury, camouflaging, and number of unmet support needs significantly predicted suicidality. Conclusions Results confirm previously reported high rates of suicidality in ASC, and demonstrate that ASC diagnosis, and self-reported autistic traits in the general population are independent risk markers for suicidality. This suggests there are unique factors associated with autism and autistic traits that increase risk of suicidality. Camouflaging and unmet support needs appear to be risk markers for suicidality unique to ASC. Non-suicidal self-injury, employment, and mental health problems appear to be risk markers shared with the general population that are significantly more prevalent in the autistic community. Implications for understanding and prevention of suicide in ASC are discussed.

For programs to succeed, they must be comprehensive and be implemented strategically. And supporting educators every step of the way is critical.

Guest Blog by Tuttleturtle I am an AAC user. I am also queer and trans. My AAC is part of my gender presentation. I have also never seen an AAC system represent someone like me. Even so, I'm a privileged AAC user. I've had access to education that taught me…

By John Summers May 26, 2023 First published in the Boston Globe

It's no secret that I'm a recovering drug addict. It's certainly even less of a secret that I am also Autistic/multiply neurodivergent. When one considers the reality of meeting diagnostic criteria for autism, ADHD, and schizophrenia; It's easy to see how drug use was an inevitability. I often joke that AuDHD isn't descriptive enough for

How to recognise and understand Autistic Burnout in autism, as an Autistic person, professional, parent or carer.

This article was authored by Tanya Adkin " Lovingly dubbed “meerkat mode” by Tanya due to the heightened state of vigilance and arousal it presents, it involves constantly looking for danger and threat. It is more than hyper-arousal, Tanya believes that it is actually an overwhelmed monotropic person desperately looking for a hook into a