What do we actually mean by neurodiversity?

I wanted to introduce a word this week that can sometimes feel a little uncomfortable, and that is the idea of ableism.

And I want to approach it gently, because this isn’t about blame or getting things wrong. Ableism, at its core, is simply the set of assumptions we tend to carry about what is “typical” or “acceptable” when it comes to how people think, behave, learn, or communicate. It shows up in very everyday ways. In the expectation that children will sit still, make eye contact, respond quickly, regulate their emotions with ease, or communicate in ways that feel straightforward and familiar to us.

Because those expectations are so normalised, we rarely stop to question them. But for many neurodivergent children, these expectations can feel quite demanding, and at times, quite exhausting.

And so again, this isn’t about criticising ourselves or others, but about becoming more aware of what we’ve come to see as “normal,” and how that might be landing for our children.

Inside the membership this week, we will go a little deeper into how ableism can show up in subtle ways, particularly around behaviour and communication, and how we can begin to look at those differences with fresh eyes.