Raise awareness to break barriers

As a person who strives to be an advocate for those who experience mental health related conditions, I really want to find more ways to increase awareness around them.

The more we talk about something, the more we normalize it. However, I feel just talking about it doesn't always lead to a better understanding or more compassion for those who live with some debilitating medical conditions daily.

For me, health is health whether it is physical, emotional or mental. They all tie into one another and they all should receive equal respect and support.

There is a mentality that we are all able to function at the same levels if we appear 'normal' on the outside. If you fall short of functioning at a certain level society has placed on us, you run a greater risk of being labelled as lazy, stupid or 'abnormal'. Imagine being labelled yet you are not even on the same level playing field as some who may be comparing you. Just because they can't see a visible medical condition does not mean it does not exist.

This can lead someone to feel incompetent and less than the 'average' person. These labels can be internalized to the point the disabled person feels they have to 'hide' or 'mask' in fear of feeling more ashamed or rejected. Everyone wants to feel like they belong and accepted.

The reality is if someone had diabetes, cancer or asthma, there medical conditions may be seen with more merit.

When something is invisible, it's easier to assume we all function the same way. Those who do not live with a medical condition of any kind may not be able to relate to how it affects another person who lives with one but they still may carry some compassion for them if they can see their disability.  If someone has an invisible medical condition it might be next to impossible to understand the differences between themselves and someone who may be neurodivergent.

While we all have executive functioning strengths and challenges that affect attention, learning, work and life in general, those without may only experience those challenges from time to time depending on the situation. In other words, the situation is a temporary one.

For those who are neurodivergent, those executive functions can be debilitating and more severe on a daily basis.

When someone with a neurodivergent brain explains their difficulties involving executive functioning, it is because their brain is actually wired differently. This  means, how they see, learn and process information is different than those with a neurotypical brain. And unfortunately, the world we live in does not present in a way that works well for a neurodivergent brain so they are always at a disadvantage.

 This does not mean a neurodivergent individual is 'broken' even though most days they may feel that way! Wouldn't it be wonderful if there were more effective ways for those individuals to live in a world that offers all available options! If it did, barriers would be reduced and better outcomes would exist.

Once you learn more about the neurodivergent brain, you begin to understand there are many things that can help a person thrive, but we as a society are not as aware as we should be just how important it is to accommodate their needs. When they are able to fully participate, this can improve their quality of life.

I believe if we are more aware about these types of medical conditions, the neurodivergent community could feel more confident engaging in a society that is accepting and accommodating of their needs.

While we may see more support appear on paper in more recent years - when push comes to shove - the stigma, attitudes and misconceptions remain barriers for those seeking support.

I would think we would want to get to a place where those with these types of medical health conditions are not afraid to come forward to ask for the support they need without the worry of being alienated, judged and/or rejected.

For a majority of their lives, they have dealt with scrutiny by others and themselves that has more than likely played a big factor in lowering their confidence. It may have prevented them from achieving different levels of success.  If they do eventually find the courage to come forward and share their medical conditions, their worst fears of rejection could come true. Coming forward could be more harmful and damaging to their image, career and lifestyle than it is accepted and supported.

That needs to change and that is why I am talking about it now. We are all human beings that deserve a right to the supports required to have a fair shot in life. No one should be left to suffer in silence.

Before I go any further, I really want to stress the fact that I believe it has more to do with the lack of awareness, education and knowledge around these medical health conditions. Until I took a deep dive into the literature, research and discussions, I did not fully realize the severity of some of them. I have since learned so much and it is important to take time to listen and hear from those who have lived experiences.

Everything started to make more sense to me the more I learned. I became more understanding and compassionate. It became more apparent how important it is that we all actively learn more about visible and invisible disabilities, impairments and conditions. It can change lives.

Prior to this, I don't believe I had enough information to accurately understand the long lasting impacts of those who suffer, and continue suffer, from these some times debilitating and traumatizing symptoms caused by these medical health conditions.

If left undiagnosed and untreated, these individuals can easily fall through the cracks without the proper supports in place, leaving them in a neverending internal battle with themselves. And even worse situations like addictions.

I think I fell in a category where I believed a lot of the misconceptions / misinformation out there and less about the realities.

If we could all imagine what it was like to live a day in their shoes, we would want them to be treated with more grace and have better access to the supports they need. Just like we do when someone is battling for their life with a cancer diagnosis.

People who have non-verbal learning disorders, autism, dyslexia, PTSD and traumatic brain injury (to name a few) also may live with an invisible type of medical condition. We all come from different paths in life and some of those paths are met with hurdles, road blocks and intense road conditions. These paths make us who we eventually become without some of us having much control over some of the roads we were led down at an early age. Through no fault of our own, some of us have been dealt a different journey into a world where our path may not have harnessed us with the type of equipment that works best for our tailored needs. You just hope that the ones that landed there before you used their voice to broaden this narrow path so that eventually all paths lead to one destination where everyone has equal footing and access to all of the best equipment to reach their full potential.

When we all take the time to learn how other people experience the world and how certain mental health conditions affect them in their daily lives, we may see how important it is to integrate them into all aspects of our society. We may see how important it is for them to be understood and embraced by their community.

There is so much benefit to having everyone feel like they matter and their contribution to this world is as valuable as the next person despite any health related obstacles.

We all know how stress can negatively affect and impact our lives. When we are working under a lot of stress, our executive functioning can really be negatively affected and underperform. It's during those times where someone without a disability may be facing significant challenges with their executive functioning skills. It's in those moments, that you can perhaps best relate to how it may feel for someone who lives with a neurodivergent brain. They don't just experience those executive functioning challenges during stressful "moments", they actually live like that daily. Think about that for a minute.

In all that I read and listened to in my research, it's uncommon we hear near enough about the positive sides of a neurodivergent brain and that is a missed opportunity.

Again, we must remain mindful that no two people are exactly alike. This may also apply to someone diagnosed with a medical condition. No two people with a neurodivergent brain will present the same way either. What one person may excel in may be another person's barrier as is the case with a neurodivergent brain.

We also need to share more positive attributes of a neurodivergent brain as the focus tends to lean more heavily on the negative ones.

A neurodivergent brain can often bring innovative ways of thinking and hold highly specialized skills. They can be excellent at problem solving.  They are creative in their ways thinking and use of imagination. They can be deeply focused on something and get 16 hours of work done in four hours. They bring diverse perspectives to the table and some can be very detailed oriented while others can add purposeful value with lateral thinking.

There are many more ways we as a society can benefit when we help provide meaningful opportunities for neurodivergent adults. Their diversity can lead to more innovative solutions and a competitive edge in our ever changing and constantly growing workforce. There could be measurable benefits that lead to better results that positively impact an organization's ability to reach new levels of success.

Did you know Albert Einstein, Lisa Ling, Simone Biles, and Mel Robbins live(d) with ADHD? Did you know the following famous people live(d) with Austim Spectrum Disorder: Charles Darwin, Bill Gates, Sir Isaac Newton and Alexander Graham Bell? Did you know that Steven Spielberg, Anderson Cooper, Jennifer Aniston, and Tom Cruise experience a form of learning differences?

We encourage one another to be kind to one another especially in a world post covid. We’ve been exposed to more hardships, negativity and unrest.

I believe sometimes we forget those gestures can be small ones. If you think someone you know may seem off, standoffish or overwhelmed, have you ever stopped to ask why?

It's true we do not know what anyone else is currently going through but how can we make it easier to open up without shame attached to it?

What if people felt more safe to come forward rather than living in a lie where they hide their truth? Why can't we accept as a society that one size does not fit all?

If we learn more and become more understanding about these medical health conditions, perhaps we will see an increase of people searching for more answers and possibly leading them to the assessments they need.

With a proper diagnosis, they may be able to make better sense of their life and their past decisions. They can find out about possible treatment options that can help with positive changes that will impact their lives moving forward.

We need more discussions and more voices around the table so that we as society can do better.

Knowledge is power! The more we know, the better equipped we become in helping our communities embrace a better understanding of our diverse neurodivergent population. We all have a responsibility in making our world a better place to live and work.

This better place supports and promotes a safe and healthy environment where anyone can thrive with or without a medical health condition or disabilty.

Jules

xo