🧠 Neurodivergent Conditions 

A

  • ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) – A condition marked by challenges with attention, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness.

  • Alexithymia – Difficulty identifying and expressing emotions, often affecting relationships and emotional regulation.

  • Autism (Autistic Spectrum Condition) – A lifelong developmental difference affecting communication, social interaction, and sensory processing.

C

  • Cluttering – A speech fluency disorder that results in rapid, irregular speech that can be hard to understand.

D

  • Dyscalculia – A specific learning difference that affects understanding of numbers and mathematical concepts.

  • Dysgraphia – A learning difficulty that impacts handwriting, spelling, and written expression.

  • Dyslexia – A common difference in reading and language processing, affecting reading, spelling, and memory.

  • Dyspraxia (Developmental Coordination Disorder) – A condition affecting physical coordination and motor planning.

H

  • Highly Sensitive Person (HSP) – A temperament trait involving deep processing of sensory and emotional input; not a clinical diagnosis but often included in neurodiversity discussions.

  • Hyperlexia – The  advanced ability to read at an early age often well before formal instruction combined with difficulties in understanding spoken language or social communication.

I

  • Irlen Syndrome – also known as Scotopic Sensitivity Syndrome, is a perceptual processing difference that affects how the brain interprets visual information.

L

  • Language Processing Disorder – A condition where understanding and using spoken language is difficult, despite normal hearing and intelligence.

M

  • Misophonia – A sound sensitivity condition where specific noises trigger strong emotional or physical reactions.

N

  • Nonverbal Learning Disorder (NVLD) – Strong verbal skills combined with difficulties in visual-spatial, social, and motor functioning.

O

  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) – A condition involving intrusive thoughts and repetitive behaviours, often included in broader neurodiversity conversations.

  • Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) – A behavioural condition involving defiant, hostile behaviour, often linked with other neurodivergent traits.

P

  • Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) – A profile within the autism spectrum where individuals experience high anxiety-driven avoidance of everyday demands.

  • Processing Differences – A general term for cognitive or sensory processing styles that differ from the neurotypical pattern.

R

  • Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD) – An intense emotional sensitivity to perceived criticism or rejection, commonly associated with ADHD.

S

  • Selective Mutism – An anxiety-related condition where individuals are unable to speak in specific social settings despite having the ability to speak.

  • Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) – Difficulty regulating and responding to sensory input such as sounds, textures, or lights.

  • Stuttering (Stammering) – A speech difference involving involuntary disruptions in the flow of speech.

  • Synesthesia – A perceptual difference where stimulation of one sense automatically and involuntarily triggers another.

T

  • Tourette Syndrome – A condition involving involuntary movements and vocal tics; often considered both neurological and neurodevelopmental, but frequently included in neurodiversity frameworks.

V

  • Visual Processing Disorder (VPD) – A difference in how the brain interprets visual information.

W

  • Working Memory Difficulties – The brain’s ability to hold and manipulate information for short periods while using it to complete a task.