NDP Episode 165: Does Neurodivergence Empower Us to Resist Conformity?

This week I’ll skip right to the punchline. 

The ability to see beyond the mainstream and to understand the continuum of whatever feature it is in the world is a special gift. 

This is enhanced awareness. I wonder if being neurodiverse or atypical or having a sensitive or different nervous system, sort of gives us this ability. 

In an evolutionary context, I can see how this ability would have been selected for. Hypervigilance enabled some of us to ‘scout’ out our environments and look for threats, which was protective of the village. I think neurodivergence is an artifact of that.

In this way, we can look at neurodivergence, ASD, OCD, and other forms of neurodiversity as superpowers rather than disorders. There is a lot of chatter for and against this perspective, but I guess I’m more of an optimist.

I have always been different. A non-conformist. Outside the mainstream. I think many neurodivergent people are similar. In an evolutionary sense, we need all of us to participate so we have as many options as possible to adapt.

I have shared my thoughts about expressing our genotypes, flying our freak flags, and not trying to conform. Two episodes, The Uniqueness Imperative and The Evolution Paradox go into great detail about why it is our human responsibility to ‘be ourselves’ rather than conform to the mainstream.

Why are neurodivergent people outside the mainstream?

It’s complicated. But it’s also just like anything else. Why do some people have blue eyes? Or blonde hair? Or olive skin? Why are some people more nurturing than others? How come my brother is better at math?

Biology perpetuates diversity (see the linked episodes above). To try and force everyone into normalcy goes against that basic natural law. We must express our differences — in every way — to enhance human evolution. And even to prevent extinction.

Unfortunately, things like music, books, and religion select for sameness, normalcy, and mainstream. The more mass appeal something has, the more people will buy it. At least that seems to be the logic. So we end up with an unnatural amount of similarity.

In other words, unlike natural selection which chooses what is fit, unnatural or non-natural selection forces things to be more similar. Humans are the only species I know of that can do this. We are essentially going against nature.

Nature wants diversity because it enhances evolutionary success. Humans seem to be undoing that system by reducing diversity in favor of conformity. The more similar we are, the lower the probability that we will be able to survive environmental change.

Being ND isn’t easy. But in the context of human evolution, we are important. There is nothing wrong with conformity. The problem is going against our nature. When we conform because we need to feel safe there is a problem. When we don’t feel free to express our differences and ‘fly our freak flags’ there is a problem. When a species loses its diversity there is a problem. 

So maybe this will help us understand that being different is a special gift. Maybe these words, and the growing support of other weirdos and freaks, will enable us to show the world who we are. Maybe one day we won’t need to wear masks because our brothers and sisters welcome our quirks and appreciate the differences we bring to the world.

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