To celebrate the different minds of NCAS, we asked our colleagues about neurodiversity.

Whether they self-identify as neurodiverse, are diagnosed, or have neurodiverse people in their lives, staff share their unique strengths, hidden disadvantages, and what helps.

“I think having a neurodiverse brain allows me to have really high empathy for other people – especially for spotting unfairness. It makes me really passionate about making the world a better place – probably one of the reasons I was drawn to working in environmental science!” – Poppy

“My wife has autism and her brain runs at 100 miles per hour! She has the ability to think extremely quickly and would write an essay in half the time it would take me. She can  focus for long periods, particularly if she is working on something that she is passionate about.” – Anonymous

“I don’t think I’d be able to handle my job without my ADHD! Yes, there are days my mind feels like a burden when I get overwhelmed, overstimulated, or simply fail to grasp any threads of focus or motivation. But, on the good days, it fuels my creativity, keeps me energised and focused in the most high-pressure situations, and enables me to juggle multiple tasks and projects all at once.” – Ilze

“My dyslexia helps me focus on the big picture, which is useful when trying to understand the climate system.” – Jon

“My son has an autism diagnosis. He has the ability to hyperfocus for long periods of time. He is very creative at problem solving and has an amazing drive for self directed learning.  He has a strong sense of fairness and is very open minded.” – Lisa

“I’ve lived with the severe Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) for as long as I can remember. My OCD “manifests” in several ways and there are days and months when the disorder lets go a bit and it’s easier and there are times when it reaffirms its grip on you and it becomes much harder. On a bad day, it is easy to think that my disorder offers no strengths, but reflecting on it, I don’t think it’s true. The way my mind works provides me with an enhanced attention to detail and often allows me to see various situations and issues from different perspectives just because of how long thoughts and ideas spend in my head. Because of this I also tend to remember things better.” – Oleg

“I’m pretty sure I have AuDHD but not formally diagnosed. My brain often feels like a conflicting battleground. I love being organised and tidy (and often appear this to others, especially in work settings) but actually it takes an incredible amount of energy and practice for me to achieve this. I love doing new things in exciting new ways, but I find it incredibly frustrating when change is forced onto me by someone/something else (especially if I don’t understand the reasoning behind the change). It’s really hard to explain these conflicting narratives – and how incredibly draining it is to constantly navigate these opposite ways of thinking.” – Poppy 

“My son is super smart but struggles with some aspects of communication, including reading the mood of others. He is also very disorganised. People often make assumptions about when, what, how he is able to engage.” – Lisa

“Because of my OCD some tasks can take longer to complete as I can get “stuck” on something. For example, I might be scrutinising every word of something I write (I’m actively trying not to do it, so blame that for all typos!), reading something can take very long because my OCD keeps telling me that “I haven’t done it right and need to do it again, and again, and again”. Social interactions can also be a challenge as OCD makes me doubt everything and this can lead to me overinterpreting social cues and repeatedly asking someone if I haven’t offended them or done anything wrong. These are just some examples I feel comfortable sharing, but OCD affects most aspects of my life, be it work or leisure.” – Oleg

“Sometimes, even when I appear calm and present from the outside, I’m actually somewhere far away on the inside. It feels like my mind is either wreaking chaos by rummaging through all my neat shelves of ideas and emotions, causing an anxious spiral of thoughts, or like it’s dissociating and pulling me out of the present reality completely. Navigating an ADHD mind also means constantly toeing the line between overstimulation and understimulation, and the need for routine and the desire for change, as well as the fluctuating levels of energy, motivation, and interest.” – Ilze 

“My wife, who has autism, often struggles in situations with a lot of stimulation, whether that be crowds of people, bright lights or loud noises. Our world is in many respects not designed for autistic people and they can find some things overwhelming, which neurotypical people would hardly notice.” – Anonymous

“I’ve struggled with body-focused repetitive behaviors since I was a kid. It’s an uncomfortable and embarrassing form of stimming linked to OCD, and potentially autism and ADHD. It can be really draining because I feel like I have to hide it at work and in social situations. I’m often feeling really self conscious, and that can really pick away at my confidence and ability to focus – and it’s yet another thing on my busy mind!” – Harriett

“Learning and understanding about how my brain works (both the strengths and weaknesses) really helps me to be kinder to myself. I’ve found being open and talking to my friends and family can really help too.” – Poppy

“Nature grounds me and soothes the chaos of my mind. Even two minutes of fresh air can do wonders! I also rely on a whole load of to-do lists and project planning apps. I also find it really important to talk about my neurodiversity openly at home and at work, so people around me can understand me (and my working patterns) better, and so it’s easier for me to ask for help. Finally, as someone who was diagnosed quite recently, I’ve had to come to terms with the fact that I’ve navigated most of my life without being aware of how my brain might be different to that of other people – so doing lots of learning about ADHD (and other suspected but not yet diagnosed neurodivergencies) has been really reassuring and useful.” – Ilze 

“My son appreciates very clear and precise language. He struggles with metaphor. He has improved the family’s communication skills! Patience is also key and an understanding of the need to reframe things. Being neurodivergent can have an impact on your confidence so focusing on strengths is helpful.” – Lisa 

“My wife finds that exercise, especially running and swimming, helps her to regulate as an autistic person.” – Anonymous

“Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) helps a lot. I was lucky enough to have worked on my OCD with several good therapists and we’ve made great progress over the years. Another thing that helps is talking to other people who face similar challenges – every OCD is different, but knowing that there are other people who can understand you puts everything in perspective – that’s one of the reasons I speak openly about it. A lot of my leisure activities are affected by OCD, but those activities which occupy both my mind and body help a lot: embroidery, playing video games and even bird watching.” – Oleg

“Stimming is really important for me when I’m feeling overstimulated, or understimulated! I’ve started bringing tactile squishy stimming toys into work, and having them on my desk when I need to self-regulate and improve focus. Using sound-cancelling headphones in the office can make such a difference too, especially when I’m feeling hypersensitive to distracting background noises.” – Harriett