Neurodiversity and iNaturalist!

[charlie]

nearly every word of this is directly relevant to me.

[lothlin]

Nothing makes me happier right now than pouring agar plates LMAO

[EricSchamell]

@charlie

my brain didn’t get installed with the ability to do this, unfortunately.

Mine didn’t either, but it did become a learned behavior for me out of necessity. I want to make a clear distinction here that the shift for me had nothing to do with indifference. I probably care even more now than I did when I was younger (actually I know I do considering what can move me to tears if I allow myself to feel it) but I consciously turn my frustrations into small actions every day. It probably helps that I’m so completely jaded with the political establishment that I no longer look to that institution as a means to accomplish anything beyond their own self serving ambitions. Sorry, that was probably a bridge too far but my continued semblance of sanity requires rigorous honesty at times :-)

[charlie]

yeah, if it pushes me into duress or danger i can stop talking about something, but then i just check out entirely, so i’m not actively accepting and working with that, just shutting down.

[lothlin]

‘Neurotypical’ is the word you’re looking for.

[giannamaria]

@lothlin

I’ve just lost any ability to tolerate dogmatic, unscientific, unfounded, and harmful opinions.

Me too. I try to remind myself that people have always acted like this, and I try to just ignore the bad and focus on the good. (not that I am shielding myself from negativity, ofc, because that is something that can happen.)

@sopacexplorer

@charlie

iNaturalist has a whole lot of autistic or otherwise neurodivergent people using it.

Interesting that you bring it up, as that’s been my observation as well. I suspect a correlation between some neurodivergent people and nature/ iNat as a means to seek pleasure w/o other people; heck, people who are non-neurodivergent (what the heck is that word? You posted it, I can’t find it) have long found joy in the field w/o interfacing with other people.

I really do like having a break from interacting with the public and just wandering around, finding neat things.

@sopacexplorer

@astra_the_dragon

due to society’s poor reaction to their differences (bullying, ostracism, etc – which fortunately are extremely rare on iNat!

In my observation (noting I quoted only part of your sentence) this is not entirely the case; I have found this forum, particularly those proclaimed or suspected of being neurodivergent, to quickly attack those who hold views alternative to their own. I’ve been called “not a member” though clearly I am; I’ve been attacked in these forums. A number of participants of iNat and these forums who are not neurodivergent have left after cyber bullying. Acceptance and diversity apply not only to the neurodiverse, but to all.

I have ADHD and OCD, so I guess some would consider me neurodivergent and others may consider me neurotypical, idk which fits me honestly. I guess I myself would consider neurodiversity a spectrum, if that makes sense. It’s odd that people would try to tell a person on the internet, who they have never met face to face, whether they are neurodiverse or not. (but that’s the internet for you, you can’t agree with everyone)

Coming back around to the topic of ADHD, Autism, and the tendency for people with either or both of these to hyperfocus, I definetly agree. I have ADHD and picked up basic bone ID pretty quickly after reading about animal bones for months. Now, I can assemble most skeletons of small animals without needing a reference picture now, too, because I recognize most of the bones.

Autistic people I know are the same way: really smart and good at a lot of detailed tasks. So it makes sense that they would be good at finding the identifying features of an observation.

[jasonhernandez74]

@charlie

I don’t tend to argue if i’m uncertain about something

You, too? Still trying to understand why this is so hard for so many to wrap their minds around.

@giannamaria

It’s odd that people would try to tell a person on the internet, who they have never met face to face, whether they are neurodiverse or not.

That’s just part of the larger trend of diagnosing everything that way. Deciding that someone on the internet is neurotic, or narcissistic, or whatever the case may be. The adverse side effect of the plethora of information is an epidemic of sophomorism.

[charlie]

@giannamaria

I have ADHD and OCD,

Under the neurodiversity movement you’d certainly qualify as neurodivergent. the term isn’t just for autistic people. Though if you don’t want or like the term there is no reason for you to adopt or use it for yourself.

@jasonhernandez74

You, too? Still trying to understand why this is so hard for so many to wrap their minds around.

Of course like anyone else sometimes i am certain about something, but wrong…

[charmurr]

I think this article also assists with HSP_SPS definition as well
Unravel Brain Power: 20 Traits of a Highly Sensitive Person: The Special Kinds - Alecia Benett
Source Quote:The terms SPS (Sensory Processing Sensitivity) and HSP (Highly Sensitive Person) were coined in the mid-1990s by Psychologists Elaine Aron and her husband Arthur Aron in their book The Highly Sensitive Person published in 1996.

Carl Jung describes a highly sensitive person (HSP) as someone who has high sensory processing and “innate sensitiveness”.

Neuroscientists from the University of British Columbia and Cornell University discovered that our genes (not always) influence how sensitive one is to emotional information one perceives from one’s surroundings. Researchers identified this certain genetic variation as ADRA2b.

Surprisingly, it is a natural trait occurring in about 15%-20% of the population but is not adequately understood.

[kowhaitreehugger]

Like some (perhaps many) others, I find being on or around screens is unpleasant. I don’t get migraines, luckily, but milder headaches and tiredness go hand in hand with screens. So unfortunately this sometimes means that photos I meant to turn into observations go untouched for a week.
On a more positive note, inaturalist really suits my learning style. As I make observations I’ll find information on how to identify the species it could possibly be, in a guidebook or online. Any mistakes that I make are generally quite quickly corrected, which means I can further improve my knowledge.
Inaturalist also has no objections to hearing about that one cool bug I saw while walking, something which other people inexplicably don’t always think is worth enthusiasm. It also sometimes provides just enough extra motivation to get me outside when I’m feeling meh.
I’d also like to mention how nice it is to see people being really accepting of those who don’t have a diagnosis but are quite certain that they’re neurodivergent. I get why people might react badly to this, but there are a lot of barriers to diagnosis and being rude about it is only going to make matters worse. So thank you for being so kind!

[janetwright]

@kowhaitreehugger

I find being on or around screens is unpleasant.

That’s really interesting. I wonder if some forum user has discovered any kind of filtering lens that would help with this. Maybe it’s more common than we know and screen developers should be aware!

[upupa-epops]

I don’t know how speculative this is but I recently came across the idea that ADHD has a beneficial function in motivating some people to be a lot more explorative than others. To me this definitely checks out with how many naturalists have ~ADHD and the knowledge created by all of us deeply and widely exploring our interests and sharing the results with each other.

[quantum_mistake]

I’m ASD.

There’s no way I am reading this entre thread.

Hyperfocus isn’t focusing.

My neurodivergent brain seems to be hardwired to recognize ecosystem patterns. I have been obsessively fascinated by nature and art since I was a baby.

[charlie]

i think there is a lot of truth to it but the adhd/autism cloud is so variable it ranges from a benefit to always bad or anywhere in between and that also varies by environment. It comes down to individual sensory profiles and a bunch of other stuff. But, for those who it is entirely beneficial, it is very rare to get diagnosed or recognized as such at all, since the diagnostic criteria are based only on the problems it causes yourself or others.

[jennformatics]

Just found this project, and I love that it exists! I don’t think I’m really neurodivergent enough to join, but it’s popped up alongside other projects I’m involved in and I really love to see all these excellent folks contributing to iNat.

[charlie]

no gatekeeping needed for that project, it’s totally up to you, self diagnosis is fine there. Also of course fine not to join :)

[kowhaitreehugger]

Anecdotally, I have heard that screen headaches are common in the ADHD community. (the only other person I personally know who gets this has autism not ADHD though) I’m not entirely sure what the cause of the headaches is. Sometimes it feels like it’s the brightness of the screen, and sometimes I suspect it’s my own bad posture!
Also anecdotally, some people have success using coloured glasses to reduce screen headaches. So maybe a setting which restricts a certain colour from being displayed, like those glasses do, would help?

[DianaStuder]

Mine is ‘nightlight’ and 70% brightness for the chunk of time I spend here

[bobasil]

Doesn’t Poke Salad Annie have something to do with pokeweed?

[charlie]

Migraines and similar headaches triggered by sensory issues are common among autistic people and likely ADHD people as well. I get them, though they are more commonly from intens natural sunlight than screens for me (i prefer to be outside but need my sunglasses and hat). But report writing and such seem to cause them too I actually have some prescription tinted glasses on the way, my partner got some and they were incredibly helpful and i am excited to see if they help me as much. My color came up as a funny pink-purple shade so i will look like a hollywood hipster, but if it gets rid of migraines and sensory distress it’s definitely worth it :D