The Neurodivergent Experience

Fine. Stressed. Overwhelmed. We use these words every day, but they can conceal far more than they reveal. Anger and disappointment may feel remarkably similar in the body, yet one may point towards perceived injustice while the other emerges from an unmet expectation. If we cannot recognise the difference, we may reach for entirely the wrong response. In this episode, Ashley begins a new season o...

In this episode of The Neurodivergent Experience , Jordan James and Simon Scott open up about imposter syndrome — the belief that you’re never good enough, never qualified enough, and that one day everyone will “figure you out.” With humour and honesty, they share personal stories of childhood bullying, masking, perfectionism and self-doubt, and how growing up misunderstood leaves many autistic an...

After several years in which illness and healing necessarily made her world smaller, Ashley is beginning to venture out again - and discovering how readily the outer world begins speaking to the inner one when we are available to encounter it. In this episode, two recent experiences become unexpected lessons in transformation and creative expression. At a natural soapmaking workshop led by her fri...

This is a re-run episode from 2024. Society's perspective on autism has shifted, but there is still work to be done to combat misinformation and stigma. In this episode, Jordan James and Simon Scott interview Steve Silberman, the author of NeuroTribes. They discuss the impact of Silberman's book on the neurodivergent community and the importance of embracing neurodiversity. They delve into...

Sometimes another person’s courage, creativity or refusal to remain inside one identity awakens something that was already waiting within us. After attending an evening in conversation with Suzy Eddie Izzard, Ashley reflects on inspiration, sideways thinking and the confidence we sometimes borrow before we can fully experience it as our own. She returns to a moment in the late 1990s when Suzy’s co...

In this episode of Mindful Mondays, we continue our exploration of the senses by turning toward something deeply personal and often overlooked: touch and movement. For many neurodivergent and highly sensitive people, the body can feel confusing, overwhelming, or even unsafe at times. And yet, movement and touch are not optional extras - they are fundamental ways the nervous system orients, regulat...

In this week's Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon dive into three stories about autism, relationships, diagnosis and what happens when understanding neurodivergence collides with the expectations of the people around us. First, an autistic man asks how he can explain to his girlfriend that his autism isn't something he can simply change. As the story unfolds through its updates, Jord...

In this episode of Mindful Mondays, Ashley explores something we live within every day, yet rarely stop to consider: light. Light shapes far more than our ability to see. It influences our sleep, mood, hormones, nervous system regulation, and overall wellbeing. For neurodivergent people especially, light can sometimes feel overwhelming or dysregulating - but when we understand how it works, it can...

In this week's Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon discuss three neurodivergent dilemmas involving boundaries, brutal honesty, family expectations and when neurodivergence explains behaviour — but doesn't necessarily excuse it. First, someone kicks their friend's autistic friend out of their home after they repeatedly ignore boundaries, burp in their face and start handling their...

Sound is one of the fastest, most powerful systems in the human brain. It can soothe, destabilise, regulate, overwhelm - and, when used intentionally, it can become a profound tool for nervous system support. In this episode of Mindful Mondays, Ashley explores the neuroscience and lived experience of sound for neurodivergent minds. From music and rhythm as ancient emotional language, to binaural b...

In this week's Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon discuss three neurodivergent dilemmas shared by the online community. They begin with a woman at breaking point after her husband stops taking his ADHD medication and insists that ADHD is his “superpower” — while his impulsive spending, emotional outbursts and inability to manage everyday responsibilities leave her carrying the household....

What if balance is not a fixed point we finally reach, but a living relationship with what is happening? In this episode of Mindful Mondays, Ashley explores the space between holding on and letting go, certainty and possibility, roots and wings. Beginning with the image of a surfer responding to the movement of a wave, she asks what changes when we stop searching for the permanently correct positi...

In this week’s Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon do things a little differently, turning to some of Reddit’s funniest and most wholesome pet stories after Jordan shares the sad news that his beloved Sheepadoodle, Milo, has passed away. First, a woman who deliberately got a cat because she doesn’t like dogs discovers that her new companion apparently missed the memo and behaves exactly like...

Our Sponsors: 🧘‍♀️ Ashley Dupuy – Integrative Coaching, Breathwork & Hypnotherapy & https://insighttimer.com/AshleyDupuy 🤝 Sophie James - Neurodivergent Mentoring: sophiejamesndmentoring.com 🎧 The Neurodivergent Experience is available on Spotify , Apple Podcasts , and all major platforms. 🌈 Celebrate autistic voices with early access, ad-free listening, and our full archive at Autisti...

In this week's Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon discuss four neurodivergent dilemmas shared by the online community. They begin with a disabled woman whose parents complain about having to drive her places despite doctors advising her not to drive. Jordan and Simon discuss autism, ADHD, disability, independence, family expectations and the difficult balance between needing support and find...

This week marks one full year of Mindful Mondays! And to celebrate, we're going somewhere a little adventurous: the growing research into psychedelics, neuroplasticity, and what it might mean for neurodivergent minds.  Ashley explores the idea of a "slow psychedelic" - how From Mask to Map's substance-free process can offer a slower, more integrated version of the revelation psychedelics can...

This week on The Neurodivergent Experience, Jordan and Simon are joined by the show’s in-house therapist and Mindful Mondays host Ashley Dupuy for four Reddit stories exploring therapy, parenting, disability, neurodivergence and the complicated line between support and autonomy. First, a father questions why his teenage daughter needs to continue therapy when, in his eyes, she should have already...

We please. We rescue. We perform. We hold everything together - until sometimes we disappear or reach for escape. But what if these familiar responses are not fixed identities? What if they are intelligent adaptations: ways we learned to secure safety, belonging, continuity or relief? Following last week’s introduction to From Mask to Map, Ashley explores the Nine Adaptation Patterns at the heart...

In this week's Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon unpack another selection of dilemmas involving autism, ADHD, relationships and the realities of being neurodivergent. They begin with a parent who invites an entire class to her son's birthday party — except for one autistic child. Jordan and Simon discuss exclusion, ableism, reasonable accommodations and the lasting impact of being the child...

In this episode, Ashley explores the ideas that gave rise to From Mask to Map: her developing body of work, book and coaching cohort for late-discovered neurodivergent adults. Drawing on Dr Andrew Huberman’s conversation with Jungian analyst Dr James Hollis, she considers meaning, purpose and the deeper intelligence within us that may be continually trying to bring us back into relationship with o...

In this week's Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon discuss four neurodivergent dilemmas shared by the online community. They begin with a mother who admits she hates her eight-year-old son with ADHD and ODD, sparking a conversation about parenting, challenging behaviour, boundaries, meltdowns, and the impact of growing up feeling like you're always doing something wrong. They then unpack a po...

Seeing your life clearly doesn’t mean seeing it harshly. In this episode of Mindful Mondays, we explore how mindset and reframing shape not just how we think - but how our nervous system experiences the world. Many neurodivergent and highly sensitive people live with a loud inner commentary. Thoughts can feel convincing, critical, and fixed - yet thoughts are not facts. Together, we explore: * Gro...

No Hot Topic Today! Hi everyone! Just a very quick update to let you know that unfortunately there won't be a Hot Topic episode of The Neurodivergent Experience today. Sorry to anyone who was expecting one in their feed this morning. We'll be back with a new episode of The Neurodivergent Experience next Thursday, and I'll also have a little update for you about the show next week. Thanks, as alway...

In this week's Reddit Stories episode, Jordan and Simon discuss four neurodivergent dilemmas shared by the online community. They begin with a man who accuses his sister-in-law of lying after discovering the "Jeep" she promised him isn't technically a Jeep, sparking a conversation about autistic pedantry, the need to be correct, and why being technically right doesn't always mean you're in the rig...

Inspired by the extraordinary way a young swallow drops from its nest into flight, Ashley explores what it means to meet the present moment before certainty arrives. Through a childhood trust fall that ended on the kitchen floor, her struggle to surrender to the flow of dancing, Ram Dass’s invitation to Be Here Now and Alan Watts’s unforgettable falling cat, this episode asks whether trust is real...