@bethradulski: My PhD found that we live in a neuroarchal social structure that’s based in neurotypical cultural norms. Social theorists like Judith Butler discuss the concept of cultural intelligibility as a narrative force in society. Human beings behave in ways that they believe are going to be socially accepted by other people—to make sense within our dominant cultural norms. Equally, when we view the behaviors of other people, we scan for signs of cultural intelligibility. Can I make sense of this person’s behavior? Can I do so using dominant and established cultural, moral, and ethical frameworks? For example, queerness has often been pathologized as culturally unintelligible. It’s not always been acceptable within the domain of patriarchy, where heteronormative marriage is the presumed default. This social structure renders queerness culturally unintelligible—it doesn’t make sense, because it challenges the logics of patriarchy. For many neurodivergent people, masking becomes a way of living a culturally intelligible life. In a world where Neurodivergent = bad, we fawn to protect other people from the discomfort of neurodivergent narratives and behaviors that are read as culturally unintelligible. Unmasking is an enormous challenge in this regard. Because we need to learn that simply being ourselves is not wrong, not deviant, not harmful. And for people who have spent decades being socialized into the idea of being independent, of avoiding eliciting discomfort in others by simply being ourselves, unmasking in relationships can feel downright terrifying. Feel free to pop your questions into the comments section and I’ll do my best to answer as many as possible. #neurodivergent #autism #ADHD #MentalHealth #psychology

Dr. Beth Radulski

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Tuesday 30 December 2025 04:15:10 GMT