Somebody asked this question on Reddit. They added: “Feels like everyone's got something these days.”

I agree. Here’s my response.

‘Neurotypical’ vs ‘neurodivergent’ is not a good distinction because the terms violate hardware independence.

The prefix ‘neuro’ refers to nerves, ie hardware (the brain). But in many cases I’ve seen, people who describe themselves as ‘neurodivergent’ really just have different ideas and no underlying hardware differences. For example, children who get ‘diagnosed’ with ‘ADD’ for ‘failing’ to sit still in a boring and authoritarian environment really just wish to be free and work on their own unique problem situation. Their ideas differ from teachers’ and more obsequious students’ ideas.

In addition, calling oneself ‘neurodivergent’ is a new way to be different and cool, which is unfortunate because some people who might describe themselves as ‘neurodivergent’ have real issues.