So I guess I should mention this, but I dropped out of college. I'm sure neurotypical students at the school I was going to benefit greatly from the institution, it's a good school with lot's of programs for pretty cheap (in the US), but after just one semester I got sooooo burnt out, and none of my professors would give me any slack.
The usual "You're too smart to have ADHD" line comes to mind, like the two things are mutually exclusive.
Or better yet, "I have it, too, I know how hard it can be, but you just gotta work through it" like I haven't been trying that since I was learning to read.
The whole thing just made me realize just how incredibly skewed the American higher education system is. People like me with more severe symptoms of nuerodivergencies just can't make it without accommodations so many aren't willing to give.
I recently found out I have auditory processing disorder, and what did any of my teachers do, despite having the ability to enable closed-captioning in zoom/meets, not enable closed-captioning that's for sure!
All just because my differences, my disabilities, aren't visible, I can't get help!
Don't get me wrong, it's not only good, but should absolutely be necessary for people with physical disabilities to have as easy access to all the things able-bodied people are. I just also think that the same should apply to those of us who are neurodivergent to have help in getting us on a level playing field with our neurotypical peers.
I love learning, and I could be a good student if I just had help, even just small accommodations. But of course us nds get left out to dry because we "look normal" and are good at masking. Hell I'm not even that good at masking, if my chair can move, it is, I can't sit still, I have a hard time maintaining eye contact, or taking good notes, or learning anything if I'm not doing something else.
I had some of this in high school, too. I didn't have a 504 or an IEP, so I even though the school had it on record that I have adhd, among other things, I wasn't allowed any help. One of my teachers senior year even had the audacity to tell me she understood my disorder better than me, and proceeded to tell me my stimming (drawing), the best way I learn, was a distraction from my learning.
But that was an individual, and my high school teachers, in my experience, have been much better about that kinda stuff, especially when they saw me in the midst of a breakdown, and complete shutdown.
College was...
It's not an institution meant for the neurodiverse. I've talked to so many other people with adhd or autism who have told me they dread the very idea of college, and so many who, like me, dropped out. Cause no matter the benefits of it, we just couldn't make it in a system designed to weed us out.
Despite that, I do want to continue learning, I'll just have to seek other avenues. And I know college can be great for some nds, and really comes down to the schools.
I wish I could afford to go to a better school, and actually make it through, but, idk, I doubt I'll ever go back, it was the worst six months of my life, and I don't know if I could put myself through that again.
