Here’s a shoutout to the kids who were told or made to feel like they were “too [insert word], when in all actuality, they were dealing with a neurodivergency or mental/physical health conditions. “

Too young to be tired.

Too young to have issues sleeping.

Too well off to be depressed.

Too young to be in so much pain.

Too serious.

Too loud.

Too messy.

Too picky.

Too lazy.

Too detail oriented.

Too specific with what you say.

Too easily distracted.

Too much to deal with.

Because, same.

To clarify, this isn’t a jab at my parents, in fact, if it’s a jab at anything, it’s towards the societal standards of what kids are “supposed” to be, as compared to a life filled with unfilled expectations, neurodivergency, and mental/physical health conditions.

People who have ADHD tend to have more trouble sleeping. They also have an increased risk of depression and anxiety, issues with volume control, staying organized, staying on task, and so much more.

People who are autistic tend to be specific about how things need to be, and appear “picky” with a lot of things when, in all actuality, something about it made them uncomfortable or overstimulated.

People who have invisible illnesses can go through crazy amounts of pain, medical tests, hospital visits, heartache and so much more and are still told that they are too “young,” to deal with it, or even “you don’t look sick.”

My point is simple. If you see a person that seems “too much.” Take a step back and evaluate before you speak. A person doesn’t need to be reminded that they’re young and in pain. They don’t need to be reminded that they’re messy or “lazy.” There’s a good chance that they’re already beating themselves up for the thing that you mentioned.

Ask how you can help instead of getting mad because they won’t do what you need or want them to. If they have ADHD, most likely the thing was too big to handle and the executive dysfunction set in and they got overwhelemed. If you think a person is too picky, they may be overwhelmed by a texture, sound, smell, or something else.

I could keep going. I’m tired of people being told that they’re “too something,” when in all actuality they’re dealing with something that society could most likely never understand.

So to the people like me who are figuring out that they were never too much, but were in fact just dealing with a neurodivergency or anytinng else like that:

It’s okay that you don’t fit into society’s standards of what you’re “supposed” to be. Your life doesn’t fit into those arbitrary standards. Embrace yourself for who God created you to be and that’s not going to look like the rest of the world.

End rant.