[IggleSniggle]

I always thought of myself as merely ADD, but your comment is so incredibly relatable across all dimensions that I find myself wondering how far along the autism spectrum I am. Although, in my personal opinion, neither term is especially helpful: it's not a sensory/executive processing disorder if it's clearly benefiting both yourself and the people around you. It might make being sociable difficult, but that's the tradeoff for being willing to engage your mind in ways that others filter out as "too much information."

[TylerE]

I’d be really careful with language like. For me the sensory and executive components are clearly disordered and border line disabling all on their own., and while it is what “me” is, it certainly isn’t making me or anyone around me happier, or their lives easier. Like - I carry a shoulder bag with industrial earmuffs and extremely dark sunglasses at all times because I cannot function in sensory overload. It is not a super power, and framing it that way is dismissive of those of us not on the very mildest end me of the spectrum.

[IggleSniggle]

I apologize. I didn't mean to suggest it is a super power, and it has also been a struggle in my life. I find it useful to frame this way because the struggle is not only because of the way that I am, but also because of the way everyone else is. I'm not asking anyone to change on my behalf, but it took me a long time to accept myself as I am. It took me a long time to accept that I didn't need to change for the benefit of everyone else.