Disclaimer: I have no quarrel with the mods using the term in the creation of this community. I understand why they chose it, as even if they share my disagreement with the term when applied to ADHD, there’s not really a better inclusive term. “Mental illness” is really the only other option, and naming a community that would probably invite darker discussions that the mods might not be prepared to handle.
Another disclaimer: I think the term is perfectly valid when applied to autism, as autism is not, to the best of my knowledge, a mental illness so much as a difference in processing. Being autistic is only “bad” in the sense that our society discourages autistic traits. (Apologies if this is wrong; I’m neither autistic nor especially knowledgeable about autism.)
The term “neurodivergent” implies that there’s nothing wrong with you if you have ADHD–you’re just special and different. But my ADHD is an illness that requires treatment. A lot of people will tell you that the only reason ADHDers struggle is because society is set up wrong, but I don’t think that’s true, at least for me. Being unable to remember anything, unable to self-start, and hypersensitive to rejection would be massive problems in any world. Sure, the world today is particularly brutal for ADHDers in a way we could probably mitigate if we reorganized society to be kinder, but that doesn’t mean ADHD isn’t ultimately a disorder that some people need to treat with medication and therapy.
If you’ve read everything I have to say here and still don’t believe ADHD could possibly be a mental illness, I’m not sure we can have a productive discussion, but I’m going to try anyway.
I would argue that any brain difference that makes you try to kill yourself is a mental illness. I have tried six different times to off myself as a direct result of rejection-sensitive dysphoria, which is an ADHD symptom. Perhaps not everyone’s ADHD counts as a mental illness, but I believe mine does.
Besides, where is your proof that ADHD is a neurodivergence and not an illness? So far you’ve simply asserted this. Are there any studies? Is there any scientific consensus? To the best of my knowledge, neurodivergent is not a commonly accepted scientific term, so I don’t see how that could be the case.
I think it might be different and present differently in everyone. I know so actually. So I might not classify my ADHD as a mental illness and rather a neurodivergence. You can view yours your way.