Understanding Neurodivergence: The Racing Car Brain

Neurodivergence is not a flaw in the brain. It is a different way for the brain and nervous system to develop, process information and respond to the world.

ADHD and autism are both strongly influenced by genetics, but there is no single “ADHD gene” or “autism gene”. Instead, hundreds of genetic differences can contribute in different combinations. This is one of the reasons neurodivergence can look so different from one person to another, even within the same family.

The genes may help build the car, but life determines the road it has to drive on.

The racing car analogy

I often describe neurodivergence as having a racing car rather than an ordinary family car.

A racing car is not broken. In many ways, it can do things an ordinary car cannot. It may be faster, more responsive, more powerful and capable of extraordinary performance.

But it is also more sensitive.

Small changes in fuel, temperature, tyre pressure, track conditions or driver input can have a much bigger effect on performance. A racing car that is perfectly set up can be incredible. Put it on the wrong track, fill it with poor fuel, overheat it and expect it to behave like a family hatchback, and things can go wrong very quickly.

I think many neurodivergent brains and bodies work in a similar way.

A brain that notices more and reacts faster

For some people with ADHD or autism, the nervous system seems to have a lower threshold for certain types of input.

Noise can feel louder. Clothing can feel more irritating. Emotions can arrive more intensely. Boredom can feel almost physically uncomfortable. Rejection can hurt far more than other people realise. A busy room, a change of plan or a difficult social interaction may require much more processing than it appears to from the outside.

At the same time, that sensitivity can have enormous advantages. Neurodivergent people may notice details others miss, become completely absorbed in subjects they love, think creatively, spot patterns, respond quickly or experience deep enthusiasm and curiosity.

The same sensitivity that can make life harder can also be part of what makes someone exceptional.

The accelerator, steering and brakes

ADHD is often described simply as a problem with attention, but I think that misses much of the lived experience.

The ADHD brain can sometimes feel as if it has a very powerful accelerator but more variable steering and brakes.

The brain systems involved in executive function help us pause, plan, organise, control impulses, switch attention and decide which information deserves our focus. In ADHD, these processes can be less consistent. That does not mean they are absent. It means access to them can depend much more heavily on interest, urgency, novelty, reward, sleep, stress and the environment.

This is why someone with ADHD can struggle for an hour to answer a simple email and then spend six hours completely absorbed in something fascinating.

It is not a lack of intelligence or effort. The brain is regulating attention differently.

Autism and a world that can feel turned up

Autism can also involve differences in sensory processing, communication, predictability and the way information is organised.

For some autistic people, the world can feel as though the volume has been turned up. Sounds, lights, textures, smells, social information and unexpected changes can all demand processing at once.

Imagine driving a racing car while someone constantly changes the track, flashes lights at you and shouts new instructions through the radio. Eventually, even the best driver becomes overloaded.

That overload may appear from the outside as irritability, withdrawal, anxiety, shutdown or meltdown. The behaviour makes much more sense when we stop asking, “Why are they reacting like this?” and start asking, “How much is their nervous system trying to cope with right now?”

Sensitive does not mean weak

This distinction matters enormously.

A sensitive system is not necessarily a weak system. A smoke alarm that detects smoke quickly is not a bad smoke alarm. The problem comes when it is constantly being triggered.

Neurodivergent people can spend years living with more sensory load, more mental tabs open, more social calculation, more emotional intensity and more effort spent trying to fit expectations that were designed around somebody else’s brain.

Over time, that can become exhausting.

It can affect sleep, appetite, digestion, mood, energy, pain, relationships and the ability to regulate stress. This is one reason I believe it is so important to think about neurodivergence as something that involves the whole person, not just the brain.

The car needs more than an engine

If a racing car is underperforming, you would never look only at the engine.

You would check the fuel, tyres, cooling system, suspension, brakes, aerodynamics and track conditions.

I think neurodivergent health deserves the same approach.

Medication and psychological support can be extremely helpful, but brain function is also influenced by sleep, nutrition, movement, stress, gut health, inflammation and the environment around us.

This is where my I-SNEMS approach fits in.

I-SNEMS looks at inflammation, sleep, nutrition, exercise, microbiome and stress as connected foundations of health. The aim is not to “cure” neurodivergence or turn a racing car into a family car. It is to give that racing car the best possible conditions to perform.

Why understanding yourself matters

One of the most powerful things that happened after my own ADHD diagnosis was that parts of my life finally began to make sense.

Understanding neurodivergence can replace years of “Why can’t I just do this?” with a much more useful question:

“What does my brain need to do this well?”

Sometimes it needs more stimulation. Sometimes less. Sometimes it needs movement, structure, novelty, quiet, recovery time or a different environment. Sometimes it simply needs permission to stop trying to function like somebody else.

The goal is not to lower expectations of yourself. It is to understand the machine you are driving.

Once you understand the car, you can stop fighting it and start learning how to drive it.

Support the whole racing car

This is the philosophy behind the guides and resources I create.

Rather than trying to change everything at once, I encourage small, realistic improvements to the things that influence how your brain and body function every day.

Better fuel. Better recovery. Better stress regulation. Better understanding of your own nervous system.

Small changes made often can create surprisingly big changes over time.