22. The Neurotypical Brain?

I have been loving a show lately called The Good Doctor, which is about a doctor who is on the autism spectrum. During one of the shows, they mentioned a medical term called neurotypical and my ears perked up for some reason. “What is neurotypical?” I asked myself. As someone with a mental illness, I have been told by my doctor that I am pretty much like everyone else, except I have a bit of anxiety. Was it true or was he just being nice? However, hearing words like “neurotypical” make me think the later. I will probably never be labelled neurotypical, would I?

Medically, neurotypical is actually a word used to describe individuals who are not autistic. However, in my mind, it also made me think about myself. Obviously, I figure that there is something not typical happening in my brain to cause my anxiety and depression. What would I do if I were neurotypical? Would my life be different? I sometimes I think about this and I really don’t know. If I were neurotypical, I figured I would probably go and do everything I wanted to. I hope I would be making a greater change in the world for good because I wouldn’t be held back my insecurities and fears. I think I would be like that. However, I look at many neurotypical brains around me, and I don’t see them all living their best life. Honestly, I can’t decide if being neurotypical or not has anything really to do with happiness, success, or finding the meaning in life. I guess each road we take brings its own challenges whether you are neurotypical or not.