48 episodes

A podcast by atypical people looking at the world from a different point of view. Primarily neurodivergent, but we also have a scattering of LGBTQ+ people and thoughts. New episode every fortnight and occasional "After Dark" episodes when we find them! 

Atypical: The Podcast The Atypical Crew

    • Society & Culture
    • 5.0 • 6 Ratings

A podcast by atypical people looking at the world from a different point of view. Primarily neurodivergent, but we also have a scattering of LGBTQ+ people and thoughts. New episode every fortnight and occasional "After Dark" episodes when we find them! 

    The Mystery of Creativity & the Myth of Normality

    The Mystery of Creativity & the Myth of Normality

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    This week, join Simon on a deep dive through time into the evolution and possible origins of neurodiversity. From the ancient wisdom of neurodivergent shamans to the brilliant minds of Einstein, Darwin, and van Gogh, we'll uncover the hidden stories of how neurodiversity has been shaping our world in unexpected ways.
    But it's not all sunshine and rainbows. We'll also explore the dark side of how society has often misunderstood and marginalized those who think differently, and how the fight for neurodiversity acceptance is still an ongoing battle.
    1. Barack, D. L., Ludwig, V. U., Parodi, F., Ahmed, N., Brannon, E. M., Ramakrishnan, A., & Platt, M. L. (2024). Attention deficits linked with proclivity to explore while foraging. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 291(1984), 20222584. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2022.2584

    2. Basaglia, F. (1987). The Man Who Closed the Asylums: Franco Basaglia and the Revolution in Mental Health Care. John Foot.

    3. Donald, M. (1991). Origins of the Modern Mind: Three Stages in the Evolution of Culture and Cognition. Harvard University Press.

    4. Eisenberg, D. T., Campbell, B., Gray, P. B., & Sorenson, M. D. (2008). Dopamine receptor genetic polymorphisms and body composition in undernourished pastoralists: An exploration of nutrition indices among nomadic and recently settled Ariaal men of northern Kenya. BMC Evolutionary Biology, 8(1), 173. https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2148-8-173

    5. EurekAlert. (2021, April 7). ADHD and other disorders share the same cognitive deficits. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/648099

    6. Feynman, R. P. (1985). "Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman!": Adventures of a Curious Character. W. W. Norton & Company.

    7. Foucault, M. (1988). Madness and Civilization: A History of Insanity in the Age of Reason. Vintage.

    8. Hacking, I. (1975). Why Does Language Matter to Philosophy? Cambridge University Press.

    9. Laing, R. D. (1967). The Politics of Experience and The Bird of Paradise. Penguin UK.

    10. Mashour, G. A., & Alkire, M. T. (2013). Evolution of Consciousness: Phylogeny, Ontogeny, and Emergence from General Anesthesia. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(Supplement 2), 10357-10364.

    11. New Atlas. (2023, March 10). Evolutionary benefits of ADHD illuminate why it's so common. https://newatlas.com/science/adhd-evolutionary-benefits-foraging-explore-exploit/

    13. Rogers, A., & Pilgrim, D. (2014). A Sociology of Mental Health and Illness. McGraw-Hill Education (UK).

    14. Silberman, S. (2015). NeuroTribes: The Legacy of Autism and the Future of Neurodiversity. Avery.

    15. Spikins, P. (2013). The Stone Age Origins of Autism. Recent Advances in Autism Spectrum Disorders - Volume II. InTech. http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/53883

    16. Temple Grandin's website: https://www.templegrandin.com/, various YouTube videos and articles.

    17. Thagard, P. (2013, May 21). When Did Consciousness Evolve?. Psychology Today. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hot-thought/201305/when-did-consciousness-evolve

    18. The Art of A
    As ever we thank you, our loyal listeners for sticking with us. We would love to hear from you and our Twitter is open @AtypicalThePod for messages and comments.

    Have a topic you would like us to cover, or do you fancy joining us for a natter, maybe tell us about your area of interest or expertise and share these things with everyone.

    We would also recommend our friend The Autistic Women for another great view on living with autism and our friends at the All Bets are Off podcast who cover addiction.

    • 1 hr 11 min
    Travelling whilst autistic, doom scrolling and a new K-Pop band?

    Travelling whilst autistic, doom scrolling and a new K-Pop band?

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    With the return of the erstwhile Kim we discuss travelling as a neurodivergent person, using social media and, in true ADHD style, we distract outselves for a lengthy (and now much edited down) discussion of which social media platform sounds like a K-Pop band. 

    We did also discuss some of the latest news around autism diagnosis and touch on a few issues around this. 

    As promised, some links for you:
    The age of doom scrolling - Social media's attractive addiction
    Digital resilience mediates healthy use of technology
    https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/mar/04/uk-increase-autism-diagnoses-neurodiversity 



    As ever we thank you, our loyal listeners for sticking with us. We would love to hear from you and our Twitter is open @AtypicalThePod for messages and comments.

    Have a topic you would like us to cover, or do you fancy joining us for a natter, maybe tell us about your area of interest or expertise and share these things with everyone.

    We would also recommend our friend The Autistic Women for another great view on living with autism and our friends at the All Bets are Off podcast who cover addiction.

    • 49 min
    Phones don't cause ADHD

    Phones don't cause ADHD

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    Simon is back with season three of the Atypical podcast. A litle lonley in the recording suite, because neurodivergent people have a lot in common with cats when it comes to herding, Simon has some interesting discussions and a sneak peek at what we are hoping to bring you this year. Some more long form episodes and media reviews alongside the tranditional group chat on concepts which this year will include leadership, love, some more After Dark discussions and general queer and neurodivergent ideas. 
    As ever we thank you, our loyal listeners for sticking with us. We would love to hear from you and our Twitter is open @AtypicalThePod for messages and comments.

    Have a topic you would like us to cover, or do you fancy joining us for a natter, maybe tell us about your area of interest or expertise and share these things with everyone.

    We would also recommend our friend The Autistic Women for another great view on living with autism and our friends at the All Bets are Off podcast who cover addiction.

    • 22 min
    The Bumpy Road of Reading: Dyslexia's Lexical Labyrinth

    The Bumpy Road of Reading: Dyslexia's Lexical Labyrinth

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    Join Simon and some coffee friends as we explore dyslexia in a little more detail. A brief exploration of it's history, the impacts on education, society and even the media and how the road of dyslexia may have prefigured the wider neurodiversity movement.

    Simon use a lot of resources in preparing for this episode, alongside talking to people and their own experiences. Some of the sources that are cited or used are:
    Davis, R. (2009). The Gift of Dyslexia: Why Some of the Smartest People Can't Read and How They Can Learn. Souvenir Press. Available at Amazon UK.Moores, E (1999) Dyslexia: Challenging Theories. PhD thesis on dyslexia. Available at White Rose Etheses Online.Warnock Report (1978). Available at UK Government Web Archive.Kirby, P. & Snowling, M.(2021). Dyslexia: A History. McGill-Queen's University Press. Available at Amazon UK.Campbell, T. (2013). Dyslexia: The Government of Reading. Palgrave Macmillan. Available at Amazon UK.Pritchard, D. G. Education and the Handicapped 1760-1960. Available at AbeBooks.Potts, P. (1995). What’s the Use of History? Understanding Educational Provision for Disabled Students and Those Who Experience Difficulties in Learning. British Journal of Educational Studies, 43(4), 398–411.Kirby P. Dyslexia debated, then and now: a historical perspective on the dyslexia debate. Oxf Rev Educ. 2020 Aug 13;46(4):472-486. doi: 10.1080/03054985.2020.1747418. PMID: 32939102; PMCID: PMC7455059. Available at PMC.Article from The Guardian, dated April 24, 1999. Available at The Guardian.Singer, J. (2019). Neurodiversity: The Birth of an Idea. Available at Amazon UK.Media clips used under Fair Use and all rights belong to the roper copyright holders.  
    Clips include:
    Suzy Eddie Izzard, Stripped (2009) Information IMDBPercy Jackson & the Lightning Thief (2020) Information IMDBScrubs (2001-2010) Information IMDBAs ever we thank you, our loyal listeners for sticking with us. We would love to hear from you and our Twitter is open @AtypicalThePod for messages and comments.

    Have a topic you would like us to cover, or do you fancy joining us for a natter, maybe tell us about your area of interest or expertise and share these things with everyone.

    We would also recommend our friend The Autistic Women for another great view on living with autism and our friends at the All Bets are Off podcast who cover addiction.

    • 1 hr 14 min
    University, disability and do ND people pick up accents more quickly?

    University, disability and do ND people pick up accents more quickly?

    Send us a Text Message.
    Join Simon and special guest Danny for a discussion of autism, ADHD, the International Day of People with Disabilities and a moment for World AIDS day. We touch on work Danny is doing to make his university more accessible for students and whether neurodiversity is a disability or not.

    As an aside, friend Georgia has asked that we ask you all if anyone fancies writing to their MP about the hundreds of autistic people stuck in inpatient units because there's virtually no support pre-crisis and the Government aren't meeting its own promises on research https://www.autistica.org.uk/get-involved/break-the-cycle/write-to-your-mp
    This is a very important topic and one close to all of us here on the podcast. If you can take five minutes it really might help.
    As ever we thank you, our loyal listeners for sticking with us. We would love to hear from you and our Twitter is open @AtypicalThePod for messages and comments.

    Have a topic you would like us to cover, or do you fancy joining us for a natter, maybe tell us about your area of interest or expertise and share these things with everyone.

    We would also recommend our friend The Autistic Women for another great view on living with autism and our friends at the All Bets are Off podcast who cover addiction.

    • 48 min
    Awareness, history and crumble (custard optional)

    Awareness, history and crumble (custard optional)

    Send us a Text Message.
    Join Simon and San as we discuss being trans allies, the disability history month and crumble. Also, don't ask Sam about hot thermometers. 
    As ever we thank you, our loyal listeners for sticking with us. We would love to hear from you and our Twitter is open @AtypicalThePod for messages and comments.

    Have a topic you would like us to cover, or do you fancy joining us for a natter, maybe tell us about your area of interest or expertise and share these things with everyone.

    We would also recommend our friend The Autistic Women for another great view on living with autism and our friends at the All Bets are Off podcast who cover addiction.

    • 55 min

Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5
6 Ratings

6 Ratings

VirtuLAtty ,

Engaging, Candid, Fun and Great Content!

What makes this podcast special is more than the excellent content—it’s the format as well. Simon, the host, invites co-hosts and guests to discuss a variety of atypical subjects that range from autism to ADHD, from LGBTQ to labels. The style is refreshingly candid with each person contributing their experiences and points of view. It feels like I am in the room along with them sipping a glass of wine and enjoying their company. This group has excellent chemistry and a fascinating take on all things atypical.

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