When “You’re Fine” Feels Like the Worst Thing to Hear

About this episode

David and Isabelle discuss the challenges of neurodivergent individuals with guest Avari Brocker, focusing on late diagnoses and the importance of understanding one's differences.

This week, David and Isabelle sit down with Avari Brocker — Neurodiversity Alliance student advocate and founder of Learning Curb — for a conversation about something so many neurodivergent people carry quietly for years: knowing you’re different, only seeing your deficits, and not having language for why life feels so much harder than it seems to for everyone else. Avari shares what it was like to be diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia at 16 after struggling for most of her life, and why the worst thing she thought she might hear was that something wasn't actually wrong. David and Isabelle unpack why that fear lands so deeply, especially for high-achieving, high-masking kids who get told they’re just too anxious or “you'll be fine” while they’re privately drowning. Avari also shares how that late diagnosis lit a fire under LearningCurb.org , the resource hub she built so other neurodivergent kids and families don’t have to spend a year desperately searching for answers while they’re still in the middle of struggling. If you’ve ever thought, “I know something’s different, but I don’t know what”… if you’ve ever worried that a label would make things worse… or if you’ve ever needed…

People in this episode

Hosts: David Kessler, Isabelle Richards

Guest: Avari Brocker

Topics covered

• ADHD
• dyslexia
• neurodiversity
• mental health
• self-advocacy
• diagnosis

Keywords

• neurodivergent
• ADHD diagnosis
• dyslexia
• mental health struggles
• high-masking
• self-identity
• learning resources

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Neurodiversity Alliance, Learning Curb, LearningCurb.org

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