Difference is not a deficit.
It is a design variable.
Spiky profiles are not broken averages.
They are uneven brilliance.
We don’t fail the system.
The system fails range.
Special interests are not distractions.
They are engines.
Context shapes capacity.
Terroir shapes learning.
We don’t just adapt to environments.
We build new ones.
Neurological pluralism means:
There is no single normal.
There is range.
What makes us different
makes all the difference in the world.
Spiky Profiles
Many neurodivergent people don’t have “even” skills. We have spiky profiles: sharp strengths next to sharp needs.
Not an Average
“Average” hides reality.
Spiky profiles reveal it.
Strength + Support
High skill in one area can coexist with high support needs in another.
That’s normal variation.
Context Changes Capacity
Capacity isn’t fixed.
Environment decides what’s possible.
Related: Regulation & Coping
Spikes Aren’t “Inconsistency”
What looks like inconsistency is often stress, sensory load, or friction with bad systems.
Measure the system, not the person.
Related: Broken Systems, Not Broken People
Design for Range
Spiky profiles are why “one right way” fails.
Design for range, not compliance.
Related: The “Average User” Is a Myth
Right Support, Right Time
People don’t need “special” treatment.
They need human needs met reliably.
Related: Human Needs, Not Special Needs
Spiky profiles are a warning label on bad design.
When systems demand sameness, spikes become suffering.
Design for range. Support for reality. Consent beats compliance.
Keep the weird. Build for the range.
Spiky Profile → System Friction → Burnout
Spiky Profile
(peaks + troughs)
↓
System Friction
(rigid rules, average-based design, compliance pressure)
↓
Burnout
(exhaustion, shutdown, skill loss)
Related: Burnout & Sensory Safety · The “Average User” Is a Myth
Burnout is not personal weakness. It is prolonged design failure.
Spiky Profile → Designed for Range → Thriving
Spiky Profile
(peaks + troughs)
↓
Designed for Range
(flexibility, consent, regulation-first, multiple paths)
↓
Thriving
(energy, contribution, sustainable growth)
Related: Design Is Tested at the Edges · Consent Beats Compliance · Care Is Infrastructure
Spiky profiles don’t cause burnout. Rigid systems do.
SPIKY IS NOT BROKEN
Peaks and troughs are a design signal —not a personal flaw.
More: What makes us different, makes all the difference in the world.
