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Updated Jul 31, 2025

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The impact of misused terms on mental health and neurodiversity

Using mental health terms like PTSD, OCD or bipolar, or referring to neurodivergent conditions such as Autism or ADHD in casual conversations without diagnosis can minimise the real challenges the people who live with those conditions face.

In today's conversations, neurodiverse conditions and mental health is more visible and accessible than ever before, and we are learning about diagnoses and terms that can help us understand ourselves and others better.

Nevertheless an issue with this increase in awareness and visibility is the casual use of terms as insults or quick labels. Casual ableism is a routine occurrence in our language.

This is incredibly harmful: a mental health diagnosis or neurodivergent condition is not a punchline or generic label of behaviour, it is a complex reality that varies from person to person.

Here are some terms that you may have used to describe yourself or others, or even insult or joke about with, without the actual reality of that condition:

Example of inappropriate casual use of the term Definition of the condition
"You are so full of yourself, you are such a narcissist"

Narcissistic personality disorder is a mental health condition in which people have an unreasonably high sense of own importance.

They need and seek too much attention and want people to admire them. People with this disorder may lack the ability to understand or care for the feelings of others.

Behind the extreme confidence, they are not sure of their self-worth and are easily upset by others.

"Can you sort your folders? I am just a bit OCD about my OneDrive being organised"

OCD is a mental health condition where a person has obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours:

  • an obsession is an unwanted and unpleasant thought, image or urge that repeatedly enters your mind, causing feelings of anxiety, disgust or unease;
  • a compulsion is a repetitive behaviour or mental act that you feel you need to do to temporarily relieve the unpleasant feelings brought on by the obsessive thought.

OCD can be distressing and significantly interfere with your life, but treatment can help you keep it under control.

"The weather is so bipolar at the moment, I never know what to wear"

Bipolar disorder is a mental health condition where you have extreme mood changes. You sometimes have either:

  • high moods (mania or hypomania) - feeling very happy, excited or energetic;
  • low moods (depression) - feeling sad, tired or hopeless.

These moods can last a few days or weeks at a time. Medicines and talking therapy can help manage it.

"That meeting was absolutely traumatising"

Trauma is when we experience very stressful, frightening or distressing events that are difficult to cope with or out of our control. It could be one incident, or an ongoing event that happens over a long period of time.

Trauma can cause strong feelings and difficult experiences and can take time and support to be able to cope. 

"Can you focus please, do you have ADHD or something?"

ADHD is a condition where the brain works differently to most people, and may cause you trouble with things like concentrating and sitting still.

Symptoms of ADHD involve your ability to pay attention to things, having high energy levels, and your ability to control your impulses.

There are things you can do to help you manage your symptoms.

"Overtime makes me suicidal"

Suicide is the act of intentionally taking your own life. Suicidal thoughts can mean:

  • having abstract thoughts about ending your life;
  • feeling that people would be better off without you;
  • thinking about methods of suicide;
  • making clear plans to take your own life.
"I would avoid her, she is so schizo"

Schizophrenia is a long-term mental health condition which causes a range of different psychological symptoms.

Doctors often describe schizophrenia as a type of psychosis, which means the person may not always be able to distinguish their own thoughts and ideas from reality.

Symptoms can include hallucinations, delusions, muddled thoughts and feeling disconnected.

People with schizophrenia do not have a split personality and schizophrenia does not usually cause someone to be violent.

"I have to sit at this specific desk - that must be my autism"

Autism is not an illness or disease, it means your brain works in a different way from other people. Common signs of autism in adults include:

  • finding it hard to understand what others are thinking or feeling;
  • getting very anxious about social situations;
  • finding it hard to make friends or preferring to be on your own;
  • seeming blunt, rude or not interested;
  • finding it hard to express your feelings;
  • taking things very literally;
  • having the same routine every day and getting very anxious if it changes.

It is not a medical condition with treatments or a "cure", but some people need support to help them with certain things.

"This deadline is giving me PTSD"

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental health condition caused by very stressful, frightening or distressing events.

Someone with PTSD often relives the traumatic event through nightmares and flashbacks, and may experience feelings of isolation, irritability and guilt.

These symptoms are often severe and persistent enough to have a significant impact on the person's day-to-day life.

"I am addicted to these chocolate biscuits, I have had three already"

Addiction is defined as not having control over doing, taking or using something to the point where it could be harmful to you.

It is most commonly associated with gambling, drugs, alcohol and smoking, but it is possible to be addicted to just about anything, including:

  • work;
  • the internet;
  • solvents;
  • shopping; 
  • sex.

The strain of managing an addiction can seriously damage your worklife and relationships. Addiction is a treatable condition.

"Mondays make me so depressed"

Depression is more than simply feeling unhappy or fed up for a few days. When you are depressed you feel persistently sad for weeks or months, rather than just a few days.

Depression affects people in different ways and can cause a wide variety of symptoms: lasting feelings of unhappiness and hopelessness, losing interest in the things you used to enjoy and feeling very tearful.

There can be physical symptoms too, like feeling constantly tired, sleeping badly, having no appetite or sex drive, and various aches and pains.

At its mildest you may simply feel persistently low in spirit, while severe depression can make you feel suicidal.

With the right treatment and support, most people with depression can make a full recovery.

Using these terms lightly encourages stigma and misunderstanding within our communities. It is therefore essential to approach neurodiverse and mental health terms with caution and compassion.

Behind every diagnosis is a human being with their own unique story and experiences, so instead of using these terms casually and turning diagnoses into slang, choose language that respects those living with those conditions. Awareness starts with how we speak.


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