Neuroqueer is a term used to describe people who are both neurodivergent (autistic, ADHD, or otherwise) and queer or transgender. It was coined by autistic scholars including Nick Walker and M. Remi Yergeau to name an identity, and a way of understanding how neurodivergence and queerness influence each other [1].
Neuroqueer pushes back on the idea that there’s a single “normal” way to think, communicate, or experience gender and sexuality. If you’re LGBTQIA+ and neurodivergent, Element Q is designed to support and embrace both. Come as you are, no hiding or changing required.
Key Takeaways (TL;DR)
- Neuroqueer is a term used to describe the overlap between neurodivergence (conditions like autism and ADHD) and being queer or transgender.
- Autistic and ADHD folx identify as LGBTQIA+ at higher rates than the general population.
- Neuroqueer isn’t a clinical diagnosis, but it is a term that’s often used to describe a unique experience.
- People who are both neurodivergent and queer often carry compounded stress from navigating two minority identites at once.
- Affirming mental health treatment that considers both identities together tends to be the most supportive for neuroqueer individuals.
Where Did the Term “Neuroqueer” Come From?
The term Neuroqueer emerged around 2014. As mentioned earlier, it was coined by autistic scholars and activists including Nick Walker, M. Remi Yergeau, and Athena Lynn Michaels-Dillon [2]. The term stems from the neurodiversity movement, which treats differences in cognition like autism and ADHD as natural variations, rather than disorders or problems that need to be fixed [1].
The term neuroqueer takes this ideology a step further by weaving in queer theory. Combining these two ideas, neuroqueer is built on the idea that neurotypicality is enforced the same way as heteronormativity, through social expectations about how people should think, behave, and relate to others [1]. Over the years, the term has made its way from blog posts into academic research across sociology, education, and beyond. Clinical and social work literature, though, still haven’t completely caught up [3].
How Are Neurodivergence and Queerness Connected?
Research keeps landing on the same finding: autistic and ADHD folx identify outside of cisgender heterosexuality at notably higher rates than the general population. In one qualitative study of 46 autistic adults, 61% identified as something other than cisgender and heterosexual, and many described their neurodivergence as shaping how they understood gender and relationships in the first place [4].
Researchers offer a few explanations for this overlap. Some of them include:
- Different social conditioning growing up.
- Less internalized pressure to conform to gender norms.
- A habit of questioning assumptions other people never think twice about [4].
None of this means neurodivergence causes queerness. What the research actually shows is that the two experiences tend to develop and get expressed together.
Is Neuroqueer a Diagnosis or an Identity?
Neuroqueer isn’t a clinical diagnosis. No provider is going to write it on a chart or formally label you with it. It is an identity term, a theoretical framework some people use to describe their own experience [2, 3]. Related terms like neurogender or autigender get even more more specific, describing particular experiences of gender shaped by neurodivergence [2].
Why Does This Intersection Matter for Mental Health?
When it comes to mental health, neuroqueer individuals report higher rates of anxiety, depression, and minority stress than their neurotypical LGBTQIA+ peers [5].
In one recent study, rejection sensitivity combined with perceived and minority stress accounted for roughly 30% of the variation in mental health symptoms among neurodivergent LGBTQIA+ participants [5].
Researchers link this to the added weight of navigating neurotypical and cisheteronormative expectations at the same time.
What does all this mean? Ultimately, neurodivergence nor queerness is inherently harmful here. What takes the toll is the masking, the misunderstanding, the lack of affirming spaces to just exist in.
What Does Affirming Mental Health Treatment Look Like for Neuroqueer People?
Affirming mental health, trauma, and substance use treatment for neuroqueer individuals means finding programs and spaces that embrace all parts of who you are. It can also be helpful to have clinicians on staff who are trained in both neurodivergent-affirming practices and LGBTQIA+-affirming care.
Treatment settings that don’t pathologize stimming, masking, or gender exploration are also crucial. Affirming mental health treatment should offer room to process minority stress without judgment, and the recognition that unmasking or coming out isn’t equally safe for everyone, so support should be tailored to each individual instead of running on a standard timeline [3].
How Chroma Wellness Can Help
If you’re navigating neurodivergence alongside your queer or trans identity, Chroma Wellness offers an LGBTQIA+ Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) and Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) in Denver, with a team that treats both parts of your identity as connected, not separate.
Call us at 720-410-5569 to learn more or let us verify your insurance to get started.
FAQs
What does neuroqueer mean?
Neuroqueer is a term that describes the overlap between being neurodivergent (autistic or ADHD) and being queer or transgender. It’s also a term that pushes back against pressure to conform to neurotypical or heteronormative norms [1].
What does "neurodivergence" mean?
Neurodivergence refers to brain-based differences in how people think, learn, and process the world. It encompasses autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and similar conditions. The term treats these differences as natural variations, rather than disorders [1].
What is neurodiversity?
Neurodiversity is the idea that variation in human brains and minds is a normal, expected part of humanity, the same way diversity in culture or gender is [1]. It’s the broader concept that neurodivergence and neuroqueer theory build on.
Are high IQ people neurodiverse?
Not necessarily. Neurodiversity is about differences in how the brain processes information, like autism or ADHD—it doesn’t reflect intelligence level. A person can have a high IQ without being neurodivergent, or be neurodivergent at any IQ.
Are any well-known figures openly neurodivergent?
Yes. Actor Bella Ramsey, known for their role in The Last of Us, has publicly shared both an autism diagnosis and a nonbinary identity. Olympic gymnast Simone Biles has spoken openly about having ADHD since childhood. TikTok creator Baylen Dupree has built a large following talking about life with Tourette syndrome since her diagnosis. Hearing stories like these can be a reminder that you’re not alone in either part of your identity.
Is neuroqueer the same as being LGBTQIA+ and autistic?
They overlap, but they’re not quite the same. Being LGBTQIA+ and autistic, or otherwise neurodivergent, is simply describing two identities a person holds. Neuroqueer goes a step further by specifically naming the connection between queerness and neurodivergence and highlighting how being autistic can shape the way someone experiences gender or sexuality, and being queer can shape how someone experiences their neurodivergence [2, 3].
Sources
[1] Walker, N., & Raymaker, D. M. (2021). Toward a neuroqueer future: An interview with Nick Walker. Autism in Adulthood, 3(1), 5–10.
[2] Barnett, J. P. (2024). Neuroqueer frontiers: Neurodiversity, gender, and the (a)social self. Sociology Compass, e13234.
[3] Stevens, B., & Kirby, E. (2025). Neuroqueer in/and social work: A scoping review of theory and practice. British Journal of Social Work, 55(5), 2519–2540.
[4] Huysamen, M., Hatton, C., & Kourti, M. (2026). Embrace difference, challenge normativity: Towards a neuroqueer-informed ethic for supporting autistic adults’ intimate lives. Feminism & Psychology.
[5] Kurt, E. K., Kichinko-Willis, E., & Gutierrez, D. (2026). Neuroqueer mental health: Examining differences in neurodiverse and neurotypical LGBTQIA+ individuals. Research in Neurodiversity, 2, 100053.
