Over the past year I have delivered several presentations on Neurodivergent Wellbeing at Work and, because I like any excuse to talk about food, I like to crowbar iced ring doughnuts with sprinkles into these talks! I refer to these as Wellbeing Doughnuts – doughnuts don’t get nearly enough credit for wellbeing…

When we talk about supporting wellbeing we tend to talk about lists of activities we can do (mindfulness colouring, going for a walk, exercising, phoning a friend, having a bubble bath) and I am wholeheartedly in support of these activities. But, in terms of truly sustainable wellbeing, they can only really provide icing and sprinkles – the stuff that makes fun and tasty toppings for doughnuts. If you don’t have the nice, crispy and yet stodgy doughnuts, you’ve just got a bowl of icing and sprinkles.

Doughnuts themselves need to be made with somewhat more substantial ingredients. Specifically, I think that wellbeing doughnuts need to be made with the key ingredients of safety, fulfilment, and acknowledgement. Let me describe these in a little more detail.

Our first ingredient, safety means being sheltered from job insecurity, overwork and bullying. And it also means not having our nervous systems fried by the social and sensory workplace environment, and by trying to meet social expectations that are at odds with our neurotypes.

Neurodivergent people often don’t feel safe at work. We’ve often had a lifetime of feeling the exact opposite. When our needs aren’t met, we don’t feel safe. When we feel bullied we don’t feel safe. When we are trying our best and our best doesn’t appear to be good enough, we don’t feel safe.

Feeling safe at work means that we don’t have to use up valuable energy maintaining a social mask, whether that’s masking poor physical or mental health, trying to supress vocal or facial tics, or avoiding regulatory practices like stimming

Feeling safe at work requires that we are not constantly disabled by bright or florescent lighting, the sounds of other people talking, or unclear email communication. These are not just disabling, they trigger many people’s flight or fight systems. If our flight or fight systems are triggered, we don’t feel safe. If we don’t feel safe, we are missing a key wellbeing doughnut ingredient.

Feeling safe at work also means that we don’t have to waste time and energy trying to figure out unclear social expectations, and it means we don’t feel judged for having different focussing patterns from other people in our workspace. When we feel safe at work we can focus on our work, engage with colleagues, and think creatively.

Our next ingredient, fulfilment means that we have meaning in our day-to-day work. And it means that we enjoy the work we do and the environment we work in. Many neurodivergent people are highly distracted from the work they want to do by sensory factors, additional work demands and social activity. When we are distracted, we get less done, and that’s super frustrating. We can’t experience wellbeing at work if we aren’t feeling fulfilled in our work. Fulfilment is a key ingredient for wellbeing doughnuts

Feeling fulfilled at work is difficult if we are constantly distracted by the sound of other people chatting or by people trying to chat with us when we are trying to focus. Or if we are distracted by constant audio notifications from phones and laptops, or by the sounds and smells of other people eating, or by expectations of sociable behaviour when we are trying to work.

Feeling fulfilled is also difficult when you are expected to multitask when you’ve told people you are unable to multitask, or to work on just one project when you’ve told people you need the stimulation of several ongoing projects. Feeling fulfilled requires being given the autonomy to work in the way that suits you best, whether that’s multitasking, focusing on one thing at a time, working in sprints or working for long, sustained periods. Feeling fulfilled means that you are neither distracted, nor under stimulated; our colleagues and managers need to trust us when we say how we work most effectively.

Our final ingredient, acknowledgement means that we are appreciated for who we are – both what we do and what our individual needs are. We need to feel acknowledged for the skillset we bring, we need to feel acknowledged for the work we do, and we also need our disabilities to be acknowledged.

It’s great that workplaces are beginning to understand that neurodivergent people may bring unique skills and qualities but they also need to recognise that unsuitable work environments and work structures can disable, demoralise and derail neurodivergent employees. If you want happy neurodivergent colleagues, you will first need to understand that some work tasks can take longer, use more personal energy and financial resources, and require more supports.

Safety, fulfilment and acknowledgement make perfect wellbeing doughnuts. And the beauty of these ingredients is that every single one of us can help encourage neurodivergent wellbeing in the workplace, whether or not we ourselves are neurodivergent. Current estimates suggest that 1 in 5 people are neurodivergent, so it’s likely that a number of your colleagues are neurodivergent, whether you, or even they, know it.

There are so many changes to make in terms of institutional structures, social expectations and sensory environments. We need to see changes in recruitment and promotions procedures so as not to disadvantage our neurodivergent colleagues. We need to see buildings redesigned that reference universal design, and the recommendations offered in the British Standards Institution publication PAS-6463. We need to see improved and regular neurodiversity staff training at all levels – from admin to leadership. We need to see representation of all neurotypes at all levels, and we need to see more inclusive working practices encouraged and supported throughout the institution.

But we also need to remember the grass-roots, community-level aspects of encouraging a neurodivergent culture. Everyone in the workplace has the ability and power to support this change. We can check our emails for clarity of information and intention. We can turn off our audio notifications. We can ask our colleagues if they need help with paperwork or finding their way to a quiet space. Those of us who feel safe to be open about both the difficulties and joys of being neurodivergent can help create safe environments for others to follow. We can help everyone experience the joys of a good wellbeing doughnut

When the wellbeing doughnut is created from safety, fulfilment and acknowledgement we get to enjoy our icing and sprinkles. So, whether your icing and sprinkles include colouring, Lego, hiking, parties, gaming, yoga, knitting, concerts, wild camping, puzzles, team sports, movies, reading, baking, photography, woodwork, cycling, TV, comedy, playing piano… I hope your doughnuts are delicious!

If you are interested in booking me for presentations or workshops on neurodivergent wellbeing in the workplace, please contact me here.