After five years of production, I will be shutting down this podcast. I have no regrets - it's been a journey of creativity, advocacy, and discovery, exploring various topics and individuals all along the way. I kept my word that the content would be freely available, and tried to ensure it was accessible within my limited means. Most importantly, I answered and realized my utmost question - is this, for me, even possible? And, for 5 years, it was.

However, all things must come to an end. Everything, eventually, must cease. Neurologic is no exception. While I am contemplating and considering future prospects for audio-visual advocacy, at this moment I am taking a sabbatical of indeterminate time. Hopefully, I can start something new - and with some luck and perserverance, invite other autistics and/or neurodivergent folks to join me. As the profound baseball player Yogi Berra once said, it ain't over ‘til it’s over.

I also want to thank you for listening; words cannot convey how important, how crucial it is to know that someone, somewhere is listening. It expresses value and importance, that you're not just shouting into the void, that someone does understand - or, at the very least, wants to understand. I'm glad you're here, and I hope I was able to articulate our struggles - not with being autistic per se, but with the systems and societies that we are required to navigate; challenging obstacles that rarely come with any kind of guidance or instruction. I hope the insight I provided was useful, boosted your confidence and resolve, and, perhaps, was also amusing and fun at certain moments.

I hope that all of your dreams are beautiful, and that you find your Neurotribe, no matter who you are or where you are - and that you are able to trust in those around you to genuinely and authentically accept, include and welcome you....not in spite of being neurodivergent, but as a unique and joyful part of your whole identity.

But before I finish packing up this podcast, I wanted to discuss...Trust.

Over the past few years, the notoriety of the term Neurodiversity, as well as its siblings - Neurodiverse, Neurotypical, Neurodivergent, among others - expanded and transformed what it means to have a mind that differs from the subjective sociocultural norm. Yet despite a rise in adoption, many both inside and outside autistic spaces are unable to accurately define Neurodiversity, leading to confusion and misunderstanding.

In her latest book, Neuroqueer Heresies: Notes On The Neurodiversity Paradigm, Autistic Empowerment, And Postnormal Possibilities, Dr. Nick Walker explains the Neurodiversity Paradigm, Neurocosmopolitanism, Neuroqueer Theory, and so much more. She joins Leo Jones on this episode to discuss why she wrote this book, how it came to be, how she came up with the name, and what possibilities await in a future that recognizes and accepts the Neurodiversity Paradigm.

For more information about Dr. Walker, visit their website: https://neuroqueer.com

You can find their book through the Autonomous Press website: https://autonomous-press.myshopify.com/products/neuroqueer-heresies

Or at IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781945955266

Also, check out their work on the fantastic urban fantasy webcomic Weird Luck: https://weirdluck.net

What's “next” for autism seems to be a rising trend in the autism community: removing potentially problematic content, connections to extreme organizations, and giving painfully vague explanations while passively denying such actions - and even the very existence of what is being erased in the first place.

In this episode, Leo Jones highlights clandestine efforts by prominent autism charities, events and even researchers to wipe away a divisive past, putting us in danger of repeat it.