Season 7, Episode 7: Neurodivergent Stories with Jessica Horner
This week, we are chatting to Jessica Horner about neurodivergent stories.
🎧 NOTE: Hey everyone, just a heads up that in this episode, our guest mentions times in her life when she was suicidal. If this brings up anything for you, please reach out to someone you trust or contact one of the support lines we’ve included at the bottom of this page.
Take care of yourself, and feel free to pause or skip this one if you need to.
Jessica is a proudly AuDHD and disabled woman, and she works as a policy advisor with People With Disability Australia. She has previously worked as a journalist at the ABC, where she focused on the experiences of late-diagnosed Autistic adults across Australia and wrote, among other pieces, a long-form feature article called “A Rich New Lens”.
She would later be nominated as a finalist for this article, alongside her producer, for the Media Diversity Australia Award, issued by the Walkley Foundation in 2023. She has also written for ABC Everyday, ABC News, Reframing Autism, Yooralla, and others.
In this episode we deep dive into how neurodivergent stories are told, by whom, and for what purpose, and unpack to impact of this on the neurodivergent community.
In this episode, we cover:
How Jessica thinks about neurodivergence.
Jessica’s experience of her neurodivergence, and how this evolved over time along with her sense of self and identity.
What are stories, why do we tell stories, and why are stories important?
How power dynamics become embedded in cultural stories, and ways we can work to shift this.
Unpacking how neurodivergent stories are told.
What does trauma-informed journalism and storytelling look like?
Jessica’s current hyperfixations and a personal story on how Autism can show up for her.
[00:01:13] Introduction
Key Takeaways:
Monique highlights Jessica’s early contributions to neurodivergence coverage in regional Australia, especially during COVID, noting how her articles helped broaden public understanding beyond metro and male-centric stereotypes.
Jessica shares that a woman’s radio interview about Autistic experiences—like sensory overload at a train station—sparked her own realisation that she might be Autistic, leading her down a self-discovery path over the next year.
Prior to that, Jessica’s understanding of Autism was shaped by outdated academic messaging, including being told as recently as 2011 that autistic people lacked empathy and theory of mind—narrow and harmful stereotypes.
Discovering lived experiences that contradicted these narratives fuelled Jessica’s passion for reshaping public representation, especially for Autistic women, gender diverse, and non-binary people, who were largely missing from mainstream depictions.
She’s since moved away from viewing Autism through a gendered lens, noting that ‘internalised’ neurodivergent experiences can vary widely regardless of gender identity, and that rigid stereotypes are damaging to people across the gender spectrum.
[00:06:40] How Jessica thinks about neurodivergence
Key Takeaways:
Jessica reflects that her understanding of neurodivergence has grown far beyond the narrow, deficit-based medical model she first encountered, which framed Autism and ADHD as things to fix or as stereotypes to fit.
She now sees neurodivergence as a different way of thinking and being in the world—one that holds cultural significance, with its own language, expressions, and shared experiences.
Concepts like the double empathy problem have expanded her view, highlighting that autistic people don’t lack empathy—they express it in ways that aren’t always recognised by non-autistic people.
Jessica describes neurodivergence as a “rich tapestry” of layered, diverse experiences, and says that speaking with over 50 neurodivergent people fundamentally shifted her understanding and inspired her article “A Rich New Lens”.
As a storyteller and photographer, she believes media often fails to show the depth and complexity of neurodivergent lives, and she’s passionate about portraying this nuance rather than flattening people into caricatures.
“There is a necessity now for us to intentionally seek out diverse narratives… if we consume what is most convenient and accessible to us based on a social media algorithm, we are inherently limiting the stories we hear.”
[00:10:10] Jessica’s experience of her neurodivergence, and how this evolved over time along with her sense of self and identity
Key Takeaways:
Jessica shares that she’s always felt different from others, even as a child, but had no framework or label for why—especially growing up in the 90s, when neurodivergence wasn’t widely understood.
When she was formally diagnosed as Autistic in 2019, she initially internalised it as something broken or wrong.
That initial diagnosis came at a time of deep mental health struggle, including suicidality, and she now recognises how masking had stripped away her sense of self, leaving her disconnected from who she really was.
Writing became a powerful outlet during her twenties, allowing her to trace her emotional evolution and eventually rediscover herself through storytelling, photography, and curiosity.
She reflects that if she’d seen more accurate, diverse representations of Autism in media earlier on, it might have helped her feel less broken and more connected—and she’s now passionate about expanding those narratives for others.
[00:15:35] What are stories, why do we tell stories, and why are stories important?
Key Takeaways:
Jessica suggests that instead of asking “What is a story?”, a more meaningful question is “Why do we tell stories?”, emphasising that storytelling is a fundamental, multifaceted form of human communication.
She explains that stories can be shared across time, cultures, and mediums—from spoken word to photos, journals, and social media—and that storytelling is ultimately about expressing how we see and experience the world.
Narrow definitions of storytelling risk limiting its richness; even something like a photograph can tell a story through subtext and perspective, without needing words.
At its core, storytelling is a form of innate human creativity—distinctly human in its complexity—and a way we make meaning, communicate identity, and interpret existence.
Michelle reflects that storytelling may have evolved alongside ritual and language as an expression of both primal and metacognitive human qualities, and reminds us that everyone, not just those in power, contributes to the cultural narrative through the stories they tell.
[00:20:30] How power dynamics become embedded in cultural stories, and ways we can work to shift this
Key Takeaways:
Jessica explains that every story is shaped by a point of view, and the dominant voice in a narrative often determines how a story is understood, which means we must ask: whose perspective are we seeing, and whose voices are missing?
Stories are not neutral; power dynamics are embedded in which stories get told, who gets to tell them, and how they’re framed—particularly in spaces like social media, where validation and profitability often override authenticity and nuance.
Monique reflects that cultural stories—from childhood tales to soap operas and history lessons—shape our internal sense of “normal”, and urges listeners to actively seek out marginalised perspectives, especially those of women, queer folk, disabled people, and people of colour whose contributions have often been erased.
Jessica discusses how the dominant cultural mythology around Autism centres on white, Western, male perspectives—often told by non-Autistic people—and stresses the importance of intentionally diversifying who tells the stories and how neurodivergence is portrayed.
Because neurodivergence lacks a deep intergenerational storytelling culture, Jessica argues we are still in the early stages of shaping that narrative, and if we keep privileging the same narrow perspectives, we limit collective understanding, empathy, and representation.
She warns that algorithm-driven platforms tend to feed users repetitive content that reinforces existing biases, making it harder for underrepresented voices to be heard and for audiences to access a fuller picture of neurodivergent life.
[00:38:28] Unpacking how neurodivergent stories are told
Key takeaways:
Monique reflects on the long-standing lack of female representation in film, noting how roles for women—and especially neurodivergent women—have historically been sexualised, sidelined, or reduced to stereotypes, with nuanced portrayals only emerging in recent years.
Jessica draws a parallel to the Bechdel Test and proposes a similar framework for neurodivergence, urging us to ask not just who the neurodivergent characters are, but who’s writing, directing, and producing the stories—and whether lived experience is being honoured or appropriated.
She warns that stories about neurodivergence told by non-neurodivergent creators—particularly those driven by profit or popularity—can unintentionally distort or minimise lived experience, especially when filtered through dominant cultural lenses.
The risk of misrepresentation is heightened in media that lacks transparency about the storyteller’s perspective, and Jessica stresses the ethical responsibility to either preserve a story’s original intent or openly acknowledge the lens through which it's being retold.
Both Jessica and Michelle call for greater critical awareness of both conscious and unconscious bias, encouraging storytellers and audiences alike to question what assumptions they bring to the stories they tell and consume.
Monique highlights the continued underrepresentation of neurodivergent people with co-occurring disabilities—such as intellectual disability, AAC users, or deaf/physically disabled individuals—whose voices are often filtered through others due to systemic and communication barriers.
Jessica agrees that current storytelling tools and systems still exclude many of these voices, and that meaningful change requires rethinking how stories can be shared in accessible, inclusive ways.
[00:54:39] What does trauma-informed journalism and storytelling look like?
Key takeaways:
Jessica defines trauma-informed storytelling as starting with the storyteller’s own safety—emotionally, mentally, and physically—and ensuring the same safety for the people whose stories are being told, including permission to pause, stop, or set boundaries at any time.
She explains that neurodivergent people often carry cumulative trauma from microaggressions, sensory overwhelm, and cultural invalidation, and that any journalist or content creator engaging with these communities must acknowledge this baseline of vulnerability.
Jessica stresses that storytellers don’t own the stories they tell; their role is to honour, not exploit, and that means checking in about consent, emotional readiness, and how the story might impact the participant after it’s shared.
She shares that affirming language—like using “Autistic person” instead of “person with Autism”—may seem small but is vital to creating a space of validation, safety, and trust between storyteller and subject.
Trust is a cornerstone of trauma-informed storytelling; without mutual trust, authenticity is lost, and the storytelling becomes extractive rather than empowering.
Monique and Michelle add that interviewees should be encouraged to retain full ownership of their story, set clear limits on what they share, and feel entitled to say no—especially important for neurodivergent people still healing from a lifetime of having their boundaries and emotions dismissed.
Jessica reflects that storytelling, when done well, can be profoundly empowering for neurodivergent people, offering a way to define their own narrative, be taken seriously, and feel heard on their own terms.
She calls for a future media culture in which trauma-informed, person-led storytelling is standard—not a bonus—so that neurodivergent voices are not only included but honoured and protected in the process.
[01:12:45] Jessica’s current hyperfixations and a personal story on how Autism can show up for her
Key takeaways:
Jessica shares that her current hyperfixations are sewing—complete with a rapidly growing fabric stash—and pen drawing, both of which help her unwind, recalibrate, and focus on something purely for enjoyment, outside of work and daily stressors.
She recalls a story from university that revealed how her Autistic brain works: despite deeply understanding her essay topic, she couldn’t start writing because the assignment question felt misaligned with what she believed should be asked.
Her mum, an English teacher, flew in unannounced to help and eventually recognised that Jessica’s difficulty wasn’t about capability but about needing the question to feel right—a moment that affirmed for her mum that Jessica was likely Autistic.
Jessica’s professor responded with empathy and accessibility, allowing her to verbally explain her knowledge instead of submitting the written essay—an approach that honoured her fluctuating capacity and resulted in a distinction.
The story illustrates how Autism can show up in everyday contexts, particularly in the need for conceptual alignment before engaging with a task, and highlights how simple accommodations can profoundly support neurodivergent students.
Connect with Jessica Horner:
find Jessica through her website, Spoonfuls of Whimsy, or on Instagram and Facebook @spoonfuls_of_whimsy
Looking for mental health support? Try these resources:
Immediate Support
Lifeline Australia — 13 11 14 (24/7 crisis support and suicide prevention)
Suicide Call Back Service — 1300 659 467 (24/7 telephone and online counselling for people affected by suicide)
Beyond Blue — 1300 22 4636 (24/7 support for anxiety, depression, and suicide prevention)
Kids Helpline — 1800 55 1800 (24/7 free, private, and confidential phone and online counselling for young people aged 5 to 25)
Additional Resources
headspace — Support for young people aged 12–25, with mental health, physical health, work, and study support.
SANE Australia — Support for people living with complex mental health issues and their families.
13YARN — 13 92 76 (24/7 crisis support line run by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people)
QLife — 1800 184 527 (Support for LGBTQIA+ people, available every day from 3pm to midnight)
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