Medical Gaslighting & Neurodivergence: Why Autistic & ADHD Patients Aren’t Believed
Bridgette Hamstead
For autistic and ADHD individuals, seeking medical care is often a frustrating and dehumanizing experience. Despite increasing awareness of neurodivergence, many medical professionals still operate under outdated, neurotypical-centric frameworks that fail to account for the diverse ways neurodivergent people communicate, experience pain, and describe their symptoms. This leads to a pervasive and deeply damaging phenomenon known as medical gaslighting—the dismissal, minimization, or outright disbelief of a patient’s symptoms by healthcare providers.
Medical gaslighting is not just an inconvenience; it can have life-threatening consequences. When autistic and ADHD patients are not believed, they are more likely to be misdiagnosed, denied essential treatment, or left to navigate serious health conditions without appropriate medical support. To address this crisis, we must examine why neurodivergent individuals are so frequently dismissed in medical settings, how these biases manifest in healthcare, and what systemic changes are needed to ensure equitable treatment for neurodivergent patients.
The Systemic Bias Against Neurodivergent Patients
At its core, medical gaslighting is rooted in systemic biases that devalue neurodivergent ways of thinking, communicating, and experiencing the world. The medical model of disability—long embedded in Western healthcare systems—views conditions like autism and ADHD through a deficit-based lens, treating them as pathologies to be managed rather than natural variations in human cognition. As a result, neurodivergent individuals are often seen as unreliable narrators of their own experiences, their symptoms dismissed as exaggerations, misinterpretations, or psychosomatic issues.
This bias is particularly evident in how medical professionals respond to pain and sensory differences in neurodivergent patients. Many autistic individuals, for example, experience pain and sensory discomfort in ways that differ from neurotypical norms—either heightened sensitivity (hyperesthesia) or reduced sensitivity (hypoesthesia). Yet, when they attempt to describe these experiences to doctors, they are frequently disbelieved or ignored. Similarly, ADHD patients often struggle with interoception—the ability to recognize internal bodily signals—which can make it difficult to articulate symptoms in ways that align with standard medical expectations. Instead of recognizing these neurological differences, many doctors assume neurodivergent patients are simply "overreacting" or "not in tune with their bodies."
Misdiagnosis, Underdiagnosis, and Dismissal
One of the most harmful consequences of medical gaslighting is the widespread misdiagnosis and underdiagnosis of neurodivergent individuals. Many autistic and ADHD adults—particularly women, nonbinary people, and people of color—spend years, even decades, seeking answers for their chronic health issues, only to be repeatedly dismissed by medical professionals who fail to recognize neurodivergent presentations of illness.
Autistic individuals, for example, often exhibit symptoms of conditions like Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS), and gastrointestinal disorders at higher rates than the general population. Yet, because their pain expression may not align with neurotypical expectations, their symptoms are frequently attributed to anxiety or dismissed as psychosomatic. Similarly, ADHD individuals—who may struggle with executive function and medical self-advocacy—often have difficulty managing chronic conditions, leading to repeated encounters with dismissive healthcare providers who blame them for being "noncompliant" rather than recognizing the systemic barriers they face in accessing care.
Women and nonbinary neurodivergent individuals face additional layers of bias in medical settings. The stereotype that ADHD is a disorder of hyperactive young boys has led to the chronic underdiagnosis of ADHD in women, many of whom are instead misdiagnosed with anxiety, depression, or borderline personality disorder. Autistic women and nonbinary people often experience similar erasure, as their presentations of autism—often characterized by masking, internalized distress, and sensory sensitivities—do not fit the rigid, male-centered diagnostic criteria that dominate medical training.
The Psychological Toll of Being Dismissed
The long-term consequences of medical gaslighting go far beyond delayed diagnoses. Repeated medical dismissal can lead to profound psychological distress, increased anxiety around seeking medical care, and even medical PTSD—a trauma response caused by repeated encounters with invalidating or harmful healthcare experiences. Many neurodivergent individuals, after years of being dismissed or mistreated by doctors, develop a deep distrust of the medical system, leading them to avoid seeking care even when they desperately need it.
The impact of this is particularly dire when it comes to mental health care. Autistic and ADHD individuals are at a higher risk for conditions such as anxiety, depression, and PTSD, yet they are often misdiagnosed, denied access to appropriate treatments, or forced into behavioral interventions that fail to address their actual needs. Many therapists and psychiatrists still operate under ableist assumptions that frame neurodivergent traits—such as sensory sensitivities, emotional regulation differences, or social communication styles—as "disruptions" rather than valid ways of experiencing the world. This leads to therapies that prioritize masking and compliance over self-acceptance and well-being.
What Needs to Change
Addressing medical gaslighting requires a fundamental shift in how healthcare professionals are trained, how medical systems operate, and how neurodivergent individuals are treated within these systems. Several key reforms must be implemented to create a more inclusive, equitable medical system:
Mandatory Neurodiversity Training for Medical Professionals Medical schools and healthcare providers must integrate comprehensive neurodiversity education into their training programs. This includes understanding neurodivergent pain expression, sensory differences, executive function challenges, and communication styles. Healthcare professionals must learn to listen to neurodivergent patients without bias and adapt their approach to ensure accessible, effective care.
Shifting Away from a Deficit-Based Model The medical model of neurodivergence—one that views autism and ADHD solely as disorders—must be replaced with a neurodiversity-affirming model that recognizes neurodivergence as a valid, natural part of human diversity. This shift would allow for a more nuanced understanding of how neurodivergent individuals experience and report symptoms, reducing misdiagnosis and medical dismissal.
Implementing Neurodivergent-Friendly Healthcare Practices Clinics and hospitals should be designed to accommodate sensory-sensitive patients by providing quiet waiting areas, alternative communication methods, and longer appointment times to allow for clearer doctor-patient communication. Doctors should also proactively offer written instructions, visual aids, and follow-up support to accommodate executive function challenges.
Validating Neurodivergent Self-Advocacy Neurodivergent individuals should not have to fight to be believed. Medical professionals must respect patient self-advocacy and recognize that neurodivergent individuals are the experts on their own bodies and experiences. Doctors should actively listen, take symptoms seriously, and prioritize patient-led approaches to treatment.
Building a Healthcare System That Trusts Neurodivergent Voices
Medical gaslighting is a pervasive and harmful issue that disproportionately impacts autistic and ADHD individuals, leading to delayed diagnoses, inadequate treatment, and profound psychological harm. The current healthcare system is not designed with neurodivergent patients in mind, but that must change. By integrating neurodiversity education into medical training, shifting away from deficit-based models, and prioritizing patient-centered care, we can build a healthcare system that respects and trusts neurodivergent individuals.
Neurodivergent patients deserve to be heard, believed, and treated with dignity. The future of healthcare must be one where autistic and ADHD individuals no longer have to fight for recognition, but instead receive the care and validation they have always deserved.