Beyond mind: the embodied double empathy problem

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"One of the chapter’s most powerful takeaways is the idea that dysregulation is an automatic and adaptive nervous system survival response to a threat in the environment, not dysfunction; it’s an unmet need. When understood through this lens, actions like stimming, shutdowns, or meltdowns are not behaviours to manage but signals of distress to be interpreted with compassion.

Our chapter is a call to action. It encourages mental health practitioners, educators, and support workers to look beyond external appearances, to develop nervous system literacy, and to see co-regulation as a foundational skill for their practice. It also offers practical frameworks and activities to help bridge embodied differences in real-world care environments.

Ultimately, ‘Beyond Mind: The Embodied Double Empathy Problem’ is a vital contribution to the growing body of Neurodivergent-affirming practice. It encourages us to ask: what if the route to empathy and providing care is not more talking, but more listening; to the body, to felt and internal experience, and to the unspoken ways we communicate safety and connection?"

Extract from my Neurodiverse Connection blog Beyond Mind: The Embodied Double Empathy Problem.

Read ‘Chapter 23: Beyond Mind: The Embodied Double Empathy Problem’ by Jill Corbyn and Kay Louise Aldred in Dr Damian Milton’s ‘The Double Empathy Reader: Exploring Theory, Neurodivergent Lived Experience and Implications for Practice’.

Available to order now from Pavilion Publishing

#educateevolveembody #bodyminddiversity #embodiment #spirituality #depathologise #rehumanise #autism #doubleempathyproblem #neurodivergent #neurodiversity #beyondmind 

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