Feeling at Home Away From Home: A Neurodivergent Weekend With Friends

Summary

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The Neurodivergent Experience

Hosted by Jordan James & Simon Scott

Episode: Feeling at Home Away From Home: A Neurodivergent Weekend With Friends
Date: December 4, 2025

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Episode Overview

In this episode, hosts Jordan James and Simon Scott share a candid and relatable account of their recent neurodivergent weekend together in Liverpool. Rather than focusing strictly on advocacy or technical advice, the episode provides listeners with a genuine, firsthand view into what it is to be neurodivergent while socializing, traveling, and sharing space with friends. The discussion covers travel anxieties and planning, navigating new environments, the sensory and social experiences at the Beatles Story Museum, cultural differences, masking and unmasking, and what true inclusion and comfort feel like for neurodivergent people among friends.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Traveling as Neurodivergent Adults

(Starts ~03:00)

• Distance & Preparation: The hosts discuss their physical separation (“a four-hour drive apart at best” – Simon, 03:37) and the neurodivergent need for detailed preparation when traveling.

  • Jordan’s Travel Routine: Hyper-organization, making digital folders, and planning multiple contingencies for anxiety management.

    "I am Leslie Knope. Right. I am Binders and folders. But it's all on my phone." — Jordan (07:15)

• Perceptions & Stereotypes of Liverpool: Jordan expresses initial nervousness about visiting Liverpool based on outdated stereotypes and media portrayals of the city ("Trepidation of Liverpool stems from the 80s and 90s" — Jordan, 04:22). Simon offers historical context regarding the city's complicated reputation and highlights its recent transformation.

• Coping with New Environments: Both hosts relate to having travel anxiety and scanning for negatives, with Simon describing “bottom up processing”:

  “Your brain is gonna scan the entire situation and take in the negatives.” — Simon (09:05)

2. Anxiety Management & Hyperfocus

(~09:50–12:00)

• Hyperfocus is framed as both a coping mechanism and superpower:

  “It’s almost like you visually see past all the haphazardness, all the trepidation, all the possible things that can go wrong because you’re like, I’m so hyper focused that whatever happens, I will just deal with it.” — Jordan (11:00)

• For Jordan, the anticipation of the Beatles Story Museum became such a strong focus that it significantly reduced his usual travel anxiety.

3. First Impressions of Liverpool

(12:26–14:33)

• The hosts praise the city for being “lovely,” with open, breathable spaces, fewer crowds than London, and a laid-back vibe.
• Sensory Environment: Busy areas felt manageable, with Liverpool’s open outdoor shopping centers and fresh air from the Mersey described as more pleasant and neurodivergent-friendly than London.

4. The Beatles Story Museum: A Neurodivergent Haven

(14:33–17:05; 19:36–23:59)

• Sensory Accommodations: Upon arrival, the museum’s structure is highlighted as especially neuro-affirming.

  • Timed entries reduce crowding, and the use of headphones makes the experience immersive and comfortable for neurodivergent visitors.

    “I’ve never been to a museum that’s just focused on a band before but I was absolutely blown away by it. ... It was very neuro-affirming as well.” — Simon (14:33)

• Freedom to Navigate: Guests can move at their own pace, take breaks when needed, and revisit favorite exhibits without pressure (“You could sort of do it in whatever order you wanted to, really.” — Simon, 22:26).

• Immersive Storytelling: The museum recreates the Beatles’ story as a "living documentary,” which deeply engaged both hosts, particularly Jordan who became hyper focused on the Yellow Submarine exhibit.

• Nostalgia and Shared Knowledge: Discussion of how almost everyone knows the Beatles, even without consciously learning their music.

  “Everybody knows the words, but nobody can really tell you when and where they learned the words. We’ve all grown up with the Beatles in our lives.” — Simon (16:08)

5. Everyday Neurodivergent Experiences in a Friend’s Home

(24:20–36:20)

• Cultural Navigation: Jordan and his wife experience new shops (e.g., Home Bargains, Greggs), different local accents, and the north’s more relaxed pace.
• Masking/Unmasking: The hosts contrast the experience of visiting a home where you feel compelled to “perform” versus one where you can be unmasked and authentic.
  • Jordan: “I don’t really like going to stay at other people’s houses... but it just went really brilliant. And I think that that’s a sign of, like, how close we are as friends.” (37:56)
  • Simon: “At no point did I feel like I had to entertain you, if that makes sense... It was so nice having you guys here on a Friday.” (38:38)
• Kitchen Comfort: Both note the comfort found in exchanging favorite TV shows and just being together, rather than feeling pressured to socialize or be “on” all the time.

6. Minor Mishaps & Social Energy

(31:07–34:16)

• A fire alarm goes off during breakfast due to a forgotten extractor fan—a minor incident that becomes a moment of shared, light-hearted embarrassment and empathy (“There’s nothing worse than going to someone else’s house and setting off a freaking fire alarm.” — Jordan, 32:26).
• Validating Neurodivergent Habits:
  • The group allows for time alone, no pressure to constantly interact, and is accepting of decompression after moments of overwhelm.

  "Don’t make them feel bad because they’re doing their own thing, because that’s when we get our energy back." — Jordan (54:49)

7. Navigating Social & Sensory Overload in Public

(51:34–53:18)

• On walking through busy parts of Liverpool (e.g., Matthew Street, the Cavern Club), Jordan’s ADHD hyperfocus helps him enjoy the environment, while Simon and Sylvia become overwhelmed by crowds and noise. They accommodate each other’s needs and respect boundaries around when to stay or move on.

8. Practicing Neuro-affirming Hospitality

(54:25–55:54)

• Both hosts highlight the importance of respecting each other’s alone time (e.g., Jordan on his tablet in the morning) and offering invitations without demanding participation.

  “As long as you encourage somebody to join in, don’t always expect them to join in, and don’t blame them if they don’t want to join in, but always make them welcome when they do want to join.” — Jordan (54:25)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Stereotypes:
  “If you’re a US listener, the closest thing that I can say Liverpool is, is like—it’s like the New Orleans of the UK. So it has an amazing culture and history, but it also has a history of being a bit rough around the edges.” — Simon (05:07)

• On Planning:
  “Have a file, have a folder, just organize your trip, everything." — Jordan (08:03)

• On Hyperfocus as a Superpower:
  “It’s almost like you visually see past all the haphazardness, all the trepidation, all the possible things that can go wrong because you’re like, I’m so hyper focused that whatever happens, I will just deal with it.” — Jordan (11:00)

• On The Beatles’ Ubiquity:
  “I don’t know anybody that doesn’t [know a Beatles song], to be honest. ... We’ve all grown up with the Beatles in our lives. It’s just, like, it’s not an uncommon thing.” — Simon (16:08)

• On Neuro-affirming Space:
  “Every museum should be like that...the attention to detail and the immersiveness and the fact that it wasn’t crowded...was so neuro affirming.” — Jordan (23:11)

• On Unmasking at Home:
  “In your house, it’s an ability.” — Jordan (42:38)

• On Hospitality:
  "You want the remote? Fucking hold the remote. I don’t care. And it was so nice to sort of let go." — Simon (50:27)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• Intro & Banter – 02:15–03:00
• Travel Anxiety & Planning – 03:00–09:05
• Hyperfocus & Anxiety Management – 09:50–12:00
• Impressions of Liverpool – 12:26–14:33
• Beatles Story Museum Experience – 14:33–23:59
• Adapting to Home & Local Culture – 24:20–36:20
• Fire Alarm Mishap & Hospitality – 31:07–34:16
• Masking, Comfort, & Decompression – 37:56–54:25
• Accommodating Differences & Needs – 54:25–57:18

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Concluding Reflections

• Both hosts conclude that the ability to unmask, respect boundaries, and accommodate the various needs of friends—without judgment—creates an authentically neurodivergent-friendly environment.
• The “relaxed fit” of the episode is itself a statement about neurodivergent reality: that sometimes the best advocacy is honestly sharing lived experience and celebrating the joy found in connection, comfort, and belonging.

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Final Words:

“I got a lot more energy from it than I lost. And that's exactly what, you know, accommodating new affirming friendships and spaces that we create together should be.” — Simon (57:18)

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[End of Summary]

Transcript

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[Simon Scott]

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[Jordan James]

Enjoy.

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[Jordan James]

We're.

[Simon Scott]

Foreign.

[Jordan James]

Welcome to the neurodivergent Experience podcast. A podcast where we share the lived experiences of neurodivergent people to help create a better understanding for our community.

[Simon Scott]

Join us every week as we bring you honest, raw and inspiring conversations with specialists, advocates and individuals who know exactly what it's like to live the neurodivergent experience.

[Jordan James]

I'm Jordan James, a neurodivergent specialist, father of neurodivergent children, husband to a neurodivergent wife, and author of the Autistic Experience. And I'm joined by my best friend.

[Simon Scott]

I'm Simon Scott. I'm an autistic ADHD broadcaster, actor and advocate. Join us as we journey into unraveling the neurodivergent experience.

Hello.

[Jordan James]

Hello and welcome back to the show.

[Simon Scott]

The show. I like how you threw up a gang sign. I know that nobody could see that, but that was, that was. That was a nice little touch. That's new.

[Jordan James]

Yo, yo. Because I'm like wickedy hip.

[Simon Scott]

He's been up north now and he's been with the kids and he thinks he's cool. That's what's happened. And he's like now then, now they.

[Jordan James]

Calm down. Calm down.

[Simon Scott]

Yeah, he's got like the Little wiggler, the Harry Enfield wiggle arms and everything but. Hello. Yes. Welcome back to the new Divergent Experience. Got a bit more of a fun one for you today because we hung out this weekend, we've been vibing and Jordan's been around Liverpool and it's been all over. A neurodivergent experience.

[Jordan James]

I came back with all my car tires as well. So I was, I was very impressed.

[Simon Scott]

Propaganda. And we're going to talk about that today.

[Jordan James]

We are.

[Simon Scott]

When expectations are good for good and bad reasons aren't necessarily met, we will talk about it all. So let's, let's dig into this episode, my friend. We hung out at the weekend you and Sylvia came up and you visited Liverpool. What did you think?

[Jordan James]

Well, yeah, we did. Yeah. Just, just to begin, like for all you out there, a lot of people don't actually realize that we're not in the same room.

[Simon Scott]

Oh no, we're like a four hour drive apart at best.

[Jordan James]

Well, yeah, I was gonna say four hours with decent traffic which we did not have on the way up there. So obviously I, I got my second hand new car and Scotty and I decided that we were gonna meet up like an early Christmas get together. And obviously he's got, he's got a house now with a spare room.

[Simon Scott]

Welcome to my crib.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. So we thought we'd go on a little road trip and yeah, there is just to begin with. So we're going to Liverpool and we're going to go in Liverpool. And my trepidation of Liverpool stems from the 80s and 90s and it wasn't the nicest place in the world.

[Simon Scott]

Oh no. I was talking to my dad about this the other day. He was driving through the city with me and he was like, Christ, this has changed that. You wouldn't stop at a red light 20 years ago. It is true.

[Jordan James]

Yeah, yeah, it's true. I mean, to be fair, it's kind of swapped because like I'd go to London when I was younger because that's where I, you know, lived near London. And I didn't really like going to London either. Like, I just don't like cities. I don't like towns on the best of days, but cities totally. No, no, no, no go. No, no, no, no. So the idea of going to a city then the idea of going to Liverpool, which is, you know, steeped in this history of like awesomeness and also robbery.

[Simon Scott]

Yeah, just, yeah, just robbing There is, there is a lot of sort of like really old school thoughts around Liverpool in the uk. If you're like a US listener, the closest thing that I can say Liverpool is, is like, it's like the New Orleans of the uk. So it has like an amazing sort of culture and history, but it also has a history of being a bit rough around the edges, let's just say.

[Jordan James]

Yeah, and, and I wouldn't, I would, I would say that it's more to do with the fact that the wealthy elite kept the north very, very poor. So people would turn to crime simply out of desperation more than I. When I grow older, I want to, you know, steel ladders. It's not, it's, it's, it's not unlike that in, in the uk. It was, everything was London, London, London. And up north just basically got screwed by the, by the Tories and. And Thatcher. That's my little history lesson. So essentially everyone up north who is basically, you know, a criminal, it's not your fault and we forgive you.

We're going to blame the wealthy elite.

[Simon Scott]

Can you roll your eyes on a podcast? Is that a thing you can do?

[Jordan James]

But what I'm being.

[Simon Scott]

But that is, but that is so, so true. Is like, it's true. And obviously when you're a neurodivergent person and you go, oh, I'm having to get in my car for four hours, which actually turned closer into seven hours.

[Jordan James]

Oh, dude, the traffic.

[Simon Scott]

But that sort of like understanding of going to a new city and you hear a reputation of a place where you're like, oh, I don't know if I really want to go to that.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. If you just got like that added pressure of like, this is, this is a new place that I've never been before. I'm driving a new car that I haven't gone in a long journey on. In before. On it just sitting on the roof in before.

[Simon Scott]

Images of you now sat on the roof going faster, faster.

[Jordan James]

And that is the, on the spectrum. In the spectrum. In. I'm in the car and I'm in the spectrum.

[Simon Scott]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Jordan James]

And, and then it's. And, and then. So I'm all good. So I'm just like, I'm gonna, I'm. And the thing that always gets me through, I mean, other than preparation, because I am the king of preparation. I organize everything to the letter. I know exactly what I'm gonna do. I know exactly when I'm gonna do it a little bit. Like if whoever is out there, if you ever watched Parks & Rec. I am Leslie Knope. Right. I am Binders and folders. But it's all on my phone. Like, I will literally, every time I go on any trip, I will literally create a file and do like screenshots of that place, maps, downloads this, downloads that, all the tickets, everything will all go in one file that I will keep for seven years and forget exists after the.

[Simon Scott]

Trip. Excellent.

[Jordan James]

Work. Yeah. But super organized, which is how I recommend any neurodivergent person to be if they're going on any trip. Even if you've been somewhere, have a file, have a folder, just organize your trip, everything. So I knew everything about this trip. And looking at some videos and some pictures of Liverpool, I was actually like, whoa, this is really nice. It looks lovely. It looks really changed, you know, and it looks really great. And then, you know, we. I did some research. It's like, is it like London? It's like, oh, it's way nicer than London. It's a lot less busy, it's a lot prettier and it's smaller. And I was like, this just sounds really great, you know. So I was super looking forward to it. Sylvia. Trepidation. She was, she has trepidation going down the shops. So we were very. It was, it was like a yin and yang. I was just like, right, going, we're gonna have some fun. And she's like.

Like a little kid, you know, drag him in the.

[Simon Scott]

Car. But that's the thing is when you're a bottom up processor, even if you want to go somewhere, your brain is gonna scan the entire situation and take in the negatives. So even though I look really look forward to going on traveling, I do exactly the same thing. I sort of have this little like nagging worry in the back of my mind of all the worst that could possibly happen in like any situation that is. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah. So I totally understand how. I mean, I even. I had it when I came down with you to watch the Chelsea game. I had to really research and prep myself for getting there. And then once I felt really comfortable with my journey and what I knew I was doing, I just got on with it. But if I was to make it up on the spot, I'd just be a panic the whole.

[Jordan James]

Time. Yeah, I mean, this, this is the thing with, with Silvio is as much as she does have the trepidation and like travel anxiety, she just trusts me, like completely trusts me because she knows how.

I want to say analytically anal with, with how I organize everything. And in the past, that Wasn't always great because if things go wrong, which they often do, the plans of mice and men often go wrong. And when they went wrong, I would have a meltdown and I wouldn't deal with it very well because I was like, the plan is ruined, the plan is ruined. But now a lot more Zen, normal, chill. And I'm like, I actually organize like multiple plans and have multiple ideas of what I want to do. So it's, it's kind of like, okay, so for everyone listening, the, the main way that I deal with my anxiety of going places is, is this magical power of hyperfocus. Hyperfocus is my ability and it's, my ability has his disabilities, we all know about them. And if you don't go listen to an episode that talks about that, because I'm not going to. Yeah, but the abilities of hyper focus is that you literally, it's almost like you visually see past all the haphazardness, all the trepidation, all the possible things that can go wrong because you're like, I'm, I'm so hyper focused that whatever happens, I will just deal with it. Whereas if I just go about my day and things happen, I have to deal with it without the hyper focus. That's what can really drain me, really. You know, push my buttons, grind my gears. But when I have a hyper focus, I can scatter it like a crowd, a crowd of people in my way. But I can see something I want to take a picture of. I'm there like, and I don't even see the crowd. I just see what I want to take a picture of. And it's the same with Liverpool. That hyper focus one was definitely seeing you. But the idea of going into Liverpool, my hyper focus was the Beatles Museum, the Beatles Story Museum, which we booked tickets for. I was hyper focused. We're gonna do it. And I, I just had zero anxiety. It was the weirdest thing because I was so excited about going to the Beatles museum and going to Liverpool and seeing all the Beatles stuff. So the Beatles was my hyper focus of Liverpool. But when I got to Liverpool, I just enjoyed everything about.

[Simon Scott]

Liverpool. Yeah, I mean, I, I, there's a, there's a reason I live here, you know, there's, there's a reason I live in this city. And even though it's not, it's like on the outskirts. And when you sort of pulled up to the house, you got out of the car and you were like, the drive was shit. I've been in the car for seven hours. But this is really.

[Jordan James]

Nice. It's lovely. Where you live is.

[Simon Scott]

Lovely. Yeah, I feel really luck lucky and you know, sort of going into the city you were like oh we've got to walk through the shopping center to get to where we're going. I'm like yeah, but the shopping center's outside and there's loads of room. And you know what was crazy is Liverpool were also playing at home on the Saturday. Although unless said about my football team at the moment the better, thank you very much.

And we were like walking through the city and Sylvia was like this is a Saturday a month before Christmas. It's busy but it's not like overwhelmingly busy. Like yeah, it's a city but it's not London. It's. There's, there's breathing.

[Jordan James]

Room. If you've been to London on a busy day and then you go to Liverpool on a busy day, it's. It's like finding a private beach amongst like full packed sun, you know, suntan followers. It's. It's crazy like there's barely anyone there in comparison to something like London. It only got busy when, when just before the, the. The kickoff of, of the. The futabol.

[Simon Scott]

Match. Yeah and also as well because the river Mersey runs through the city as well. There's a lot of fresh air. It's because you're near the, you near the sea, you're basically like on an estuary and you know we just sort of walked around and you really enjoyed like the fact that there's still a lot of old buildings in Liverpool.

[Jordan James]

That have sort of been redone Y.

[Simon Scott]

Lovely. And we went like down to the docks and stuff but the, the actual Beatles museum itself. I've been to a lot of museums and I didn't really know sort of what to expect. I've never been to a museum that's just focused on a band before but I was absolutely blown away by it. It was lovely and it was very neuro affirming as.

[Jordan James]

Well. Oh yeah. I mean for a start the entire time we were wearing headphones so straight away Richard Tice would be very, very.

[Simon Scott]

Angry.

[Jordan James]

Dis. And if you want to know what we're talking about, listen to the last Hot Topic. It's just some twat in politician that doesn't like people wearing headphones apparently. But yeah.

But it was. Oh mate. And again Saturday Beatles museum part of Liverpool midday because you. Because it's timed they don't let too many people in at once and it's, it's so well done like literally 10 out of 10. I don't give many things. 10 out of 10 is 10 out of 10. It was the best museum I've ever been to of its kind. And, and I just, I mean I'm not like a huge music person. That's you. But I have a lot of nostalgia with the Beatles. It's not like, oh, I'm, I know all their songs and I know everything about the Beatles. That's not me. I really love the Beatles, I really love their songs. But again, it's like a nostalgia thing growing up, listening to them and then it was, this is so really, really cool. Right? So when I got home I was, I was, you know, playing a Beatle song in the car on the way to the gym and Sophie just starts singing along to it and she knew all the words and it was such a rat, I can't remember what song it was.

Hard Day's Night. So she, she just starts singing along to it, knows all the words and I'm like, oh, I bought, I bought up my daughter. Right. I did a good.

[Simon Scott]

Job. But that's one of the things that I, I, I love about the Beatles. And we'll take a little break cuz I really want to sort of discuss the sort of neurodivergent experience of this museum because of like the pace and everything of it. But that's one of the things that I love about that band is I can put, you know, you walk through Liverpool and a lot of the bars are playing Beatles stuff and everybody knows the words, but nobody can really tell you when and where they learned the words. We've all grown up with the Beatles in our lives. It's just like, it's not an uncommon thing. Like, you know, you'll get people go, are you blurry? You Oasis? And you know, you'll even get people go, are you the Rolling Stones? Are you the Beatles? But if we're all honest, any, you know, we all know a Beatles song. I don't know anybody that doesn't, to be honest. I just can't think of anybody that would. It's, they're just, you know, and they were so prolific as well. But we'll talk about that after a little Short.

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Welcome back to the Neurodivergent Experience, man. We've been talking about Liverpool and the Boob Be.

Had a good time with the Beatles museum.

[Jordan James]

Man. See I I was a Beatles fan before I even knew it because I grew up on Thomas the Tank.

[Simon Scott]

Engine. Hello Thomas. See this is the thing.

[Jordan James]

Dude. It's like you sticking all my.

[Simon Scott]

Life, sticking all the little autistic boxes Thomas the Tank Engine Echolia accent.

But one of the reasons as to why I want to talk about this sort of experience with the museum is it ticks so many boxes for me of what neurodivergent affirming museum should be like in the we were there for two hours dude, and we just walked in our own pace and because you have the headphones on, we were just listening to stuff and taking them off, having a little chat, going back to ourselves, little wandering around And Sylvia was just sat at the end waiting for.

[Jordan James]

Us. I. I got stuck. I got stuck halfway because one of my favorite Beatles songs. And this. This might be weird, but one of my favorite Beatles songs is a Yellow submarine. Because I just. As a kid, I was like.

[Simon Scott]

Every autistic listener to this is going. And now they're all singing.

[Jordan James]

Along. And now I have a tiny little yellow submarines squishmallow that I got from the shop because of course I did. I wanted the big one. And then Sylvia did the Face that I'm scared of. And then I put it back and got the little one instead. But the little one's really good. It's like a little stimmy toy. It's wonderful. But, yeah, I got. Essentially, they've got a. Just like jumping right ahead. There's a whole load of exhibits that you will walk through. And it's recreating the story of their life. So it's like a living documentary. So you literally. You're in a part which. Which is where they all met. And then, you know, you listen to it and it talks you through how they met and how they got going. And then you walk into another part and then it looks like. What was the bar name? Oh, I'm terrible with.

[Simon Scott]

Names. Oh, the.

[Jordan James]

Cavern. No, no, no, the other bar. The.

[Simon Scott]

Casbah. The Casbah. It's in.

[Jordan James]

Hamburg. Yeah, yeah. And it's like they recreated the outside of it with the neon lights and stuff like that. And it's just that attention to detail and it's got loads of really lovely pictures. It was just so, so cool. And it just talks you through the whole story. But essentially I got stuck halfway because I got to the yellow Submarine and they've built a yellow subway. You can go inside a yellow submarine. And I was in there and I must have listened to Yellow Submarine four times in a row because I.

[Simon Scott]

Was in there as.

[Jordan James]

Well. Yeah. And I was. I was videoing it and taking pictures and doing selfies. I. I was just. I was like a kid at Christmas, basically. I was like.

[Simon Scott]

Me. It really did feel like sort of. And this is one of the things that I think is like, was so Nero affirming about this is you could sort of do it in whatever order you wanted to, really. Like, when we got to the Sergeant Pepper Magical Mystery Tour section, which is just before the Yellow Submarine, you and I were in there for, like, half an hour because we were talking about what was in front of us and we were reading it and, you know, taking his headphones on and Chatting and putting them back on like. And before that bit, it talked about them landing in America, you know, like the Ed Sullivan Show. And as you walked through, suddenly you were just in a.

[Jordan James]

Plane. Yes. It was so.

[Simon Scott]

Cool. It was really cool how you, you walked, you walked their story. It was really, really.

[Jordan James]

Cool. Well, now you make me. Oh go. I'm going to come back. And again, it was just, it was, it was like a living documentary. It was so well done. It's like every museum should, should be like that. I, I do, I do feel like it like that attention to detail and the immersiveness and the fact that it wasn't crowded, it, they didn't let too many people in. It was so neuro affirming. I honestly and just in general, I, I was just very, very impressed with, with the whole aesthetics of the city, you know. You know, even when it got busy, it was just very, very pretty. And obviously this is like everyone listening is like, when are you going to talk about something that matters? Well.

I tell you what, people, 110,000 downloads in. I'm a bit burnt out, which is talking about like this or that. So we just thought we'd just give a literal neurodivergent experience of like this is our experience. Plus I just, I just wanted to catch up with, with my best friend in the world. So you guys get to.

[Simon Scott]

Listen. So you just along for the ride. Yeah. But also as well in sort of discussing Liverpool like coming up here. I can imagine obviously for Sylvia as well, when you're coming together. I'm not a great traveler. So when you come to a city, you're obviously going to have a lot of anxieties. I, I certainly do, everywhere that I go. But I don't know if you did you really did you necessarily experience many Scouse people. You definitely experienced home and bargains, didn't you? That was a cultural shock for you in Sylvia. You seem to enjoy.

[Jordan James]

That. I have many pajamas that I didn't have before I went to you. I just. Home bargains is one of those places where you're like, oh, it's only a fiver. Oh, it's only six quid. Oh, it's only seven quid. And you end up spending way.

[Simon Scott]

More. You go into milk and come out with £100 worth of.

[Jordan James]

Clobber. Yeah, it was. I'm looking at my Grinch slippers from here. I mean they're, they're sensational. And they were only £8. It was just. If only I had stopped at the Grinch Slippers. But yeah, it's, it's, it's strange because it wasn't a cultural shift, but everything just, everything just felt more laid back. Everything felt more easy, less hectic, less aggressive and, and with the mindset of like, oh, going up north to Liverpool, like, oh, Liverpool. It was like the complete opposite of, of what a lot of people might expect from it. It was so chill. But yeah, every time I, I had a Scouse accent, I just went and say, calm down, calm down. Yeah, I had, I had to stop myself echolaling Harry Enfield. I just had to stop myself doing.

[Simon Scott]

That. It takes a bit of getting used to because obviously having echolalia, you hear an accent like that. And for our American listeners, the Scouse accent is, is so.

[Jordan James]

Unique. It's, it's definitely my, one of my least favorite English accents. When it's, it depends because if you listen to the Beatles, the way that the Beatles spoke, I actually really like the accent there. But when you, when you hear that very nasally, very high pitch Scouse, but it's the same. It's like in London, I, I, I like Cockney, but then there's like a new version of London speak which is kind of like mixed with like Jamaican heritage which like, I don't want to do an.

[Simon Scott]

Accent.

Like roadman.

[Jordan James]

Accent. Yeah, like plan B did it and, and then he's like, what's up, fam? You know what I'm saying, blood? You know what I'm.

[Simon Scott]

Saying?

Yeah. It's a whole language. It's a whole.

[Jordan James]

Language. Yeah. Not a fan. I just, you know, I crack on if you like. But for me, not a fan. I don't really like that accent. I prefer Cockney, like Delboy, I love like Delboy accent, but I also love Irish accent. Britain is the melting pot of accents that it fascinates me that Manchester and Liverpool are literally on the other side of a motorway 30 miles apart. 30 miles apart. Completely not even similar, Completely different accents. And then just above that you've got Newcastle. Completely closer to a Scottish accent really, because they're quite close. It's the most northern city. So it's very, very close to Scotland. So it's the most northern city in England. And then you reach Scotland and yeah, it's, but even Scotland, like you just go from Edinburgh to Glasgow. Completely different.

[Simon Scott]

Accent. It's totally crazy. And that's like one of the things that's sort of, I think, fascinating about our sort of country as a whole is it is an absolute total mixing pot and it is Hard when you're somebody who struggles with transition or, like, echolalia. Because when you're mimicking somebody's accent, that can be a disability, especially in, like, social.

[Jordan James]

Settings. Especially if people take it the wrong.

[Simon Scott]

Way. You can offend people quite easily. Yeah. And it is sometimes hard because I'm somebody who struggles with transitions. So going from one place to another where all of the shops are different, the language is literally different. They're using different words and different terms. The accents are totally different. You know, you went up here and you were like, I haven't even heard a half of these shops. I was like, what? What do you mean? Have you never had a Greg sausage roll? You were.

[Jordan James]

Like.

A Greg sausage.

[Simon Scott]

Roll. Yeah, but you know what I.

[Jordan James]

Mean. Greg's.

[Simon Scott]

From. That's. But you know what I mean. It's like. You were like, oh, I don't normally see a Greg. So I was like, well, there's, like, one on every corner up.

[Jordan James]

Here. What do you did? There's a Gregg's in.

[Simon Scott]

Horsham. Oh, I'm losing my head. I can't remember what it was. Where was it? Where you were like, oh, homie doggins. Oh, yeah, there you go. Back to the. Back to the reality. Don't know where my brain went there. Exactly. This is what. This is what? Part of the fun.

Trying to remember places and.

[Jordan James]

Transitioning. I guess I stopped off at Greg's on the.

[Simon Scott]

Way. There you go. There you go, then. See, my head's just not screwed on today.

[Jordan James]

Obviously. You want to start that bit.

[Simon Scott]

Again? No, it's fine. Keep it.

[Jordan James]

In.

[Simon Scott]

It. Who are we talking.

[Jordan James]

About? I was like, what's going.

[Simon Scott]

On?

But no, man.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. Anyway, Greg's is only northern.

[Simon Scott]

Now. Yeah, you're welcome. But that's just one of the things that I've sort of always loved about being up here. And obviously, as somebody who lived in London for such a long time and then moved to Manchester, met a girl from Manchester who I'm sharing my life with, and then we've both chose to live over.

[Jordan James]

Here. Did I meet.

[Simon Scott]

Her? Oh, Carrie. I think she was there, wasn't.

[Jordan James]

She? I thought you meant, like the little.

[Simon Scott]

Doggy. No, not that. No, no, not.

[Jordan James]

Yet. He's like, oh, you got. I got a little doggy.

[Simon Scott]

Okay. Because I've not really necessarily talked about the little doggy. The little doggy's here.

[Jordan James]

Now. Little.

[Simon Scott]

Doggy. So she's currently downstairs. I don't know how she's gonna be. I might have a tinkle waiting for me when I get down because she's a bit anxious. Anxious little piggy. She's a piggy.

[Jordan James]

Piggy.

[Simon Scott]

Yeah. Chunky baby. But yeah, no, where was I? Who.

[Jordan James]

Cares? Talk about.

[Simon Scott]

Caris. Yeah, Caris. There you go. Yeah. One of the things that.

[Jordan James]

We.

[Simon Scott]

Sweet. Yeah. Yeah. But one of the sorts of things that I was sort of seeing happening with her, which was her sort of neurodivergent experience this weekend, that she was like, oh, people in my home, I'm going to be perceived. Let me clean the. Out of everything. It's like there's nothing more motivating for an ADHD person if you need to clean up is just invite people around and watch it all just disappear out of fear of being.

[Jordan James]

Perceived. If, like, if everyone listening. If you want to hear, like a real neurodivergent experience, it's me messaging Scotty the day before saying, shall I buy my own breakfast stuff?

And Scotty, like, we don't do breakfast. And Scotty, like, that sounds like a good idea. And then, and then me forgetting all the breakfast stuff when I getting up there going, oh, we forgot all the eggs and we forgot all the bagels, then buying it when we're up there and then nearly burning your house.

[Simon Scott]

Down. You know, it wasn't that bad. It's just because of the way that. Then again, this is an ND thing as well. We were sat watching TV and Sylvia was like, why is the fan still on? I went, oh, it's the extractor fan. I'll turn it off. Then forgot to turn it back on for you in the morning and you meant to make some eggs. And I woke up to the fire alarm going off and I was like, oh, yes, of course. But that is again, something. You're in somebody else's house and the fire alarm goes off and I came downstairs and you were going, ah.

[Jordan James]

The. You looked so.

[Simon Scott]

Pissed. That's just my resting.

[Jordan James]

Morning. You were looking at me like, you.

[Simon Scott]

Southerner. So I've let you in my house, burning it.

[Jordan James]

Down.

There's nothing worse than going to someone else's house and setting off a freaking fire.

[Simon Scott]

Alarm. And yeah, I'm sorry, it won't.

[Jordan James]

Stop. I was like, so embarrassing. I was. I was standing there going, it's none of this is my fault. This is. This is. This is every. Like, this is the dog's fault. You didn't even have the dog. And I was like, it's the dog's.

[Simon Scott]

Fault. Just blame the.

[Jordan James]

Dog. Yeah, the dog's not even there, but it's the.

[Simon Scott]

Dog'S.

[Jordan James]

Fault. I blame my dogs for everything, especially.

[Simon Scott]

Farting. Yeah. I was about to say, I think she dropped one on me last night. Because we, Caris and I both looked at each other and I was like.

[Jordan James]

That'S. Yeah, you can get away with that from now.

[Simon Scott]

On. Stick in it.

[Jordan James]

Christ. Yeah, just keep blaming the.

[Simon Scott]

Dog. I was like, why my glasses steamed up. Oh, it's the dog. Little bugger. Anyway, let's take a little break and when we come back, we'll, we'll wrap up this, whatever, whatever this episode is we'll call it. It's a relaxed fit, isn't it? We were like, oh, we'll just, we'll.

[Jordan James]

Just. It's a neurodivergent.

[Simon Scott]

Experience. We'll be.

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Back.

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[Simon Scott]

Innovation.

Have you ever felt stuck in patterns that don't serve you, struggled with stress or wanted to connect more deeply with yourself? Then I have to introduce you to a friend of the podcast Ashley Bentley of Integrated Coaching, Breathwork and Hypnotherapy. Ashley is a highly experienced clinical hypnotherapist and coach specializing in working with neurodivergent minds. Through a unique blend of integrative coaching, breathwork and hypnotherapy, Ashley helps people rewire subconscious patterns, regulate their nervous systems, step into more empowered versions of themselves. Whether you're dealing with addiction, anxiety, burnout or struggles with self acceptance, Ashley offers practical and science backed tools tailored just for you. Her unique methods combine neuroscience, storytelling, subconscious transformation to create real, lasting change. Jordan and I can personally attest to the profound and transformative effects of her sessions which have been life changing. She does all of these sessions online, meaning she can work with you no matter where you are in the world. If you're ready to break free from old patterns and start living with more clarity, confidence and connection, go to Bit ly ashleynde to book a free consultation or learn.

[Jordan James]

More.

Welcome back. Welcome.

[Simon Scott]

Back. Oh, you.

Honestly. My. Honestly, listeners, my. I don't know what it is. My head is not screwed on today. I've, like. Since I've got the dog, I've actually had to, like, get up and out of bed, which I'm so not used to, and taking her for a walk. And Jordan is literally just with me today.

Because he knows. He knows how to push my buttons, and he's just going up bored. So it. Let's see what.

[Jordan James]

Happens. Oh, dude, I. I actually think, like, like, all the times we've bonded and the years that we've been friends, coming up and seeing you for the first time. No, but it's. Okay. Let me explain exactly what I mean to anyone that doesn't understand, which is Especially you.

Is that the. For the first time that we have been friends and then brothers and then everything else and lovers and everything else that we've been on the podcast. Podcast livers. I felt like a part of your family. Like, I felt like a visiting relative. Like, I'm your big brother, and you kept calling me your big brother and. Oh, my God. Okay. I don't cry out of the podcast, man. That just means so much to me because.

Like, I always wanted a younger brother that didn't hate me, I guess. So it's. It's. It was just. It was just really, really nice feeling. And. And I. It was very comfortable. Like, I don't really like going to stay at other people's houses. I don't really like going around. Round to other people's houses. Like, Pickle is my other best friend in the world, and I don't often go around to his house. He's always coming over to my house because I am definitely a home creature. So traveling all that way and then staying with you, I've done that before, and it hasn't gone well with other people, but it just went really brilliant. And I think that that's a sign of, like, how close we are as.

[Simon Scott]

Friends.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. Yeah, it was. It felt really, really good, man. But I. I did want to know what. What was it like for the first time, like, having strangers, essentially, compared to, you know, I mean, we are strangers to Caris. You know, we don't know Caris that well, but, like, in your.

[Simon Scott]

Space. I'll be honest, normally when people are in my space, I really struggle to settle. It's like, you'll notice when Ewing and Sylvia was sat at the kitchen table and we were chatting, I was stood up at the break, like, at the kitchen, and that's because that's where my energy find. I find.

[Jordan James]

Myself. You gave me backache because I had to.

[Simon Scott]

Twist. Yeah, I.

[Jordan James]

Know. I was, like, twisted in one position for so long. I actually had pain in my right.

[Simon Scott]

Side. I struggled to sort of sit down and settle. At no point did I feel like I had to entertain you, if that makes sense. It's like when people come around to my house or in the past, like, you know, people come round. It's almost like that, that guest pressure of have to show your best. The house has to sort of be spotless and. And all of this sort of thing. And we didn't. We didn't sort of fall. Fall for that. And it was so nice having you guys here on a Friday. We went and got a takeaway and we walked to get it and just had a meal together. And even that as well. Dude, I've always struggled to eat in front of people. Like, even when I go to a restaurant, I find sometimes the conversation can take my energy more than eating. And that's when, like, my interception just messes with me.

[Jordan James]

Me. Yeah, I saw that when we went. When we went to the cafe for breakfast, you barely ate anything and I started eating your breakfast. I was, I'll have.

[Simon Scott]

That. Because I can't sort of focus on everything. It's like, normally, like, when I'm with my mum and dad or even with Caris, we don't normally talk to each other while we eat. We just eat and then we talk. So my body was sort of adjusting to that kind of dynamic. But in the evenings, we just sat and watched TV and we watched like, we ex. Like, one of the things that I love about, like, hanging out with neurodivergent people in general is we just exchange things that we like. You know, rather than sort of sitting and chatting, you were like, oh, here's something that Sylvia and I watch. Let's watch it for a few episodes. And then we did the same with what Caris and I watched. We're like, oh, we like watching this. Let's watch this for a few episodes.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. You turn me on to Smiling Friends. God, I love that show. And I turned you on to Beavers and.

[Simon Scott]

Butthead.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. And we both got something out of it, which is cool, because a lot of the time, if you told me that on the podcast. Oh, you got what, Smiling Friends? I'd be like, yes, sure. Demand Avoidance says no, absolutely. And the opposite round, be somebody so funny, you'd be like, demand Avoidance says no, but because we're in the same room. And we just. This. This was really strange for me. And I think this kind of shows the big brother, little brother dynamic of the fact that. That. That is just the energy we have is the fact that you gave me the. I didn't take it. You gave me your tele. Controller. You gave me your controller. I wouldn't give. I wouldn't give Jesus my controller. If.

[Simon Scott]

Jesus. Jesus take the.

[Jordan James]

Revolver. Odin, Ra came into my fricking house. Just. I've got to be like, mention all the gods, you know, We've got to be, you know, inclusive is Zeus. Zeus is the cat. He doesn't get the controller. He tries to walk on it, but it doesn't happen. I wouldn't. I wouldn't give up my controller for Michael Jordan. Right. It's just because it's mine. It's my control. I have this really, really big problem where, like, no one. Like, where I'm looking now, it's my controllers on my seat. So it was weird that you just sort of gave me the controller and I was like.

[Simon Scott]

Sweet. Yeah, I wasn't that.

[Jordan James]

Bus. No, I know, because most people aren't. And I'm just. I'm a mental person. I'm just like, I must have my controller. But, yeah, it. It was. It just made me feel really comfortable that I was able to use the.

[Simon Scott]

Controller.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. Like, I feel.

[Simon Scott]

Happy. But that's what I mean is, like, it's. I didn't even really think about that too much. And again, something that I. I really, really enjoyed about having you guys here is that I got to use my grill, because I love using that. And it was super fun to make food for you.

[Jordan James]

Guys. You're a good cook. You cook those like you had. We had some steaks, made some sausages, and. And I. I have to admit, like, seeing your autism in its natural habitat was very entertaining. Because when you've come here, your. Your autism, it's like this autistic part of you. When you're in my house is a.

[Simon Scott]

Disability.

[Jordan James]

Yes. But in your house, it's an ability. And that. That is a huge difference. And that's what we always talk about. I mean, if you want to wonder what this episode is about, it's about us being real. It's about us living our lives as neurodivergent people in different environments. Because every environment's gonna be different than your own home. And seeing you in your own environment and showing me around the city, you're taking control. Like, you were like, we're going this way. And I was like, yeah, okay, we're going this way. And I was like, yeah, okay. And I would just. I just trusted you. And I don't trust most people. I try to take control of every single situation I'm in because most of the time, I don't trust that I'm not the best person for that situation to be in charge. Now, I'm not saying I am the best person, but I just don't trust other people. With you. You could led me off the docks, I'd have followed you. I just trusted you. And it was the same in. In your house. You were like, oh, I really like grilling. And I was like, it's literally raining outside. You just. Yeah, I just really enjoy it. I just really enjoy the grilling. And I was like, this is. This is autism. This is so. And it's like, but this is so good. Like, you just were so.

[Simon Scott]

Happy. And I got so much joy as well out of, like, the whole setup of the grill is, like, putting the coals in and lighting it and setting the temp on it and then be like, oh, she's ready. And then, like, going and, like, prepping the food and stuff. And the joy that I get out of watching because I get so much anxiety about going to people's house and eating food they've made. Like, I'm so scared of not liking it. I'm so scared of creating conflict with people because they're like, what? You don't like my food? Like, there's a lot that comes from that with.

[Jordan James]

Me. People take a lot of stuff.

[Simon Scott]

Personally. Exactly. And I. And it's like, I never want to offend anybody, but I'm also. It's like, I would rather live being uncomfortable than make other people uncomfortable. And again, that's my mask. But what was so sort of like, just affirming for me was that I went and set the grill up, and you went, it's raining outside. Do you really want to do that? I went, absolutely. I love doing it. You didn't even question it. You just went, okay, dude, that sounds like fun. And we set it up, and you stood outside with me for a little bit in your onesie with your big Grinch slippers on. And the girls were sort of inside having a bit of tick tock time, just sort of chilling out. And then they were chatting to each other loads as.

[Jordan James]

Well. So that was so funny. We looked through the window of into the living room, and I was like, dude, do you want to see the most autistic thing ever and it's just like they were. They were chatting and chatting and chatting, and all of a sudden they both just stopped and they just went on their.

[Simon Scott]

Phones. Then about five minutes later, they went, oh, yeah. And then just started talking.

[Jordan James]

Again. And just started talking again. It's literally like, we've got energy and we're going to refresh that energy. And then we got energy again. It.

[Simon Scott]

Was. But then giving you guys the food that I made and watching both you and Sylvia eat it and going, oh, that was amazing. I really enjoyed it. Literally charged my battery up like you wouldn't.

[Jordan James]

Believe. Yes. You make good food, man. It was. It was really nice. But the other thing that. And I don't know why I didn't tell you this at the time, because I literally didn't even think about. I hate being driven. Like, I hate being driven. I even said, like, when we went to visit Penny Lane. Penny Lane. That's in your head now. That's in your head now. When we went to Penny Lane, I. I even said, I'll. I'll take my car. And you were like, no, no, it's fine. I'll just drive. It's just easy. And I was like, okay.

Actually, it's the first time you've driven.

[Simon Scott]

Me. Yeah. Yeah, it is. Actually, I've not even. I didn't really think about.

[Jordan James]

That. I. Because I was hyper focused on Penny Lane, and I was like, yeah, and it's fine. I didn't. I didn't even, like, think about judging your driving. But that's the thing is that I never even thought about your driving, which means you are really, really good.

[Simon Scott]

Driving. Thank.

[Jordan James]

You. Like, you're a really good driver. And. And I. And most people are not most people. I'll be, like.

A lot of the time, you know that thing where you've got that little handle on the door, the mum.

[Simon Scott]

Handle? You go within, like, 8ft of another car, she goes, oh, that's me.

[Jordan James]

I'm. I'm grabbing that mum handle. Yeah, mum.

[Simon Scott]

Handles.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. And, like, I'm just, like, holding on for dear life, literally, when you're driving, like, 10 mile an hour. Yeah, I'm not good with other people driving, but I didn't even notice this. You're a really good driver. And now everybody on the podcast knows that. Thank you, Scotty.

[Simon Scott]

Good. But that. But all of these little things is, like, even though we're sort of just fleshing out our weekend, there is so much there that we could have struggled with and navigated. Like, you trusting me to navigate you around the city, even trusting me to drive you 10 minutes down the road to the park and walking around the park, you know, and then we went in, like, the little greenhouse thing, which was really cool. And you were like, you should be a tour guide. I was like, if.

[Jordan James]

Only. Yeah. I love the way you and Sylvie were so excited about this. And I was like, these. This is just a room full of.

[Simon Scott]

Plants.

I was like, but this plant does this unit. Plants do lots of things. I was like, right, okay.

[Jordan James]

Fine. Yeah. I was like. I was not impressed. I'm such a dick sometimes. That's fine, because. Yeah, but I don't even pretend. And that's the other neurodivergent thing. I. I don't mask. And. And that. That's the cool thing is that because I don't mask, I do get more anxiety of, oh, did I upset someone or did I say something? And there is always that. And even with you, I was just like, oh, I've probably upset him at some point. And the thing is, undoubtedly, maybe I did. But the greatest thing about our friendship is even if we upset each other, we just go, oh, well. And then you just move.

[Simon Scott]

On. Yeah. It's really not that deep because, like, there are things where obviously two neurodivergent people together, you are, in a way, gonna create friction because you both need accommodations. And sometimes one's accommodation will then create the need for somebody else to have one. It's like me going into the city was absolutely fine for me because I'm so used to it, and I understood that I had to sort of go through the paces with you guys a little bit. And once you settled in, it was absolutely fine. But then again, when we went out for food, you were like, why aren't you eating your food? Is everything cool? So absolutely everything's fine. I just wish everyone had stopped talking to me so I can eat my food. And when you sort of, like, explain it, we're in a space where nobody's judging you. Nobody's putting their own feelings first. You're just going, well, that's what Si needs. That's. That's who Simon is. And again, I'm so pleased that you got to sort of see me in my own environment, in my own house, because you have seen me now truly unmasked. Like when I was just sort of vibing around the house. And then me and Carys just start dancing in the kitchen randomly, and I'm constantly putting things down and forgetting where they are and just wandering through, like, the same. Like, Path and track every five seconds. And it was so nice to just be myself and Karis as well. She was saying this, how nice it was that we could just be ourselves in our own home and have two people that don't live there there. Because normally we'd both not be walking on eggshells, but we'd definitely be a little bit performative. And it was so nice to just have you guys hearing me be like, mikasa, su casa. You want the remote? Fucking hold the remote. I don't care. And it was so nice to sort of let go.

In a way of letting people in. That's very, very rare for me to let go, to let in. And it was. Yeah, it was a real joy. I had a brilliant time. And it's so nice that we can sort of not even necessarily have to communicate our needs. We can see what's happening. It's like, when Sylvia kept walking into me, I didn't go, oh, for God's sake, girl, would you stop walking into me? My. My thought was, well, she's dyspraxic, so of course she's gonna walk into.

[Jordan James]

Me. She. She's a lot of things when she's walking. It's. It's. She's like, what's this thing? And then she was walking into everyone. Yeah. Like, she just kept knocking it. Like, when we got near the pier, I was like, I better hold a handle where she'll go over the edge. She just wanders.

[Simon Scott]

Off. And we were just stopping, talking, and I was like, where's Sylvia? And it was like, oh, she's half a mile down the road. She turned around, she's like, oh, hello.

[Jordan James]

Everyone. Every single time we stopped, she just kept going. We're like, babe, babe. She just kept going, kept going. And I literally had to jog ahead. Like, we were outside again with the.

[Simon Scott]

Freaking. What's Matthew Street? The Cabin.

[Jordan James]

Club. Yeah. Matthew street was so. I loved that you and Sylvia. Oh, your tism was such a disability in that moment. My ADHD and hyper focus was my.

[Simon Scott]

Superpower. I was like, oh, drunk people, football.

[Jordan James]

Fans. I didn't even see them as that. I just saw them as, like, people also having a good.

[Simon Scott]

Time.

[Jordan James]

Yeah. Also wanting to get somewhere. And you and Sylvia was rushing ahead because she just wanted to get out of there. She is. She likes to be with music, but she's not a fan. Like, I am. And I wanted to stop at everything and just take so many pictures. And I wanted to go in. I really. She went into one. One place, which. Which was Like a Beatles restaurant. And I was like, I want to eat in here. And you and Silver was like, no, but I need to get out of here. But the thing is, is I didn't get upset about that. Even though I want. I really wanted to eat there. I didn't get upset about that because I knew that the two of you would be more upset if you did eat than me not eating. So it's. It's finding that compromise of, yeah, okay, I really want to do sit because. Because my whole thing was, I want to come back here by myself and just go around and do things by myself, because I would just be able to do whatever I want to.

[Simon Scott]

Do. And that's the thing, dude, is I would be happy to do that. If you wanted to come and stay up here and literally just said to me, I want to go into the city on my own with my camera for a few hours, I would not begrudge you that at all. I'd be like, absolutely, dude. If that's something that you want to do and you just want to be on your own, I will not even for a moment go, oh, he's come up here all this way, and now he just wants to be on his own. Like, what's the point? I wouldn't.

[Jordan James]

Care. This is how accommodating you are. We got to finish now. But this is. I just want to say, this is how accommodating you are. So even before you've come down, I get up super early. I get up like five, half five every morning. I'm downstairs and I'm on my tablet because I got my big tablet, and I'm just watching my basketball games and I'm catching up with my basketball. And when you came down and everyone's in the kitchen and you're all doing things, I still wasn't ready to join everyone. I wasn't ready to be. I'm still in my own zone on my tablet, doing my thing. And no one was like, oh, could you just get off your tablet? Or can't you put that tab? Or, you still need to come and join us. Everyone just left me alone. And once I was finished doing what I was doing with my tablet, I closed my tablet, and then I'm back in the room. No one had any expectations or like, well, I'm down now, so you must pay attention to me. It was none of that. It was, oh, he's on his tablet. He's obviously busy. He's obviously focused, and you just left me to it.

That people listening that's how to accommodate neurodivergence is that as long as you encourage somebody to join in, don't always expect them to join in, and don't blame them if they don't want to join in, but always make them welcome when they do want to join.

[Simon Scott]

In.

[Jordan James]

Absolutely. Don't make them feel bad because they're doing their own thing, because that's when we get our energy.

[Simon Scott]

Back. Yeah. And it was so great to sort of just see that sort of unfold, because I had it as well. Like, you woke up. You weren't sort of poking your head up through my bedroom door going, I'm awake. You must be awake now. Yeah. You were, like, pouring at the door. Exactly. You just kind of went, I know that side takes a little while to warm up, so I'm just gonna leave him to it. Because in the morning, I like to come down and not have anybody really speak to me for, like, the first half an hour of the day. In the same way that Caris likes to come home and not have anybody speak to her for the first half an hour that she's home. And you guys did that. She came home and you went, oh, Caris is home. You're okay. You gave her a hug and stuff. And she just went, yeah. And sat at the table with you. Was just on her phone, just sort of desensitized and then sort of allowing herself to acclimatize to the environment she found herself in. At no point did you and Sylvia go, oh, Caris, we've just walked. You know, you've just walked through the door, and you just sat on your phone like, do you not want to pay us? No one. Nothing.

[Jordan James]

Mattered. And even in our heads, it's. It's not like we. We lend that. Or went away later and like, oh, she's so rude. Nothing that we don't think that Caris is rude. We think that Carys is decompressing after a very, very long day at work and then a very busy train ride home. We appreciate the fact that Carys literally worked in the town center, and then she came home, and she just wanted her own time. And it's like, if you don't appreciate that, then you're a selfish person. If you. If you think that somebody decompressing is a sign of rudeness, that's a your. That's a you problem. You need to sort that.

[Simon Scott]

Out. That's an ableism.

[Jordan James]

Essentially. That's ableism because Caris is an absolute sweetheart. We absolutely adore her. And now we like her more than you.

[Simon Scott]

So.

And on that note, ladies and gentlemen, Caris will be the new co host of this podcast from next week.

Anyway, well, love you. Yeah, yeah, I love you too, man. But no, it was a great weekend. I absolutely loved it. And even though on Monday I was a little quiet because of the, the come down of the high of, of using so much energy to sort of socialize and have fun, I don't feel like I'm burnt out even in the slightest. I got a lot more energy from it than I lost. And that's exactly what, you know, accommodating new affirming friendships and spaces that we create together should be. And that's why we've talked about it today.

Right? All right. Okay, I'll finish. Bye everybody. Great. Thanks for tuning in. We'll be back tomorrow with another hot topic. This one will not be discussing what politicians are saying or certain vaccines. We're getting a bit sick of hearing about it and I'm sure you are too. So we'll be talking about something a little bit more fun. But that's fine. Fun, fun time. So take care of yourself, everybody. Be kind, be safe, be accommodating if you can. Love you.

[Jordan James]

Bye. We all live in yellow submarines. Yellow submarine, Yellow submarine nightly.

[Simon Scott]

Bye.

Thanks for tuning in to the neurodivergent experience. We hope today's episode sparks something for you. Whether it's a new idea, a bit of validation, or just a moment of connection. Remember, no new episodes are every week, so be sure to join us for the next one for more conversations and insights into the neurodivergent experience. If you've enjoyed this podcast, help us grow. You can do that by rating and reviewing this show. Your support makes a huge difference in helping us reach more people who could benefit from these conversations. You can connect with us on social media, find us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok. TikTok. Just search for the neurodivergent experience. Thank you again for listening and until next time, take care of yourself. You're not alone in this.

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