Liz’s Neurodivergent Letters: A Day of Travel Mishaps + The Sensory Delights of NYC
Explore excerpts from Liz’s Neurodivergent Letters, a weekly email series by holistic therapist Liz Zhou.
LETTER #1: EMBRACING YOUR NERVOUS SYSTEM’S RANGE
the sensory extravaganza of NYC
Delicious food from every corner of the world.
Dozens of languages being spoken on the streets — music to my ears.
A functional, 24/7 public transport system that zips me from art galleries to comedy shows to hot pot with friends.
These are some of the things that make New York City one of my favorite places to visit.
By the way — you know what’s one of the most overwhelming places I’ve ever visited? Also NYC.
Yes, you read that right. NYC is one of those rare destinations that makes me excited to be human — even as it pokes at every sensory sensitivity imaginable & makes my nervous system scream internally (sometimes).
I recently visited the city, and it reminded me what it means to embrace the range of my nervous system. Whether you call NYC home, or have only ever seen it in movies, I bet this concept might resonate with you, too.
For many of us highly sensitive & neurodivergent folks, everything in life — sensations, emotions, memories — seems to hit harder. We feel intensely, the good and the bad. I liken it to living with your nervous system outside your body, rather than inside.
And here’s the thing: just as we feel discomfort in intense ways, we may also feel positive experiences (like joy, hope, and pleasure) in equally intense ways. That is the RANGE of a nervous system. The lows are low, but the highs are high.
As far as sensory overwhelm can stretch in one direction, so too can sensory joy expand in the other.
Case in point:
The feeling of being squeezed like sardines in the NYC subway during rush hour — catching whiffs of urine, & going from standing to almost falling into a stranger’s lap when the train screeched to a halt? A sensory nightmare.
Meanwhile, the first bite of a mouth-watering meal at a restaurant with calm lighting & peaceful music? A heavenly experience.
Our nervous systems are designed to experience their whole range — whether that range is 0-10, 0-100, or whatever scale makes sense to you.
For me, embracing the range of my nervous system means:
I appreciate pleasant experiences deeply because I’m aware how things can so easily flip in the other direction.
When overwhelm hits, I ride the waves, knowing that no nervous system state lasts forever.
As I reminisce on my fave hot pot in NYC (and recover from the chaos of traveling cross-country amid nationwide flight delays — a story for another day), I’ll leave you with a few questions to reflect on.
What do you notice about your nervous system range?
What experiences move your nervous system in the direction of joy? Pleasure? Ease?
How can you bring more experiences like this into your life?
>> Pssst… you might also like this blog post: For Autistic Adults with Travel Anxiety: How to Make Your Next Trip as Stress-Free as Possible
LETTER #2: A DAY OF TRAVEL MISHAPS
why task-switching is hard for neurodivergent brains
3:02pm: Taking off soon from Chicago. On the plane. I think I got the last seat - it’s packedddd
3:03pm: I mean TO Chicago
3:03pm: Idk where I am lol
I was sitting on a plane on a runway in Dallas, Texas, when I wrote those texts to my friend — tired, confused, and in a haze.
It was supposed to be a simple travel day: 2 flights, 1 carry-on, and a dozen podcast episodes on my phone that would make the hours fly by. My itinerary was as follows:
Santa Fe, New Mexico —> Dallas, Texas (2-hour layover)
Dallas, Texas —> NYC, New York
But this happened to be a week when flights were being delayed & canceled on an unprecedented scale across the US. Air traffic controllers were understaffed, working without pay during the government shutdown.
My simple travel plans quickly became complicated.
As flight delays were announced (to audible groans at each airport gate), my 8-hour travel day stretched into 16 hours. After I missed my connecting flight (due to, you guessed it, delays!), my airline tacked on an extra layover. Now, my itinerary looked like:
Santa Fe, New Mexico —> Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas —> Chicago, Illinois
Chicago, Illinois —> NYC, New York
I ended up zigzagging across the country, setting foot in 4 different airports across 3 time zones. Needless to say, I was half-asleep by the time I arrived at my friend’s doorstep in New York City, where my midnight snack of french fries awaited me (insert angel sounds here).
The chaos of my travel day reminded me why task-switching can be so hard for neurodivergent brains.
Boarding & debarking three flights in one day is overwhelming — just as switching between multiple tasks in one day can be overwhelming.
Why? Because there are SO many steps involved.
For me, every flight involved: finding the right gate, waiting in line to board, making my way to my seat, stuffing my carry-on underneath the chair in front of me, listening to flight safety instructions, taking off, sitting through the actual flight, white-knuckling my way through the turbulence of descent & landing… and then doing it all over again for the next flight.
Now, let’s imagine you’re trying to complete three tasks in a day – say, washing the dishes, answering your emails, and preparing dinner.
For every single task, there’s also a version of take-off and landing. It might feel like you need to switch operating systems or jump to a completely different part of your brain in order to initiate the next task.
If completing your to-do list is really hard for you, even though it seems like it “should” be easy — I get it, and I’m here to validate that your experience makes sense. Your brain might be overwhelmed by all the task-switching — and that’s not a flaw; it’s a feature of your wiring, a sign that you’re human.
If my travel day had gone as planned, I would’ve preferred the original route, with minimal transitions — of course. Likewise, if you’re looking at your to-do list & wondering “how the heck am I gonna complete all this?!”, I wonder where you might minimize the stress of task-switching.
Could you save 1 task for tomorrow, and focus on the 2 most important ones today?
Could you give yourself more time between task 1 (washing the dishes) & task 2 (answering your emails)?
What would support you in debarking & preparing to board the next plane (figuratively speaking)?
Whatever you need to make your “travels” between point A & B smoother, this is your invitation to move at the pace of your nervous system.
Talk again soon,
Liz
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About the Author
Liz Zhou (she/her) is a neurodivergent therapist, coach, and speaker. She helps highly sensitive, neurodivergent adults & couples heal their nervous systems and connect with their authentic selves, using brain-body modalities (Brainspotting, EMDR, IFS, psychedelic integration) that are quicker & more effective than traditional talk therapy. Liz offers Nervous System Healing Intensives online worldwide.
