"Of course, you're masking -and no, it's not the psychological red flag some would have you believe. In a powerful post here, organizational psychologist Ludmila Praslova lays out the real costs and benefits of masking among neurodivergent individuals. Her insights are essential reading for anyone seeking to understand the lived experiences of this community. But things go sideways when the concept of masking is lifted from its clinical context and applied indiscriminately to the general population."
"This isn't new. Psychology has a long history of being misinterpreted. Take the term "co-dependent." Maybe someone has told you that you're in a co-dependent relationship, often with a tone of judgment: "How can you let yourself be treated this way?" That label, once reserved for those experiencing the emotional chaos of living with an alcoholic, has now been diluted to a broad-brush swipe at relationships in general-a catch-all diagnosis for anyone who dares to care too much in a relationship."
Masking functions as a coping mechanism through which people regulate behavior, expressions, and responses to fit social expectations. Masking is especially used by neurodivergent individuals to manage sensory differences and social demands without indicating pathology. Broad application of the masking label to the general population can pathologize ordinary social adaptation and provoke self-doubt. Historical misuse of psychological terms has diluted precise clinical meanings, turning them into judgmental labels. Encouraging a fixed notion of authenticity can harm people who have adapted for survival. Masking should be understood as an adaptive human capacity rather than a flaw.
Read at Psychology Today
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