By Darian Senn-Carter, Ed.D.
Centering Well-Being in Disability Justice
For much of my life, I believed survival was the goal. I thought if I could just push through the discomfort, meet expectations, perform at a high level, and stay ahead of the demands, I’d be okay. I saw exhaustion as normal. Overextension as necessary. Burnout, well, that was just the cost of excellence. As a Black, member of the LGBTQIA+ community, late-diagnosed Autistic, man, I didn’t always have the language to explain what I was carrying. However, I carried it well, until I couldn’t anymore. I had been surviving in silence, until the diagnosis that changed everything. My autism diagnosis didn’t shock me. It felt like remembering, removing a veil or filter, stepping fully into my truth, and honestly, a bit like arriving home. A long-overdue recognition of truths I had always known. In that moment after intense processing including grief, I stopped wondering what was wrong with me or what I could improve, and started reclaiming what had always been right.
What I now understand is that survival, while necessary at times, is not the destination. It’s the starting point. Thriving begins when we no longer normalize self-neglect in the name of achievement. When we stop seeing rest as a reward and start treating it as a right (something I’m still learning to practice). Thriving begins when well-being is centered not added on as an afterthought. My Autism diagnosis was a turning point. It helped me make sense of why the world often felt too loud and too much. It provided insight into why I needed time alone to recover from seemingly simple interactions or engagements. My diagnosis framed why masking became second nature, even without knowing. This turning point provided clarity around why, after decades of doing what I thought I was supposed to do, I found myself burned out, disconnected, and depleted.
Autistic burnout isn’t just being tired. It’s a full-body shutdown. It’s your nervous system screaming while your smile says, I’m fine. This form of burnout is about not knowing where your energy went or how to get it back. I learned this the hard way. However, I also learned something else: recovery requires permission to be soft with yourself, to move slower, to say no, to prioritize what sustains you. Recovery requires self-love, kindness, and grace.
Disability justice demands more than access. It demands a reimagining of how we care for ourselves and one another. Disability justice asks us to challenge the idea that worth is tied to output and productivity. This area of advocacy invites us to build lives where well-being isn’t radical, but routine, the standard, and non-negotiable. For me, that looks like protecting my peace with the same commitment I once gave to what I call excellence, and others name perfectionism. It means morning rituals with nature, time spent in quiet reflection, limiting my social interactions, finding meaningful ways to connect with others and the world around me, honoring my interests and sensory needs, and being unapologetic about what nourishes me. Self advocacy means creating boundaries that serve me, not just those around me. It means leading with love in how I show up for others and perhaps most importantly for myself.
As an educator, advocate and leader, I bring this lens into the work I do. I strive to create environments where people feel safe to “unmask” and to be their authentic selves. Environments where flexibility isn’t seen as a favor but a fundamental need. A paradigm shift where rest, reflection, and rhythm are woven into the culture and not squeezed in when there’s time or convenience. Ultimately, thriving isn’t about doing more. It’s about being more present, more whole, more aligned, and more me. We talk often about systems change in disability justice and that critically matters, but systems don’t change without people changing too. Without us choosing positive change, without us choosing to live differently, even if the world hasn’t caught up yet or created this space. Thriving is an act of love. Choosing joy, ease, and embodiment in a world that demands our constant labor is not just healing, it’s seen as revolutionary, when in fact, it is a fundamental and basic right.
Survival taught me how to endure. Well-being taught me how to live. I’m never going back.
Darian Senn-Carter, Ed.D., is a dedicated advocate, educator, and author committed to empowering individuals through education, policy, and neurodiversity advocacy. As an Autistic advocate and self-advocate, Dr. Senn-Carter brings a wealth of lived experience and professional expertise to his work in higher education, criminal justice, and community engagement.
With an extensive career spanning education, emergency planning, policy development, and leadership, Darian currently serves as a college administrator and tenured full professor. He has been recognized for his leadership and contributions to facilitating unity and community, and empowering others. His professional journey includes roles as a professor, administrator, medic, high school college counselor focusing on college access, special educator, emergency planner, city council member, philanthropist, author, and more. Dr. Senn-Carter has served as a Member of the Board of Directors for several non-profit organizations. Additionally, he is the founder of several scholarship and mentoring programs.
Passionate about increasing awareness and acceptance of neurodiversity, Dr. Senn-Carter speaks, writes, and educates on the strengths and challenges of being Autistic in personal, professional and academic spaces. His children’s book, The Boy Who Dreamed Big: How Autism Became One Boy’s Superpower, reflects his mission to inspire and uplift those that are neurodivergent and those that are neurotypical.
Beyond his professional endeavors, Dr. Senn-Carter finds joy, peace and inspiration in nature, writing, and creative expression. He is committed to fostering inclusive environments where neurodivergent individuals can thrive, and he continues to champion initiatives that celebrate the richness of individual experiences, promote well-being, and create lasting impact.
For more blogs by Dr. Darian Senn-Carter, check out The Diagnosis That Changed Everything: Why Late Diagnosis Aren’t Late At All.
